ATTACQ, a leading capital growth fund in the Real Estate sector, has teamed up with the LaunchLab, a network of African university campus-based business incubators, in an exciting breakthrough innovation challenge. This partnership will be driven by the LaunchLab’s Breakthrough Innovation Platform to capture new ideas and business models that may create the next breakthrough innovation in the retail industry.
This includes the LaunchLab’s Ideas and Lift-Off Programmes that allow corporates access to external breakthrough innovations in their industry. This will allow new businesses to engage with ATTACQ to assist in making an impact on retail in Africa.
ATTACQ invests in and develops high-quality real estate assets as long-term investments that generate quality rental income and sustainable capital growth for shareholders. With this in mind, ATTACQ wishes to build an innovation pipeline as a value-add for their clients and for customers that visit their real-estate properties daily.
ATTACQ know that people will always need space, but the nature of the activity in that space is changing every day. They have recognised this opportunity and are looking for ideas with business potential that may create the next breakthrough innovation in retail by addressing the following:
- Responding to the e-commerce needs of clients and customers
- Customer experience, comfort and convenience
- Payments within ATTACQ properties
- Operational issues: Utilities, security, cleaning
The LaunchLab provides a link to a unique community of campus-based and community-based entrepreneurs as well as an environment where start-ups can test new technologies and business models without corporate restrictions. The Ideas programme extends across all universities in the Western Cape and certain universities in Gauteng, tapping into student and non-student entrepreneurs as well as communities of innovative thinkers and creators.
A two-hour workshop was held on 11 August 2016 at the Mall of Africa in Johannesburg and a workshop will be held on 19 August 2016 at the Nedbank Stellenbosch University LaunchLab, where participants will have an opportunity to engage with the LaunchLab and ATTACQ teams, as well as to connect with other aspiring entrepreneurs in the retail industry.
The purpose of the workshops is to provide the context for the Retail Challenge by explaining current challenges and opportunities for new businesses to be able to make an impact on retail in Africa. Attending this workshop will also help entrepreneurs stimulate their thinking and provide clarity about the value of their business idea.
The workshops form part of the LaunchLab’s Ideas Programme which will help attendees to identify a potential winning idea that can be pitched at the Pitching Platform starting 29 August 2016.
Finalists will be selected from these submissions to pitch at a final event which will take place on 19 October 2016.
Winning ideas stand a chance to win R100 000 in seed funding and LaunchLab incubation support to the value of R150 000 for the next 6 months to be used to launch and grow their business ideas… ATTACQ will be carefully monitoring the development of these business ideas during this time to gauge their potential see if they can add value to their existing clients and customers that visit their real estate properties daily.
Interested entrepreneurs and innovators are invited to join the workshop and can find more details about the Pitching Platform on our website: http://www.launchlab.co.za/attacq