to the next phase have the necessary skills to continue building sustainable businesses. This four-phase ecosystem is called The Labit Academy, The LAB, The Incubator, and The Accelerator. “To kick off the process, we carefully select applicants and invite them to attend a competitive business workshop where they critically assess their business models. At the end of the workshop, they get an opportunity to pitch their business models to a panel of seasoned entrepreneurs and industry experts. And that’s only the beginning!” Over the past eight years, Labit has established two successful Accelerator businesses with an average annual turnover of R2 million, providing over 15 full-time jobs. They have hosted 87 Open Days with over 2 500 attendees, as well as 21 academies with more than 500 attendees. Subsequently, Labit worked with 95 LAB entrepreneurs, and incubated 18 sustainable businesses.
In total, they have been able to create more than 170 jobs.
Kenan explains, “We have found that most of the entrepreneurial ventures in the Drakenstein area are survivalist businesses.” A survivalist business is a type of business that is not considered to have the potential to generate income or provide employment. He believes a significant reason for this is a lack of skill. “If we are able to transform survivalist businesses into sustainable businesses by imparting skills and transforming mindsets, they can generate recurring and growing income. This in turn will provide jobs and help solve the unemployment problem which plagues our communities,” he concludes. For more information on the great work Labit is doing in Drakenstein, head to their website: https://www.labit.co.za/ . For support offered by Drakenstein Municipality to small- and medium-sized businesses, click here .
Labit deploys entrepreneurship as a strategy to create employment in Drakenstein.
Labit believes that successful entrepreneurs can bring about positive social change.
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