In 2019 Husk Eco Luxe entered the Ilembe Chamber of Commerce “The Entrepreneur” competition. 25 local businesses were chosen as finalists to attend an eleven week University of Natal accredited business short course. The course, which revolved around the business canvas, forced us as owners to scrutinize and rethink the basics of our business’ and write a business plan. We were privileged to have a team of experienced and knowledgeable lecturers, mentors and business owners to guide us through the process. As part of the “final” we were interviewed by a handful of highly regarded local business owners and then presented our businesses to the public at an open event. Husk Eco Luxe managed to secure third place and won funding which was used to attend a wholesale tradeshow, SARCDA. The programme would not be possible without the contributions from Ilembe Chamber of Commerce, University of KZN, Enterprise iLembe, King Shaka International Airport, North Coast Courier, Engie and Sembcorp Siza Water. We encourage all local businesses to enter this competition.

SARCDA Trade Exhibitions is the largest and only trade show of its type in the Southern Hemisphere. Twice a year it holds a trade show, linking wholesalers, importers and manufacturers with buyers. We took to small stand at the March 2020 show, to showcase our business, brand and range of products. It was a three day event and buyers need to be registered to enter, it is not open to the public. We were overwhelmed the interest that we received, took a few orders, and made some valuable connections with other businesses at the show. We will definitely be going back!

The Ilembe Chamber of Commerce called to invite us to their “Entrepeneurs of the Decade” reunion programme. Due to Covid an online business short course was held by the GIBS Gordon Institute of Business Science. The course consisted of 4 sessions with multiple choice questions on each session. For completing the course we earned an e badge. The sessions allowed us to hear from and pick the brains of high profile business people and professors. The discussions involved the entrepreneurs mindset, innovation and creativity, negotiations and decision making and going digital. It has been an honour to be involved in these courses over the last 2 years and we are thankful for the opportunity.

The ESD Handbook 2020: Business Resilience, is a highly regarded annual publication showcasing the latest projects, trends and developments exposing the entrepreneurial sector. The publication is aimed at the corporate sector and aims to help grow the featured initiatives. We were blown away to be included in the 2020 publication. It is available for viewing and download, ESD. We are on page 30.