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Gauteng entrepreneurs win life-changing prize worth R1 million in Nedbank Pitch & Polish competition
After 16 thrilling weeks and 4 rounds of intense competition, the 2024 Nedbank Pitch & Polish competition reached a thrilling conclusion.
With 16 determined contestants (plus a wildcard entry!) captivating audiences and amassing over 7 million views, the stakes were sky-high. At the centre of it all was a 1st prize worth a life-changing R1 million!
Now in its 14th year, Pitch & Polish – powered by title sponsor Nedbank and organised by Raizcorp – is a blend of competition, one-on-one mentoring and entrepreneurial learning designed to improve entrepreneurs’ chances of obtaining investment or funding and establishing sustainable businesses. While contestants battle it out to claim the top prize, the true magic lies in the entrepreneurial lessons shared – both with those competing and the viewers at home, who gain valuable insights along the way.
Winning Nedbank Pitch & Polish takes more than just a great on-screen pitch. While this year’s judges – Monalisa Sam (retail and property executive), Alan Shannon (Nedbank), Monique Chinnah (Nedbank) and Allon Raiz (Raizcorp) – evaluated how each contestant refined their pitch throughout the competition, they also looked at the merits of each business and whether the entrepreneur could effectively leverage the prize money to scale, ensuring the winner had both the skills and strategy to grow sustainably and profitably.
And the winner is…
This year, it came down to three impressive finalists – Keenan George of Smart-View Technology (Western Cape), Braden Snyman and Avi Maja of Breaze Delivery (Gauteng) and wildcard contestant Ntokozo Ntleko (KZN) of Takkie Wash SA, who delivered her first and only pitch in the competition’s final episode.
After an impressive 3-minute pitch where they said they intend to make their business a household name, Braden Snyman and Avi Maja of Breaze Delivery secured the grand prize worth R1 million! This includes R650 000 in cash, paid out over 2 years as they hit the milestones outlined in their winning pitch, and a R350 000 bursary for a 2-year Raizcorp business-development programme.
Breaze Delivery connects over 700 drivers with clients on online ordering platforms to facilitate fast and affordable deliveries, including same-day and on-demand (60-minute) delivery, for e-commerce merchants. They already have over 100 clients and, in the last 12 months, paid out R3 million in revenue to their drivers. Their win comes at a fortuitous moment as the business has just reached breakeven point and is now in a place to scale exponentially, creating many jobs along the way.
“The Nedbank Pitch & Polish experience has changed us as this is the first time we have had an in-depth analysis of how we pitch to clients and investors – it helped us improve everything from our body language to how we articulate our value proposition,” explained cofounders Braden and Avi. “The most important thing we learned during the learning programme, though, was how to clearly differentiate ourselves from the many competitors that operate in the last-mile delivery space.”
As this year’s 1st runner-up, Keenan George, takes home R100 000 in cash while 2nd runner-up, Ntokozo Ntleko, walks away with R50 000 in cash.
Supporting entrepreneurs
“This year’s edition of the Nedbank Pitch & Polish competition is testament that South African entrepreneurs are not only fueled by the passion for the ideas they have but they yearn for opportunities such as this one that will help them realise their dreams,” says Alan Shannon, Executive: Sales Strategy & Enablement. “Each pitch not only showcased unique solutions to real-world challenges but also highlighted the incredible potential of the businesses that emerged. As Nedbank, we are excited to support these visionaries as they take their next steps towards success and contribute to a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem.”
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