Sanlam and Business Partners Limited, named second-time finalist and owner of Agricon, Johan Eksteen as the overall competition winner at an awards ceremony held in Rosebank recently.
Based in Bloemfontein, Agricon is a manufacturer of cost-effective, eco-friendly pelleting solutions for the agricultural and industrial industries. Established in 1993 by siblings André and Johan Eksteen, the company – which is now a global specialist – is solely owned by Johan.
Johan Eksteen, owner of Agricon in Bloemfontein, walks away with the first prize of Entrepreneur of the Year at an awards ceremony in Rosebank.
According to Christo Botes, executive director of Business Partners Limited, the selected 15 finalists have created 1 071 job opportunities. He said the ceremony was the best day of the year where all problems were forgotten and celebrations were in order.
“Entrepreneurs are proving that miracles are possible,” he added.
“They are expected to grow their businesses in an economy that is expected to have a 0 per cent growth.”
The Entrepreneur of the Year competition provides prizes worth R2 million, with the overall winner receiving a cash prize of R150 000 and other category winners receiving R50 000 each.
Kobus Engelbrecht, marketing head at Sanlam Business Market, forms the panel of judges for the 2016 SA Entrepreneur of the Year competition.
Talking about the judging process, marketing head at Sanlam Business Market, Kobus Engelbrecht said the panel consisted of five judges who had the difficult task of choosing 15 successful businesses out of 215 entries. “Looking at the final 15, I had no clue who the winner would be and I wished I could list all 15 and say, all of the above win,” he said.
“But we had to score the entrepreneurs on their idea, the way they manage the business, their marketing, their financials and how they contribute back to the community.” He added that what they mainly looked for, as judges, was a business and a business owner who inspires people.
Christo Botes, executive director at Business Partners Limited, a company which is in partnership with Sanlam in the SA Entrepreneur Awards.
Holding his accolades, an elated Eksteen said he was proud to be South African because of the capability of entrepreneurs to take all the negatives and turn them into positives. “I think it’s absolutely amazing to be able to start up a business and to create jobs and to be an exporter. For me, I think the more problems there are, the more opportunities we have,” he said.
“I’m definitely going to inject my winnings into advertising. I am in the small business category at the moment and I want to get to the next level. I want to export more, create more revenue and more work.”
