In support of women-led small, medium-sized and microenterprises (SMMEs), business development organisation Black Umbrellas hosted its Women’s Breakfast, facilitating discussions on the challenges female entrepreneurs encounter.

In partnership with law firm Bowmans, the event was held at Bowmans’s headquarters, in Sandton, on August 17.

Themed ‘Women Who Build Beyond Resilience’, the event featured a keynote address by financial services provider Sygnia CEO and co-founder Magda Wierzycka.

She was joined by a panel of speakers comprising genetic research organisation GENEdiagnostics CEO and founder Professor Monique Zaahl, accounting firm Bita Finance founder Hrydhaya Ramchunder, philanthropic nonprofit organisation Allan and Gill Gray Philanthropies South Africa CEO Zimkhita Peter and financial consultancy Masisizane Fund impact investment strategist Tebogo Mokgoadi.

Wierzycka emphasised that success was driven by a combination of passion and sustained perseverance toward long-term goals as opposed to solely talent.

Noting that women often had to work harder than their male counterparts to gain recognition, she encouraged women to differentiate themselves in any role they occupy as opposed to emulating leaders in their field.

“My running motto through life, and through building a business, is innovate, do not imitate. Think of new ideas, do not look at others and repeat what they do because that is not how you stand [out],” she said.

Meanwhile, leveraging their experience, Zaahl, Ramchunder and Peter emphasised the importance of persistence and mentorship alongside growing and maintaining a mutually beneficial network and ecosystem to enable sustainable business growth, with Zaahl noting that “being an entrepreneur is a lonely ride”.

Mokgoadi pointed out that while policy had shaped capital flows for SMMEs, there was a lack of intentional, tailored funding models for women-led businesses, particularly as there was often an unconscious bias in how women-led businesses were assessed.

He called for funders to reassess risk frameworks that disadvantaged women, particularly in male-dominated industries.

The event also highlighted Black Umbrellas’ entrepreneur incubation programmes, which aim to support small and medium-sized enterprises by equipping them with the tools, frameworks and approaches needed to build sustainable, growing businesses.

The programmes offer a holistic, practical approach, including one-on-one coaching to derisk participants’ businesses and reduce the likelihood of failure.

“Participants emerge from the programme with an investor-rated business, such that they [are] able to knock on various funding doors and already have the elements required to derisk their business,” said Black Umbrellas interim CEO Cyril Madiba.

Recognising the evolving role of technology integration in businesses, the organisation has recently introduced AI and information and communications technology (ICT) as a key pillar of its development programmes with the aim of encouraging the responsible use of AI and ICT tools among businesses.