Uni Blog

brandhouse Pitch & Polish is setting the stage for entrepreneurs

Local entrepreneurs will be drawn from eleven South African towns where they will be given the opportunity to appear before an audience of fellow competitors and pitch their business ideas to a panel of judges. The panel will include the co-founder of the Entrepreneurs' Organization South Africa and CEO of Raizcorp, Allon Raiz, along with fellow EO members from South Africa and a senior member of the local community.

Every entrant will get 3 minutes to deliver a pitch, 3 minutes for questions and answers, and 3 minutes of constructive feedback from the panel. The feedback is a critical component of the competition because its primary objective is to provide participants with a watch-and-learn experience and allow entrants to polish their business ideas.

The competition will culminate with finalists presenting their pitches to an audience of 320 international visiting entrepreneurs at the EO Cape Town University conference to be held in Cape Town from 10-14 November 2010. The winner will possibly be linked with a company abroad and be awarded an all-expenses-paid trip for a week of mentorship with their host company. Prize money totalling around R90 000 is to be won throughout the competition.

brandhouse^TM has come on board with a view of long-term support for Pitch & Polish because the concept aligns so well with their value and strategy of supporting the real needs of people.

brandhouse^TM believes that this competition offers those entrepreneurs outside the mainstream economic centres an opportunity to gain exposure to and learn from international entrepreneurial thinking.

"Job creation and the growth of our economy will come from small business, many of them in the informal sector.  The future of South Africa lies in harnessing the informal sector and energy of South African entrepreneurs.  Many of these gems are struggling, undiscovered across South Africa in small towns and villages" says brandhouse^TM CSR Manager, Phumza Rengqe.

"The aim of Pitch & Polish is to find these future business stars and help them unleash the power of their vision and ingenuity."

Alongside brandhouse^TM Beverages (Pty) Ltd, other sponsorship partners for Pitch & Polish are MTN, City of Cape Town, RMB Private Bank and SA Tourism.

brandhouse^TM Beverages (Pty) Ltd was formed on 1 July 2004 as a joint venture between Diageo, Heineken International and Namibia Breweries Ltd. It is South Africa's leading premium drinks company with an unrivalled portfolio of brands across the spirits, beer and cider categories. These include Johnnie Walker, J&B, Smirnoff, Bells, Baileys, Jose Cuervo, Tanqueray, Captain Morgan, Amstel, Heineken, Windhoek, Foundry, and Guinness among others. For more information about brandhouse, its people, and brands visit www.brandhouse.co.za.

The Entrepreneurs' Organization (EO) is a global network of more than 7,300 business owners in 42 countries. Members have to own or be part-owners of companies with a turnover of more than US$1 million a year. Founded in 1987 by a group of young entrepreneurs, EO is the catalyst that enables entrepreneurs to learn and grow from each other, leading to greater business success and an enriched personal life. For more in formation, visit www.eonetwork.org or www.oecapetown2010.co.za

Allon Raiz is the CEO of Raizcorp, the only privately-owned small business ‘prosperator' in South Africa, the only service provider with a head start of 8 years in this field and the only Enterprise Development faculty with CHE accreditation. In 2008 Raiz was selected as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum. To find out more about Raizcorp's entrepreneur support programme, telephone 011 566 2000 or visit their website at www.raizcorp.co.za.