The Founder Files How Two Entrepreneurs are Bringing Connectivity to Millions - Calvin Le Mottée & Wesley Dorning, Sebenza
Sebenza is making it possible for commuters to get free wifi in taxis and busses, in exchange for interacting with their platform. Whether that’s watching an ad, playing a game, or filling out a survey, users get rewards Sebenza bucks which they can they use to access the wifi in these vehicles.
In this episode, we chat with Calvin Le Mottée and Wesley Dorning, the co-founders of Sebenza.
Expect to learn:
- How they were able to find the fit in the market
- The balance between software and hardware
- How they navigated the complexity of building these offerings
- How they manage so much hardware in so many locations with such lean team
- What the 4 verticals that drive Sebenza are
And much more!
This is a very uniquely South African story, but one that is quite complex as well. Enjoy!
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This episode is brought to you by Metavolve.
Metavolve turns highly capable African founders into confident business leaders by helping them develop clear and comprehensive business strategies that make building a great sustainable business less complex. Reach out to our team to learn more: https://metavolve.co/
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00:00 Introduction
02:46 The Scale of Sebenza Today
03:50 The Business Model of Sebenza
08:27 The Founding Story
10:30 Where Does Revenue Come From?
12:43 How Sebenza Competes With Other Advertising Methods?
16:10 How Did Calvin & Wesley First Launch Sebenza?
21:40 The 4 Verticals That Drive Sebenza
35:25 Finding Product Fit
38:57 Managing Identity As Complexity Increases
41:00 How To Maintain Focus With so Many Opportunities
51:35 Becoming The Digitisation Partner For SANTACO And What That Unlocked
56:19 What Have The Investors Brought To The Table?
01:00:43 Managing Operational Complexity With A Small Team of 50
01:08:00 What Does The Organisational Structure Look Like?
01:09:07 Sebenza’s Sales Processes
01:12:45 How to Hand Over Relationships as You Scale And Remove Sales Dependence From The Founders
01:16:52 How Managing Culture Changes as You Grow
01:21:41 Sebenza’s Plans For 2025
01:24:22 The Importance of Having a Strong Network to Help You Solve Problems