20 South African female founders and entrepreneurs operating in different industry sectors, who were part of the 2021 cohort of the AWIEF Growth Accelerator programme, graduated on 13 December 2021 to join the constantly growing AWIEF alumni community. They are ready to take their businesses to the next level after four months of capacity and business skills development, pitching, mentorship, and coaching. This is the 4th edition of the flagship programme that supports early and growth-stage women-owned businesses for investment readiness and scale.
The female entrepreneurs found value in the encompassing curriculum as well as the opportunity to network and interact with others in different sectors.
According to Carmy Davis, “The programme has offered me not just business growth by means of making minor impactful changes in my ways of working, but also personal growth which is equally as important for us as businesswomen. Being part of the programme and learning ways and methods to manage and grow my business sustainably, I have also had the privilege to tap into other interests of growing my portfolio which I am really excited about and will be sure to share with the AWIEF Community once the venture takes off.”
Sharing her own experience, Tebogo Nyathela said “I learned so much through this whole programme. Right now, I feel very confident with my business, especially after participating in the pitching sessions. It was my first time pitching my business and I learnt so much from the experience.”
The AWIEF Growth Accelerator is a four-month business skills development programme, designed to support the unique needs of early-stage and high growth-oriented women-owned and women-led ventures with business modelling, growth strategy training, corporate advisory, mentorship, networks, and access to strategic partnerships. The accelerator provides capital-raising support for growth, scale, and sustainability. It builds women’s entrepreneurial leadership capacity, connects them with appropriate sources of capital and helps them scale. For the 2021 cohort, 20 female entrepreneurs were selected from sectors including: technology, agribusiness, financial services, manufacturing, health, education, tourism and hospitality, creative industries, and renewable energy. The AWIEF Growth Accelerator programme is implemented in partnership with Nedbank.