Entrepreneurs competition

DURBAN Chamber of Commerce and Industry is celebrating entrepreneurs and SMMEs with its Entrepreneur Competition 2014.

The launch was held at the chamber this month and consisted of an introduction to the competition and the Durban Chamber of Commerce, as well as training on self awareness, personal growth and development.

The Chamber has 23 entrepreneurs entered into the competition. Each candidate will receive six weeks of invaluable business modelling training endorsed by the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) and USA-based Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), which includes group and one-on-one mentorship with DCCI accredited mentors who themselves have invaluable business experience.

The finalists will receive training over a six week period covering all aspects of business, including strategy, marketing and sales, operational planning, staffing, financial planning and presentation skills

At the end of the programme, candidates will be equipped with a business plan to grow their businesses as well as a certificate of completion for the UKZN-endorsed programme.

A panel of judges and mentors will then scrutinize individual business plans and the candidates will be offered an opportunity to showcase their businesses at the Regional Entrepreneur Exhibition to funders and the public at large. After a rigorous selection process, three finalists will be selected and awarded as winners at a regional level who will then proceed and compete at a provincial level with the winners from other chambers in the Province and stand a chance of winning R50 000.