South Africa’s Payfast Rolls out Fresh Program to Equip Aspiring Entrepreneurs

PayFast, a South African internet payment gateway, has partnered with Heavy Chef’s entrepreneur education non-profit, the Heavy Chef Foundation, to offer a 12-week development program.

The new program aims to equip budding entrepreneurs with the knowledge and skills they need to launch their own e-commerce businesses.

More than 42% of growing South African entrepreneurs, according to Heavy Chef, do not know how to set up an internet store. By kicking up the program, PayFast hopes to alleviate this lack of awareness.

“E-commerce has made entrepreneurship more accessible to a wider range of people.” You no longer need to rent a physical storefront or set up a market stand to start a business. All you need is an internet connection, a great business plan, and a good understanding of what buyers expect from online retailers. “We intend to provide the basic components for success with our mentorship program,” says Byron Clarence, PayFast’s Business Developer Manager.

A New 12-Week Development Program has Been Launched

Three cohorts of ten entrepreneurs will participate in the program, which will take place in Khayelitsha, Cape Town, and Elardus Park, Pretoria, as well as online. Each team will have created their own ‘Recipe Book’ on the subject of online businesses by the time participants graduate in August.

This will be produced in weekly workshop sessions with the assistance of e-commerce specialists who will share their knowledge and serve as program mentors. Choosing an e-commerce platform, conducting transactions, delivering products, managing consumers, and other topics will be covered.

“This learning paradigm is adapted to the needs of our program participants, allowing them to take charge of their own learning and empower one another as a group.” After all, it’s where the effect is made when entrepreneurs train other entrepreneurs,” says Louis Janse van Rensburg, CEO of the Heavy Chef Foundation, the company’s non-profit arm.

Entrepreneurs will also have access to a variety of valuable resources, such as cash vouchers, equipment, data, coworking space access, mental health support, and Heavy Chef guidebooks.

“Success, like any other business, depends on having access to the correct tools. We’re developing a sustainable approach to learning and empowerment by providing both information and resources,” adds Clarence, who is also a mentor in the program.

“We are ecstatic to be working with a company like PayFast, which is known for its outstanding support of the entrepreneurial ecosystem.” “They’ve had the foresight to fund a program that aspires to innovate and offer learning in a hyper contextual and personalised way, ensuring the next generation of business owners can succeed with their ideas,” says Janse van Rensburg.