Serve others and the money will follow, says entrepreneur Pontsho Manzi

Pontsho Manzi, VIP guest speaker at the 2018 Standard Bank TOP Women Conference in Cape Town

"Ladies, write your vision, pray over your vision, and everything will come together at the end of the day. There is power in what you write down," Manzi shared at the Cape Town leg of the 2018 Top Women Conference series held earlier this month.

Manzi's success story

After matriculating, Manzi completed a degree in Human Resource Management and went on to work for a number of large corporates, equipping herself with all the skills she needed to start her first business - Recrutrain. Two months after founding the recruitment company in her bedroom/office, she secured offices in Sandton and was contracting for big brands. She admits though to still not feeling completely fulfilled at the time, but not knowing why.

Manzi's next business was an image consultancy called FabImage, part of which entailed her hosting high teas for women. At these events she found quite a few women sharing their personal challenges with her. After a conversation with her father, she had her aha moment on realising her purpose - women empowerment. Thereafter she changed her talks from being mainly about image and personal branding to beauty from the inside out. It was from this point that Manzi's life changed, she said - she started feeling happy and fulfilled. But she didn't stop there...

Manzi then entered the publishing industry, launching a diary as well as a magazine about womanhood, spirituality and self-belief. With everything at Bonisa Media running smoothly, two years ago she bought land and is now farming herbs to produce a variety of teas.

Looking back at her initial vision now, it seems Manzi has just about attained her life goal - as a young girl, she'd imagined a big beautiful building for women from all walks of life - she envisioned women reading, writing, being pampered, and being inspired, she described. All that's left on her to-do list is to acquire that big beautiful building and transform it into a "10-star hotel"!

L-R: Vuyo Dubese, startup partnerships lead for Africa, Thomson Reuters; Xoliswa Daku, founder and CEO of DCI Holdings and Daku Group of Companies; Pontsho Manzi, MD of Botlhokwa Group; Sharon Smith, WC provincial head: retail markets, Standard Bank

Policy implementation lacking

Manzi's success story as a women entrepreneur is an inspiring one, but it is one of only a few within the South African business sector. Female-owned businesses make up a very low proportion of the total number of entrepreneurs in the country, and while policies exist to promote more female participation, implementation is lacking, said Manzi in an interview with Bizcommunity.

"[Government] really needs to execute and implement all the policies available. They need to push and make sure doors are open for women entrepreneurs in corporate and government entities. There are a lot of challenges for women to get big deals, for example. They believe big deals belong to male-owned businesses rather than female-owned businesses. They need to believe in us more and open up more opportunities for us and not just talk but implement, make sure they push and open those doors for us," she said.

Ethical leadership

Manzi also commented on ethical leadership in the country and on the continent, attributing rampant corruption in the region to a "mentality of deprivation". "Most Africans were deprived previously so they feel they need to get everything that they've been deprived of. You land in Nigeria at the airport and they need a bribe for doing their job.

"It's everywhere and it's such a challenge, but it's up to us to stop it ... to walk away from dirty business, and walk away from bribery."

An incredible day it’s been to be able to moderate the @SBTopWomen Regional Conference in Cape Town and talk not only access to market, but what it means for the stakeholders of industry and entrepreneurs alike to enable businesses to thrive. Thank you #SBTopWomenCT �� pic.twitter.com/njc5BrCjX6

— Vuyo Dubese (@VDubese) March 15, 2018

Tips and tricks to entrepreneurship Manzi shared at the regional conference:

• Cash flow is important - be strict with clients to make sure payment is made timeously.
  
• Self-belief is key - entrepreneurship entails many challenges, and if you lack self-belief, people will drag you from pillar to post.
  
• Integrity will take you places. "When they block that door asking you to bribe, another bigger one opens up to you. Just be patient and work hard."
  
• Formalise all agreements in contracts because if there isn't a contract, you won't be able to cover yourself if they are not paying you.
  
• Take calculated risks.
  
• Don't dwell on your mistakes - face your fears and take action.
  
• Build a great team through skills transfer and delegate.
  
• Understand your customers.
  
• Develop yourself; learn more about the business that you're in. You, unfortunately, need to be a jack of all trades.
  
• Have a morning routine. Plan your day, and then go for it. "It's all about being present, as opposed to seeking balance."
  
• Celebrate and sponsor other women.
  
• Be of service to others - your community is important.

"Never ever concentrate on money when you are running your business," concluded Manzi. "Serve people and money will follow you everywhere you go."

Standard Bank TOP Women regional conferences will be held in Durban, Limpopo and Port Elizabeth. For more info, click here.