Seedstars World recently pre-selected the best entrepreneurs of Gauteng and West Cape at its two satellite competitions, one in Johannesburg and one in Cape Town.
However, given the diversity and the wealth of South African ecosystems the applications are now opened to startups from other South African provinces. They are invited to apply via the Seedstars World page by the 20th of June. The local finals will see up to 3 more startups invited straight to the final.
“We have been very pleased with the quality of the startups in Johannesburg and Cape Town. We want to give the opportunity to the rest of South African entrepreneurs to compete at Johannesburg finals thanks to the wild card. We look forward to finding the last competitors of this final which look already very promising” says Claudia Makadristo, Regional Manager for Africa at Seedstars World.
The companies selected to pitch at the Seedstars local events need to be less than 2 years old, have raised less than USD 500,000 in funding and have built a minimum viable product, ideally with existing traction and the startup’s regional and global scalability. Seedstars World is looking for smart startups that solve regional issues and develop profitable products for the global market, to support their regional businesses and growth.
Moreover, Seedstars World has partnered with the Merck Accelerator on a regional level, in order to support seed-stage companies with a focus on the fields of healthcare, life science and performance materials.
The most promising HealthTech startups will receive office space in the Merck Innovation Center in Kenya or Germany, mentoring and coaching on a regular basis and financial support of up to €50,000. In total, each prize package is worth around €200,000.
In line with its mission to place the spotlight on entrepreneurs from emerging markets, Seedstars World is travelling to 80 countries this year to identify the best seed-stage entrepreneurs and provide them with an opportunity to win up to USD 500,000 and network with investors and mentors from around the world. Its previous participants have raised over USD 61M collectively, providing employment to more than 800 employees worldwide.
Applications are open now on https://www.seedstarsworld.com/event/Seedstars-SA-17 for the wild card applications.
