In celebration of the City’s Business Hub celebrating its second birthday this month, the City would like to thank businesses who have journeyed with us for support and to help grow local businesses and encourage others to make use of this valuable service. This service has been particularly vital to businesses during the pandemic. To boost this offering, a mobile bus service was also launched to drive the service closer to where businesses are. Read more below:
For the second consecutive year, Cape Town has been ranked the number 1 city in South Africa and Southern Africa for start-ups, according to this year’s Start-Up Ecosystem Report from the global research centre, StartupBlink.
The city also moved up one spot in the global ranking to 145th place.
‘Cape Town is an ideal place to locate for Software and Data, Education and Fintech start-ups,’ says the research centre.
The research centre cited that one of the reasons for the city’s high ranking is the “strong political will” that drives investment into Cape Town.
The City of Cape Town’s Business Hub is an example of this strong will put into action. The hub was launched two years ago this month to assist small businesses and entrepreneurs to find solutions that would make them more competitive and resilient. The Hub team fields queries relating to business registration, access to finance, permits, assistance with accessing markets and tenders, among others.
‘I am exceptionally proud of the work done and the success achieved over the last two years. The team has helped thousands of people from all across Cape Town. With the pandemic and lockdown hitting small businesses as hard as it did, The Business Hub’s role was more critical than ever in helping SMMEs and entrepreneurs,’ said Alderman James Vos, the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Opportunities and Asset Management.
In the last two years, The Business Hub has:
Responded to 4 990 service requests/enquiries
Resolved 98% of requests/enquiries within two working days
Facilitated 61 red tape business cases
In March this year, the Hub launched a mobile help desk to go directly into communities and assist local businesses where they are based.
At these four activations, the mobile team has assisted 127 clients in Delft, Mitchells Plain, Bellville and Strand.
‘A healthy business ecosystem in communities is good for local residents and the broader Cape Town landscape. By meeting businesses where they are, we reduce the cost and time it would take for them to come to us,’ said Alderman Vos.
One of the thousands of business owners who have been supported is Glynn Mashonga, who started her business, Globescope Security Solutions. One of her biggest struggles was accessing funding. After contacting The Business Hub, Mashonga attended one of the City’s Smart Supplier Programmes where she received training on pitching to major corporate clients. The training she received helped her to land more and bigger clients including IBM, ABSA bank, and UK-based corporations.
Another example is Gary Styles, the owner of Custom Office, a furniture manufacturer and wholesale supplier who said that The Business Hub helped him during a particularly difficult time.
‘In a time when it felt like I was on my own in trying to figure out how to operate, retain my workforce as well as to survive, the fantastic and speedy help I received from the City’s Business Hub showed that I was not alone and that the City was hard at work to help businesses to survive and thrive. I am immensely happy with and thankful for the support I received,’ said Styles.
Alderman Vos said these were perfect examples of the impact of effective communication and collaboration between the City and small business owners.
‘In my time as the City of Cape Town’s Mayoral Member for Economic Opportunities and Asset Management, I’ve had the privilege to meet thousands of small business owners working hard to supply unique or necessary services and products while providing others with employment. Our economy as a city and country is dependent on them. So I am very proud of the work of The Business Hub and look forward to many more successes in the future,’ said Alderman Vos.
To speak to the hub’s team about your business needs, contact them on business.support@capetown.gov.za or 021 417 4043.
Source: City Of Cape Town
