Get R18 million from South Africa’s second-richest man for your business idea

The South African Future Trust, run by the Oppenheimer family, and Startup Club ZA are presenting a “Big $1 million Pitch” competition, in which local startups can win up to R18 million.

The competition, which is currently accepting applications, will conclude at the upcoming SA Future Trust Summit, which will be held on 28 and 29 October at the Sandton Convention Centre.

The winner of this event, which is the biggest startup pitch event in South African history, will take away $1 million, or around R18 million.

This initiative targets startups, which Startup Club ZA defines as “a disruptive early-stage business that uses innovative technology to solve a significant problem for a large market whilst creating or capturing commercial value”.

Applications close on 8 April, and other criteria include:

• The startup must be a for-profit business founded in South Africa, or if founded abroad, have a majority South African founding team and be operating in South Africa.
• Startups must have a minimum viable product (MVP) product or service in the market, that is actively being used by target customers.
• Applicants can be pre-revenue, but preference will be given to those generating sales.
• Applicants must be pre-Series A (i.e. not have raised a Series A round of funding).
• Applicants are welcome from all sectors/industries.
• Applications must be submitted in English.
• The startup must have at least one full-time founder.
• The applicant must be 18 years or older and authorized to represent the startup.

Applications will be assessed by an independent committee and selected to participate on merit.

Selection will be based on several key criteria, including the innovation and viability of the solution, as well as its scalability in terms of the size of the problem it addresses and the market opportunity it presents.

The startup’s competitive advantage and the founding team’s traction and short-term growth prospects will also be considered.

Additionally, measurable impact, particularly alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), will be an important factor.

Preference will be given to startups that have not raised capital or received mainstream media coverage in the past year. However, selection is not limited to these criteria alone.

Supporting start-ups

Selected startups will participate in one of two qualifier rounds on 23 April in Johannesburg and 13 August in Cape Town.

The top ten startups will then be selected to participate in the grand finale in October at this year’s Future Trust Summit, which will be held at the Sandton Convention Centre.

Matthew Marsden, founder of Startup Club ZA, explained on The Money Show with Stephen Grootes that they are looking for startups that solve problems through innovation.

“We’ve done a similar initiative for years prior. And really, it’s all about trying to uncover disruptive startups,” Marsden said.

“These are companies that are looking to solve problems, typically with innovation and technology.”

“It’s this beautiful intersection of Innovation and entrepreneurship and also speaks to the breadth of the focus that the SAF team, brings to the table in terms of growing the broader entrepreneurial sector.”

He encouraged those who meet the application criteria to apply for what is an “unprecedented opportunity,” not only in South Africa but also more broadly across Africa.

Jonathan Oppenheimer, Founder of Oppenheimer’s SA Future Trust, explained on The Money Show that their aim is to help smaller firms and stimulate the economy.

“The South Africa Future Trust and what it’s doing, trying to support small business in South Africa, I’m incredibly proud of it,” Oppenheimer said.

“Fundamentally, the world knows that small business is the petrol that goes into the engine that drives the car.”

“We need to find a way to enable this, and there are so many small businesses out there that have these great ideas, and yet they run into roadblocks everywhere they turn.”

Oppenheimer added that their job is to find ways to help startups navigate these roadblocks or, where that isn’t possible, to eliminate them entirely.

The challenge in selecting startups will be separating those with great ideas but lack the capacity to deliver from those with great ideas and the capacity to deliver.

“We’re really, really excited about this program this year, and we just wanted to build and build and build,” he said.

“We would love for this to become the forum for anyone who really wants to be recognised as the best of the best in the startup space or in the smaller business space.”

“In South Africa, frankly, in Africa, and we believe we’ve got all the building blocks to build that. We just now need to build the house.”