adminPamela Shumba Senior Reporter
BUSINESS tycoon Philip Chiyangwa has discouraged aspiring entrepreneurs from applying for loans to start businesses, saying brilliant ideas and dedication could help them make money and run successful businesses.
Chiyangwa was addressing Bulawayo students from Higher and Tertiary institutions at the National University of Science and Technology (Nust) during a public lecture on entrepreneurship.
Chiyangwa, speaking on the topic “Modelling today’s youthful mind to be great mavericks, entrepreneurs and policy technocrats,” told the students that there was no need for them to apply for expensive loans from banks or borrow money to start their businesses.
“Starting a business doesn’t require money but ideas and dedicated minds. I didn’t manage to start a business because somebody gave me or loaned me money. I started with nothing by being a marketer, representing other brands and I did very well,” he told the students assembled by the Zimbabwe Congress of Student Unions (Zicosu), which comprises of students from universities, polytechnics, teacher training colleges and vocational training centres.
“I then used the money I got to buy and sell jewellery and the business grew slowly until I graduated to a land developer. You don’t want to borrow money for your business at 18 percent interest rate because the balance will grow each month and it can become very difficult to pay off the debt.”
He said being an entrepreneur was the only route out of poverty for everyone. The secret was to understand the economy, choose businesses wisely and assess if the business is worth pursuing.
“The idea is to make money after starting a business. It’s therefore important to make an assessment and see if the business is bringing good results. If it’s not, you can always abandon the business and look for new ideas. There’s no point running a business that’s not bringing profits.
“In my career as a businessman, I’ve learnt that you can sell a product that’s in high demand and yet it doesn’ bring money at the end of the day. We must sit down, make an analysis and be wary of such businesses.”
He advised the students to register their business to avoid problems with the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra).
“Zimra is chasing after everyone. It’s important to register your businesses so that there’re no obstacles along the way,” said the property tycoon who is also the president of the Zimbabwe Football Association.
Zicosu president Godknows Mudhara said they invited Chiyangwa to help them understand the economy and give them ideas on how they can overcome the challenges that they are facing.
“The economy isn’t performing well and students are struggling to get jobs after completing university. That’s why we invited one of the successful businessmen in the country to discuss business ideas, his experiences and the basic business rules that can make us survive as young people under the circumstances,” he said.
Chiyangwa donated $1,000 to the union to assist in their future programmes.
Online Reporter