LayUp makes the shortlist for the annual “SA’s Top 5 Most Exciting Startups”
Heavy Chef award.
Selected from over 755 nominations submitted by the entrepreneur community in November, and eight judges wrestled through the entries to select a shortlist of twelve outstanding companies, which were announced earlier this week.
South Africa’s Top 5 Most Exciting Startups is an annual celebration of African startup sector by Heavy Chef in collaboration with Xero and Payfast, as well as UK-SA Tech Hub.
Despite all the chaos that 2020 brought with it, the quality of the startups presented in the list is world-class, welcoming a glimmer of hope in an otherwise bleak year for the South African economy.
Heavy Chef sheds light on the fact that this initiative is “a big deal” as it provides them with an opportunity to focus on good news, stating that they are “proud” of the work that the finalists have presented and produced over the past year.
How was the shortlist selected?
Heavy Chef Foundation Chairman, Louis Janse van Rensburg, reiterates that the award is intended to be a celebration of South Africa’s startup sector.
“We don’t take into account revenue targets and pitch decks, market size or investment. From past results, we’ve seen that the winners generally are the ones who have generated the most amount of buzz and excitement in investment circles – and the nominees that make it to the Top 5 are generally the ones that are telling the best story,” says Van Rensburg.
“The shortlist of twelve finalists is diverse, its representative of South Africans skills and is exciting indeed. This shortlist gives us a strong reason to celebrate, after a very, very tough year.”
See Heavy Chef article here
