Partnership with Smartstart to implement ongoing business mentorshipsupport for the Early Childhood Development Practitioners. This 6 monthmentorship programme supported 428 Smartstarters and equipped themwith the necessary business skills to grow their early childhooddevelopment businesses.

The business mentorship programmes aims to impact 3 key areas:
1. Business Growth and Sustainability
2. Economic Growth and Job Creation
3. Personal Growth and Leadership

This projects supports entrepreneurs at the grassroots level and encouragesthem to be innovative in order to build a business that educates morechildren whilst building a profitable business.

Truworths and The Startup Hatchery collaborated on a fashion businessincubator to benefit existing and aspiring fashion entrepreneurs. The 12month programme developed the business skills of fashion entrepreneursthrough action based learning. The incubator was developed by TheStartup Hatchery to immerse designers in a community created to equipand propel upcoming fashion businesses.

Brands that were sustainably turning over R30K per month afterprogramme completion. Other brands hit high turnovers such as R91K inMay amidst the covid pandemic. Designers were invited to showcase atFashion weeks in Nigeria, Lesotho, SAFW and New York. Brandscollaborated with local artists such as Kwesta.

The Startup Hatchery launched a virtual business incubation programme tohelp foster a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship at the university. Aprogramme was launched across all 7 faculties to battle it out with the bestconcept and business model. This 5 month programme for early-stageentrepreneurs enabled them to create a business as well as a prototype tostart selling and testing their markets.

The programme also included talks by inspirational local founders,workshops on Social Media, Design Thinking and Funding for everyone atthe university including faculty and staff.

TSH was a partner in the planning and facilitation of the first 48-hour Hackathon at Stellenbosch University. The event was a Fintechathon that comprised of 40 students from various faculties that had to solve a problem in the Fintech and financial services industry. Capitec and Entersekt were the key partners on this project. The hackathon was to design a cashless experiences for a mobile-first world.

“Imagine your student life improved with great new on-the-go capabilities to help you and your friends get more done – quicker, faster and more securely, using your mobile phone.” There were cash prizes to the value of R25000 for the winners. After 48 long hours, the student were amped and excited to present their prototypes of the products they wanted to build.

The Greater Tygerberg Partnership (GTP) and The Startup Hatchery (TSH) launched a pitching competition to surface innovative ideas that, when implemented, could lead to the improvement of Bellville in Cape Town’s northern suburbs. Innovate Bellville 2.0 was open to new businesses that have been operating for six months or less, who are developing new innovative ideas that could improve public transport, create jobs, create inclusive public spaces, address homelessness, improve health and wellbeing, manage waste, facilitate mobility, attract and retain investment and regenerate the Bellville urban centre.

The Startup Hatchery (TSH) is a virtual partner to CiTi, which is one of Cape Town’s oldest physical business incubator. We are currently running a number of programmes where TSH provides content, facilitation, mentorship and support for previously disadvantages youth tech start-up entrepreneurs, Women in Business and Youth In Business.

The women owned businesses that have been running for more than 2 years find immense value from the programme, re-evaluating at all facets of their business in detail for sustainable impact.

Facilitation and delivery of the Grow Your Business Programme. The programme focuses on promoting entrepreneurship as a desirable economic path, and nurturing 100% blackowned businesses in the critical first three years of their existence through the provision of nationwide incubators.

This programme is designed for entrepreneurs that have been in business for more than 2 years, it takes the entrepreneur back to the drawing board to look at their Business Model in extreme detail.