Young fashion entrepreneurs receive valuable advice
Fashion was the order of the day at The Hook Up Dinner Ekurhuleni.
Five fashion entrepreneurs won a business incubation prize worth more than R100 000 during The Hook Up Dinner Ekurhuleni (THUDEkurhuleni) held at Germiston Lake last Thursday.
The metro through its youth directorate partnered with The Hook Up Dinner (THUD) and other stakeholders like the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) to support the businesses of young people in Ekurhuleni.
During THUDEkurhuleni the metro and its stakeholders pledged financial support as well as non-financial support to young entrepreneurs.
The network session takes place once a month where young people pitch their ideas to experts and their peers.
They are given advice on how to improve and grow their businesses.
ALSO READ:
The old fashioned hot toddy still the perennial fix for the common cold
The metro’s divisional head for the youth directorate, Adv Modise Koetle, said the sessions will have different themes for pitching that will change every month.
In July the theme was youth in fashion.
“THUDEkurhuleni gives young people in business a chance to network with their peers, experts, potential funders and customers.
“These sessions give young people access to the market, especially in the SMMES sector,” Koetle said.
David Tlale, one of the fashion heavyweights in the country, urged participants to master the basics, identify their skills and refine them.
“Go to fashion schools and companies that teach and produce, respectively, the line of fashion you want to pursue and learn how they do what they do.
“Know the types of material they use and the purposes for which they use them,” Tlale said.
He also advised the young fashion designers to make use of mentors and learnerships to learn the trade.
Obed Letsoho from the NYDA announced that his organisation will give five entrepreneurs who pitched on the day four vouchers each for services such as business plans, marketing strategies and other essential assistance they would need to grow their businesses.
ALSO READ:
The insatiable desire to be fashionable has created the second largest polluter in the world
He added that the NYDA will be giving mentoring services to these fashion entrepreneurs.
Letsoho said young people in Ekurhuleni can access the services of the NYDA by logging on to www.nyda.gov.za or visiting its offices at the old Boksburg Magistrate’s Court at 50 Church Street, Boksburg.
They can also call its call centre on 0800 52 52 52.
Follow us on these social media platforms:
