The businesswomen who entered the 2019 FAIRLADY Santam Woman of the Future, Rising Star and Social Entrepreneur awards inspired us with their entrepreneurial spirit and their commitment to seeing their brilliant ideas through. It has been tremendously difficult to choose the finalists in each category.
The panel of judges presiding over the awards this year are Professor Thuli Madonsela (chair for Social Justice at Stellenbosch University, founder of the Social Justice M-Plan as well as the Thuma Foundation); Dawn Nathan-Jones (social entrepreneur); Johanna Mukoki (entrepreneur, global motivational speaker, philanthropist and travel guru); Jo-Ann Strauss (media entrepreneur and international speaker); Enid Lizamore (executive head of Human Resources at Santam); and Suzy Brokensha (FAIRLADY editor).
‘The FAIRLADY Santam Women of the Future Awards just get better and stronger each year. This year saw more entries than ever, with extraordinarily inspiring candidates. It’s a real challenge to pick the winners because the calibre is so high, but it’s one I wouldn’t give up for anything!’ – Suzy Brokensha
The winners in each of the three categories of the FAIRLADY Santam Women of The Future Awards 2019 will be honoured at a prestigious ceremony in Johannesburg on Friday, 16 August 2019, with Johanna Mukoki as MC.
Through an independent survey, Santam found that the first 1000 days of business are the hardest, and that if you’re still in business by day 1001, you’re likely to succeed in the long term. We are proud to announce this year’s finalists:
Woman of the Future 2019
The women eligible for this award are 30 or older and have been in business for at least 1000 days. The finalists are:
- Kathryn Main (Money Savvy Kids) – teaches children as young as four crucial financial skills so they can become financially independent adults.
- Nisha Maharaj (Niche Integrated Solutions) – specialises in information and communications technology.
- Phillipa Geard (RecruitMyMom) – a user-friendly online recruitment platform that links skilled moms to potential employers.
Social Entrepreneur 2019:
The women eligible for this award are 30 or older and their businesses have survived the first 1000 days. Their ventures are making a difference in their communities. The finalists are:
- Luleka Mkuzo (Urglobal Mentoring Network) – a mobile computer training solution that utilises a school’s infrastructure to teach computer skills to students, teachers, community leaders and members in rural communities.
- Lusanda Magwape (Dream Factory Foundation) – a non-profit organisation that offers educational tools and programmes to improve the outcomes of learners, and give unemployed youth digital and entrepreneurial skills.
- Renshia Manuel (GrowBox) – promotes urban food gardens by supplying vegetable garden boxes to impoverished and malnourished communities in densely populated urban residential areas.
Rising Star 2019:
These young go-getters are 30 and under, and have passed the six-month milestone. The finalists are:
- Andrae Smith (Work Wanderers) – provides one-month co-living, co-working retreats in emerging tech hubs around the world, bringing together like-minded innovators for a shared experience of learning, sharing and career development.
- Mpho Mohaswa (Precious & Pearl Brands) – sells ghemere, a ginger-based drink, using the same traditional recipe (but with a few added preservatives to ensure a longer shelf life).
- Nondumiso Sibaya (Boombadotmobi) – connects waste generators to waste removal, and ensures the waste is disposed of responsibly.
The prizes awarded to the three winners are R80 000 in cash to the Woman of the Future, R50 000 each in cash to the Rising Star and Social Entrepreneur and, to all the winners, an invaluable mentorship session with one of the judges, a luxury Beauty Hamper from Clarins, a short course from the IMM Graduate School worth R15 000, a Karissa business bag and spinner from Samsonite worth R7 298, a ladies watch from Obaku worth R2 195, R1 000 shopping voucher from Superbalist, a voucher from Camelot Spa and a media training session.
For full details on the finalists and information on how to purchase tickets for the event, get the August 2019 issue of FAIRLADY magazine.
