Top 10 Young South African Entrepreneurs To Watch In 2024

Last updated on January 10th, 2024 at 01:26 pm

There are many self-made businesspeople and entrepreneurs in South Africa. Becoming the youngest entrepreneur is everyone’s dream but it’s not easy. Let’s know about the top 10 youngest entrepreneurs in South Africa.

1. Gabi Immelman – founder of Mindjoy

Gabi Immelman, a young South African entrepreneur, has been named on the Mail & Guardian’s Top 200 Young South Africans list for 2022. She founded Mindjoy, an ed-tech startup that teaches children aged 8 and above about the basics of coding. She is just 31 years old.

2. Ezlyn Barends – founder of DreamGirls Academy

Ezlyn Barends has been recognised as one of Mail & Guardian’s Top 200 Young South Africans. She has also been named on the list of FastCompany’s Top Creative South Africans in Business. She co-founded DreamGirls Academy, which empowers young women to plan for the future. She is also just 31 years old. She is also one of the richest women in South Africa.

3. Kim Whitaker – founder of Ubuntu Beds

Kim Whitaker is the CEO of Once Youth Hotels. In 2013, she co-founded the “Once in Cape Town” (Cape Town, South Africa) hotel. In 2020, she founded Ubuntu Beds to help healthcare workers. She also co-founded Khwela Womxn, a non-profit organization in Cape Town, South Africa. She has won various awards, including Investec “YoungTreps”, Sanlam EOY, Emerging Entrepreneur winner, Mzansi Top 100 Young Independents, and Premier’s Award for Entrepreneurship Tourism winner.

4. Asanda Maqabuka – co-founder of Yojo Food App

Asanda Maqabuka created the Yojo Food app during the lockdown. She is an Eastern Cape-based entrepreneur. She also founded Chicken Bar in the Eastern Cape in 2019 in order to promote African grilled chicken dishes. She is one of the best South African entrepreneurs to watch in 2023.

5. Arabella Parkinson – founder of Eat to Thrive

Arabella Parkinson is one of the best South African entrepreneurs to watch in 2023. She is a chef, an integrative health coach, a nutrition designer, a writer and a menu consultant. She founded Eat to Thrive to promote sustainable food systems across South Africa.

6. Qhawe Bula – co-founder of TAQA Digital Library

Qhawe Bula is the co-founder and director of TAQA, a digital library of read-along children’s books in 11 official languages. In 2020, Bula and his team entered the Entrepreneurship Intervarsity competition. Bula was a second-year Bachelor of Social Sciences student in 2020. 

7. Mariam Manack – founder of iTrain

Mariam Manack was named one of Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2019. She founded iTrain, a South African movement for women aimed at empowering them through fitness. Currently, she is the director at iTrain.

8. Theo Baloyi – founder of Bathu Shoes

Theo Baloyi is a  famous South African entrepreneur. He founded the first black-owned sneaker brand in South Africa, Bathu Shoes, in 2015. Baloyi was also featured in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in 2019. Bathu Shoes now has an online shop and 16 retail stores across South Africa.

9. Cameron Naidoo – founder of Guerilla

Cameron Naidoo is an entrepreneur from Cape Town. He is the founder of Guerilla, the creative agency behind AmaMeme, the South African meme platform. He is one of the most successful entrepreneurs from South Africa.

10. Isaac Mbatha

Isaac Mbatha is the founder of Sky Tents SA, which manufactures and supplies a wide range of tents, including party, wedding, stretch and pagoda tents. Mbatha represented Africa at the Forbes Under 30 Summit in 2019.

These are the top 10 Young South African Entrepreneurs to watch in 2023. What do you think about them?

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