Youth pursuing entrepreneurship

The creative and innovative ideas possessed by a great number of youth in Namibia can act as a stepping stone to dive into entrepreneurship. After paying good attention to these ideas, an opportunity to become an entrepreneur can occur. Entrepreneurship entails the ability to start and run a business, having complete confidence in the service or product to be offered with an aim to make a profit. An entrepreneur must be well acquainted with different stages of a business. All of which require attention and much effort. Beginning stages There are challenges faced by entrepreneurs before and during the process of managing a business. Not all sides of entrepreneurship are smooth and easy to walk on, but determination, discipline and patience go a long way. Speaking on a panel focused on youth entrepreneurs tabling their experiences and shared outcomes, CEO and founder of Aurora Denim, Aurora Da Costa, said one of the challenges she faced were that of having to manage a high inflow of cash all at once. “At the beginning stages of running my business, I faced difficulties of managing great amounts of money at once. I did not know how to separate my saving from the business money,” she explained. Additionally, Da Costa faced challenges within the retail industry. One of the most prominent being high competition with many other existing companies or entrepreneurs. Founder of spa Hush Beauty Care, Michelle Kleophas, said: “Starting my business was not easy. I had a lot of sleepless nights just thinking about it. I had an eight-to-five job which I decided to quit. Of course, a lot of questions were pushed my way as to how I was going to do it and how I was going to juggle both at once. “None of that stopped me from going after what I wanted. I never thought that one day I would be a therapist, but because I was always in the beauty industry; I took a chance and I made the most out of it,” she said.IN A BLOCK:Things to consider when running a business young Have a solid business plan to follow Make sure to give great customer service. Market and promote your business using different platforms such as social media. Stay up to date with trends and needs within your target audience. Create appealing packaging if you have products. Maintain a clean and friendly working environment.Stay organised so you do not miss appointments or product drop-offs.Keep a positive mindset in good and bad seasons of your business.Set aside funds to sustain your business when profits are not so good.Be realistic about pricing of products and services. ChallengesBeing an entrepreneur comes with its own challenges. There may be times when things don’t go so well and when reviews don’t look too good. This should not demotivate you. Owner of Bake With J. Loss, Jamie-Lee Loss, said handling different responsibilities at once may become a challenge. “Balancing school work and my business can become extremely overwhelming. Very often, I find myself feeling tired but I always remind myself of how great it really feels to reap the fruits of my labour by being able to make my own money and be self-reliant while young,” she said.Additionally, Loss explained that handling finances is one of her biggest challenges. “When you are young, you just want to enjoy and chop life, but that requires money being spent,” she said. Cleophas added that running a spa has brought challenges such as buying and getting the right products for different body and skin types. “You need to be extra careful with whatever you use on them because it can cause bad reactions or he can have a long-term effect on a client,” she said. Achievements Cleophas said achievements are always seen when clients are happy with services offered. The potential she sees in her business eventually growing into a great empire is another great feeling. She added: “Making my brain bigger is another achievement for myself and my business”. Cleophas would like to grow and expand to see her beautiful spa branch out to other parts of Namibia.Loss said the challenges faced by entrepreneurs are many, but the rewards are truly amazing. She advised youth to dive into entrepreneurial paths that are risk-free and that can sustain them even if the world does not agree with it.

Youth pursuing entrepreneurship

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-18

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Youth pursuing entrepreneurship

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-18

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