Women in
Small Business

How women in South Africa start, run, and grow their businesses
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Pela Pela Foods

Yoco Merchant #30 952

Just start

Most women started their first business before they turned 30. Some always dreamed of becoming an entrepreneur. Others came up with a brilliant idea and decided to run with it. A few started a side hustle that turned into a thriving business.

No matter how they might have started, the majority said that starting their business was much more difficult than they expected it to be.

A third of the women that we spoke to said that there was a barrier preventing them from diving right in. Access to finance is the number one barrier. Not having enough time or the right skills to start their business also held them up.

What kept you from jumping in immediately?

A graph showing why woman don't start businesses.

What motivates women to start?

Love – 68% of women started their business so that they can do what they love every single day.
 
Another motivator for women to start businesses is to have the flexibility to live more self-directed lifestyles. Women appreciated the ability to take the business into their own hands. It gives them the freedom to work in whichever way they choose and to live the life they want to lead.
0 %
are motivated by love
Men and women differ when you ask them about the type of owner they want to be. Women’s love for the work they do lead 30% of them to pick being an Artist. Women tend to build their business around their unique skills or creative talents. Only 17% of male business owners view themselves as artists.
 
Men lean more towards the Advisor owner type. Advisors view themselves as the type of owner that believes the customer is always right. Advisors put the customer first and do everything they can to make the customer happy.
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ONEOFEACH's founder talking about being a woman in business.

One of Each
Yoco Merchant #620

iNkosi Eco Lodge
Yoco Merchant #415

What worries women most about running a business?

We asked women what worried them most as entrepreneurs. 
 
Their answers covered five main categories – finances, growth, marketing, headspace and sales.
 
Here are some quotes from the women that we spoke to and are good insight into the everyday concerns of being a business owner.
Finances
“The thought of having to throw in the towel because of cash flow problems keeps me up at night.”
Tips for finance
Growth
“Keeping the right balance between business and family. I would like to put more of my time and profits back into the business to expand and upgrade.”
Growing your business
Marketing
“I’m always thinking of ways to find new markets that are not yet saturated with products similar to mine.”
Find your market
Headspace
“I stress about not being able to remain relevant and innovative.”
Get your head right
Sales
“I worry about making enough sales to feed my family and cover all the costs of keeping the company running.”
Bust your sales slump
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Challenges for women in business

When comparing the top challenges for women vs men, there aren’t many differences at all. 

The top two challenges for both genders are the poor state of the economy and troubles with cash flow.

The third biggest challenge for women is a lack of access to finance, while men are more concerned about the political uncertainty in South Africa. Political uncertainty is only the 6th biggest challenge for women, with worries about growth of their customer base and competition with big business beating it.

Top Three Challenges

Poor state of the economy
0 %
Women
0 %
Men
Cash flow
0 %
Women
0 %
Men
An icon for finance.
Access to finance
0 %
Women
0 %
Men
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Access to finance for women in small business

Growing your business relies on funding. Sometimes the profit you make just can’t cover your growth plans. Whether you’re buying more stock, marketing your business or opening a new location, you need funding to grow.

The top three reasons why owners applied for funding:

0 %
to invest in equipment
0 %
to drive business growth
0 %
to buy stock
Despite the importance of access to funding, three quarters of women had never applied for formal funding for their business.
 
Of the women that did apply, only half were successful in securing the amount of funding that they asked for. This is in line with the stats experienced by male business owners.

Funding for the future

15% of the women in this survey said that they will be looking for funding to grow their business in the next 12 months. This number rises to 19% for male owned businesses.
Men are less likely to rely on their personal savings or sources of finance options to fund their businesses in the future. They are 7% more likely to ask for funding through a bank loan.
 
The fact that men are more willing to approach banks for future funding could show an implied credibility gap. Could it mean that women tend to be rejected more often by banks? Do they have a greater fear that their ideas won’t be backed? There are insights underlying the data that are important to unpack to ensure women have equal footing when it comes to starting a business.
The entrepreneurial experience for women and men is not too different. Their struggles are similar: most evidently with the challenge of getting funding and access to finance.

But where women set themselves apart is in the ‘why’. Why keep pushing when confronted with the many challenges that small business owners face? Whether it’s Gugu’s goal of making women feel as if they belong in their own skin, Mokgadi’s passion for natural honey or Tina’s Xhosa-inspired fashion, women tend to be more motivated by love and the desire to build businesses around their unique skills.

Gugu puts it best in the foreword: it’s insanity! But it’s the type of madness and passion that drives the economy forward and enables the country to thrive.

For that we salute them.
The Yoco icon.

Women in Small Business

9 August 2019
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