{"id":68834,"date":"2020-11-18T11:09:39","date_gmt":"2020-11-18T09:09:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/?p=68834"},"modified":"2026-01-29T17:59:01","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T15:59:01","slug":"global-entrepreneurship-week-priceless-advice-from-a-venture-scout","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/global-entrepreneurship-week-priceless-advice-from-a-venture-scout\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cCollaboration is the new innovation.\u201d How venture capitalist Octavius Phukubye plans to empower African entrepreneurs"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\u201cCollaboration is the new innovation.\u201d How venture capitalist Octavius Phukubye plans to empower African entrepreneurs\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\tTarryn Giebelmann<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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If Octavius Phukubye<\/a> ruled the world, the first thing he\u2019d do is offer Black women equal pay. Not only because it\u2019s long overdue, but because he believes that Africa\u2019s potential relies on the success of Black entrepreneurs and, in particular, Black women-owned small businesses.<\/p>\n

Growing up, Octavius witnessed his mother \u2013 a subsistence farmer and shebeen owner \u2013 working day and night to ensure that not one of her 11 children went to bed hungry.<\/p>\n

It became his passion and life\u2019s work to create access to growth opportunities for undermined and underserved talented African entrepreneurs. And he\u2019s stayed true to his philosophy: \u201cMy word is my honour.\u201d<\/p>\n

Octavius founded Brillianaire<\/a>, an impact catalyst that enables entrepreneurs to launch enduring companies that are supply chain competitive and venture capital investment ready.<\/p>\n

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Through enterprise and supplier development, venture partnerships, and acceleration and incubation support, Brillianaire designs and executes impact investment programmes in the early stage investment space.<\/p>\n

For Octavius, impact is the ability to make meaningful, positive change in people\u2019s lives. It\u2019s this value that guides his investment approach, which has collaboration at its core.<\/p>\n

Collaboration is the new innovation.<\/h2>\n

Octavius’s passion and mission to develop African entrepreneurs aligns perfectly with the goals of Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW2020). Taking place from 16 to 22 November, #GEW2020 rallies behind initiatives that promote, encourage, and support the development of entrepreneurs in four key areas: Education, Ecosystems, Inclusion, and Policy.<\/p>\n

Through Brillianaire, Octavius hopes to facilitate collaboration, networking, and knowledge-sharing between start-up ecosystems, and to broaden inclusion for more African entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n

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\u201cEntrepreneurship is the answer to the worrisome economic challenges facing Africa today, including job creation, income inequality, human capital development, regulation, poverty, and inclusion,\u201d says Octavius.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

But hidden in all this chaos, is innovation.<\/p>\n

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\u201cBlack entrepreneurs are incredibly talented and are leading in building competitive solutions using innovative technology capabilities such as AI and machine learning to solve health, agriculture, and enterprise problems.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

But these early stage entrepreneurs are underserved in Africa, especially when it comes to accessing capital, markets, and information. The more that institutional players in the ecosystem collaborate to empower these start-ups, he says, the more value entrepreneurs and small business owners derive, and the more value they deliver to the continent.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThere is absolutely no reason for a single Rand to be invested in a silo by any stakeholder in South Africa. The economic multiplier of working collaboratively has proven to accelerate the transformative impact we seek in Africa\u2019s entrepreneurship and small business development ecosystem.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

A better use of his money, he believes, is to invest in the cost of destroying the social structures that inhibit Africans, and especially woman,<\/a> from participating as entrepreneurs in this ecosystem.<\/p>\n

Advice from a venture scout<\/h2>\n

As Venture Scout for Microtraction<\/a>, a technology start-up investor, and with a Master\u2019s Degree in Development Finance and extensive experience as a venture capital analyst, Octavius knows a thing or two about what appeals to investors.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s also seen that the most successful entrepreneurs have three things in common:<\/p>\n