RedHub Operations Manager Hoosen Essop and Black Umbrellas COO Xolile Ndumndum cut the ribbon at the opening of the Black Umbrellas incubator lounge in Auckland Park Johannesburg. Picture: Vusi Adonis
Johannesburg - With the changing economic climate and lack of job opportunities, many South Africans are looking to be financially independent and start their own entrepreneurial ventures.
There is a belief in some quarters of society that entrepreneurship is something one is inherently born with and that it cannot be taught. There are those who, of course, believe that entrepreneurship can be taught by teaching individuals the fundamentals of business that will allow them to be better entrepreneurs.
Compelling arguments can be made for both points of view. Regent Business School, along with Black Umbrellas, are collaborating to create a space where both schools of thought can be accommodated.
Regent Business School and Black Umbrellas have partnered to launch the Black Umbrellas incubation lounge, which is housed at Regent’s Auckland Park campus in Johannesburg.
This is the first of three incubation lounges that will be launched nationally with the Regent Enterprise Development Hub RedHUB and are seen as a testament to Regent’s concerted effort to mainstream entrepreneurship.
RedHUB Operations Manager Hoosen Essof highlighted the significance of having Black Umbrellas business lounge on the premises.
“What we are attempting to do here is to give our students and others a practical experience and a practical technical exposure to business and entrepreneurship, and this is where that will happen,” he said.
Essof called for academic institutions to start providing students with the practical experience to be able to thrive in the real world once they begin their entrepreneurial endeavours as entrepreneurship is more of an experiential subject that requires “learning by doing” and see Black Umbrellas as the ideal partner to provide this aspect of the students’ entrepreneurial development.
He said: “I think there is a need in the higher academic institutions to start giving students and others very practical experience.”
“The programme that Black Umbrellas has is very practical in that sense, and they complement what we do”.
Essof believes that entrepreneurship can be taught and states that the secret lies in how the discipline is taught.
“Coming from an educational background, I think we are convinced that it is something that can be taught. So it’s how you teach it to people in a way that they don’t feel intimidated by it.”
The Black Umbrellas incubation lounges will provide aspirant entrepreneurs, regent students, and members of the public with access to industry experts who will assist them with training, mentoring, and business coaching.
The facility is equipped with wi-fi workspaces, meeting rooms, telephony, and video conferencing amenities for students and entrepreneurs to use to help them facilitate the growth of their enterprises.
Having launched a Virtual Incubator in 2020, Black Umbrellas has actively been working to extend its reach across the country, and the partnership with Regent Business School will go a long way in achieving that objective.
IOL BUSINESS