Marnus Broodryk, author of “90 Rules for Entrepreneurs” and host of the weekly show for small businesses on KykNET’s Winslyn, was the keynote speaker. Alumnus D’Niel Strauss and his wife, former Miss World Rolene Strauss, were the hosts. D’Niel is the co-founder and director of Stocks & Strauss Pty Ltd and Rolene has recently entered the world of entrepreneurship with her newly released spoken word album.

“Find what drives you; remember it’s about the journey and not the destination; and you are actually fine!”

Broodryk addressed the audience on “the darker side of success” and says successful people also have problems. “Nobody posts the bad things they are going through. My experience shows me that everyone has their own struggles. But it’s important to find what makes you happy,” he said.

His advice to small business owners to find happiness and success is the following:

Before you start

• You need hustle;
• You need a great idea; and
• You need a great entrepreneur.

When starting out

• You need a friend – not a mentor; and
• It will be the most difficult thing ever.

When you’ve made it

• Focus is everything; and
• Seize the price.

He ended with the following: “Find what drives you; remember it’s about the journey and not the destination; and you are actually fine!”

After his talk the entrepreneurs had the opportunity to pitch their business to the panel (the “Lions”). The Lions were Anita Nel, Johan Bosini, Vuyisa Qabaka, Dr Sola Oduwole and D’Niel Strauss.

The entrepreneurs who entered the Lion’s Den were Jacquis Tolsma, Lisa Ndyalivani, Natasha Barbera and Seraj Toefy.

Tolsma is part of a company called OPEN that aims to solve people’s frustration with keys through propriety products and software that gives people smart access control to their properties. With Woow Foods Ndyalivani, a 2018 Small Business Academy (SBA) participant, wants to solve unhealthy eating habits by providing healthy, filling and affordable meals on the go. Moxbox, of which Barbera is one of the directors, believe they can enable impact investors to verify, track and monitor their investments using block chain technology, while Toefy’s CLIC provides a digital platform that allows clients to engage with their customers through social media and newsletters.

*The images were taken by Tom Parkin.