The Hope Factory's Johannesburg Stakeholder Day showcases entrepreneurs
Published by http://ventureburn.com/ on 5 August, 2015
The Hope Factory, a reputable Enterprise and Supplier Development Non Profit Company is bringing corporates and entrepreneurs together during a Stakeholder Day at the Summerstrand Hotel in Port Elizabeth. The Hope Factory, part of the Nation Building division of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) will first-hand show current and potential funders how their contribution is helping entrepreneurs to grow their companies.
Stakeholder Day will include a Supplier Expo where The Hope Factory's entrepreneurs will showcase their products and services, linking local funders to entrepreneurs. The Expo is also open to the public and The Hope Factory will also have a stand where Corporates and new potential funders can find out more about The Hope Factory Supplier Development offering.
“We are honoured to have Mr. Adrian Gardiner, the chairman of the Mantis Group as our guest speaker. He has an amazing story – his entrepreneur journey will resonate with our entrepreneurs, says Annie McWalter,” CEO of The Hope Factory.
Born in Zambia, Gardiner's passion for nature coupled with his strong entrepreneurial skill was forged from an early age. In the early 1990s he developed a new venture into tourism – he began with 2,000 hectares of eroded degraded and abused land, a small insignificant piece of valley bushveld, and from this he grew Shamwari Game Reserve. On seeing the success of Shamwari, Gardiner was able to replicate the model a few years later, by creating Sanbona Wildlife Reserve in the Western Cape (54 000 hectares). With two wildlife reserves flourishing, Gardiner then founded the parent company Mantis in 2000. He began small and grew his businesses with time, passion and patience. He explains, "Life is thought to be full of problems. Problems are opportunities some more disguised than others. There is always a solution to every problem, just create the opportunity."
Terence Nombembe, CEO of the South Africa Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) says, “This is the day that always stimulates in a practical way the desires and aspirations of ambitious South Africans. On this day The Hope Factory is able to bring together partners who work together every day to touch lives, the corporate funders, business mentors and entrepreneurs. In this way they contribute towards a thriving economy and job creation – this is what we need to build a better South Africa for all.”
McWalter adds, “Sometimes the thin line between success and failure for an entrepreneur is to know that someone believes in you and your vision. That's what our funders are doing and saying to our entrepreneurs with their immeasurable contributions.”
This year, The Hope Factory's focus is to highlight to both big corporates and small businesses the importance of Supplier Development (SD). Small businesses need support in order to grow their business and to help contribute to the economy. This is in alignment with the Amended B-BBEE Codes which stipulate the need for corporates to guide small companies for business support and success. “Many corporates are still in the dark as to how these new codes on Supplier Development will impact their business. SD is all about corporates working with their suppliers to guarantee success for both parties. The new codes instruct that a greater portion of investment must now be made to suppliers” says McWalter.
McWalter says, “Stakeholder Day is important to us as a company mainly because we want to motivate our entrepreneurs to work even harder and empower them to become the big corporates of the future. Hopefully they in turn will also invest in the entrepreneurial space and assist other small business to become successful.”
