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Best Business Incubators in South Africa

Many businesses fail when they are starting due to a lack of finances and experience. Business incubators help new startups innovate and grow. Business incubators mainly provide mentorship, education and workspaces where they can share experiences and ideas. With the many startups coming up in South Africa, you need to know some of the best business incubators.

Leading South African Business Incubators

In this article, I will provide you with a list of some of the best business incubators in South Africa. 

1.  Raizcorp

Raizcorp is among the best small business incubators South Africa that offers entrepreneurs world-class incubation and business acceleration. It trains corporate leadership teams and sales teams to become qualified entrepreneurs.

Besides, it offers entrepreneurial education to school children to nurture them into entrepreneurship. It also assists governments and development agencies in setting up entrepreneurial infrastructure all over the country.

2. Timbali Technology Incubator

Timbali Technology Incubator is a non-profit making business incubator started in 2003. It brings together low-skilled, young, unemployed and inexperienced people. It offers an incubation product supply chain and creates an enabling environment for the growth. It mainly helps entrepreneurs in the agri-business sector and helps them deliver quality products in the market.

Timbali Technology Incubator has been offering training, financing, mentorship and technology packaging to new startups. It increases the chances of survival for startups during their first three years.

Read also: How to register a business in South Africa. 

3. The Awethu Project

The Awethu Project is a business incubator in South Africa that is helping businesses grow. It has worked with many small and medium enterprises. Its main objective is to help young and inexperienced entrepreneurial South Africans.

4. Launchlab

Launchlab is one of the best South African business incubators striving to build a sustainable, high-impact company that can tackle the world’s challenges in Agri, climate and health. It helps students with ideas and entrepreneurs in their early stages of business and nurtures them to achieve their full potential. Its slogan is to inspire, build, grow and support a wide range of entrepreneurial ideas.

It has incubated over 200 businesses and has a proven track record of building high-growth companies. It has helped entrepreneurs set up investments with high returns and entrepreneurs build high income generate enterprises. 

Read also: How to start magwinya business in South Africa. 

5. Grindstone

Grindstone is a leading South African business accelerator. It is supported by Knife Capital and Thinkroom. It helps high driven innovation companies to become fundable and sustainable. It supports 20 companies every year by providing them with networks, knowledge and funding necessary for growth.

In general, it supports businesses with resources and services like training, corporate advisory, mentorship, funding and coaching.

6. The Innovation Hub

The Innovation Hub is an enterprise development hub that helps to expand small enterprises and new businesses. It strives to promote a culture of innovation and stimulates competitiveness among companies and knowledge-based institutions. It also creates opportunities for new businesses and ensures human capacity development of critical skills.

7. Seda

The Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA) is a South African business incubator providing business development and support services to small enterprises. It provides a national network and partnerships. It also provides startups with advice by informing you what you need to start a business and to test if your business idea can work. 

8. Black Umbrellas

Black Umbrellas is a non-profit making business incubator South Africa that has partnered with the government, civil society and the private sector to eliminate the high rate of 100% black-owned business failure. It has nine incubators countrywide so far.

It helps black-owned businesses during their critical first three years by offering them office infrastructure, expertise and resources. It has partnered with Cyril Ramaphosa Foundation and Shanduka Foundation to position itself on a national level. 

Summary of the Small Business Incubators South Africa 

Finding the best business incubator for your business in South Africa is critical. Business incubators offer mentorship, financial support, resources, skills development, education and workspaces. They also create opportunities for entrepreneurs to interact and share ideas through workshops. If you have a new startup, you can consider enrolling in any of these incubators. 

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