The Founder Files

What does it take to become a trusted supplier for the world’s biggest brands and retailers? In this episode, we sit down with Jan Parmentier, CEO and co-founder of Supernova Brands, a value-added distributor that supplies nearly all South Africa’s big retail chains. With over 1,500 products in circulation, Jan has spent the past decade building a deep understanding of the import/export industry. Now, they’re expanding into six Southern African countries while navigating the complexities of supply chain operations and market dynamics. Jan shares the challenges of shaping a strong company identity, the pivotal rebrand that unlocked new opportunities, and the personal journey of his co-founder stepping away and bringing on a private equity partner. From navigating industry complexity to lessons learned along the way, this episode offers a fascinating dive into the world of retail and distribution. Tune in to hear Jan’s insights on growth, resilience, and what it takes to succeed in one of the most demanding sectors of business. ---- 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ---- To support The Founder Files: 🔔 Follow The Founder Files EVERYWHERE ⭐ Leave a review right here 💭 Share your thoughts on Linkedin and tag Cameron Coutts ---- 00:00 Introduction 03:38 What is Supernova Brands? 11:13 The reason behind the B2B vs D2C approach 19:12 Who is the main customer? 24:32 Getting Disney and other big brands onboard and how it works 31:21 How Jan scaled such a complicated business? 41:31 The founding story of Supernova Brands 49:00 Finding your identity as a business 54:26 Rebranding to Supernova brands and what that changed 01:00:11 Navigating co-founder share exit to private equity 01:07:46 How did the private equity firm help? 01:12:40 Choosing the right investor 01:25:24 What’s in store for Supernova Brands 01:27:53 Keeping entrepreneurship exciting

In just 3 years, GoSolr became the biggest direct-to-consumer solar provider in South Africa and has invested billions into rooftop residential solar. Today, we have the privilege of hearing from Andrew Middleton, the CEO and co-founder of GoSolr. He'll share insights on how they've achieved their remarkable success and the key lessons he's learned along the way. We discuss the surge in demand during South Africa's worst load-shedding period and how the company had to pivot its sales approach as urgency declined. We explore the challenges of fundraising for a business with high-cost inventory—an intriguing conversation, given Andrew's background in investment banking. We get more into what the journey has been like rapid scaling to a 130-person business in just 3 years: - How to get teams thinking like founders, inspired by purpose, mission, and vision and the significant impact this alignment has had on Andrew’s business. - Managing outsourced installers. - Keeping up with high demand. - Maintaining stock levels. - Ensuring a quality customer experience while scaling rapidly. Amongst all that, Andrew shares his personal experiences within the company, including what turned out to be easier than expected, the toughest challenges, and key lessons learned along the way. ---- 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ---- As we gear up for Season 5, we want to make sure each episode is as valuable as possible for you. Your feedback is key, so we’ve put together a quick survey to hear what you think. So if you'd like to help make The Founder Files even better, please take 5 minutes to fill out this survey: https://tally.so/r/wgZ2d4 ---- To support The Founder Files: 🔔 Follow The Founder Files EVERYWHERE ⭐ Leave a review right here 💭 Share your thoughts on Linkedin and tag Cameron Coutts ---- 00:00 Introduction 03:27 What is GoSolr? 06:11 How did GoSolr fund this subscription model? 15:22 What Andrew did to make it easy for investors to say yes 19:57 Reopening the investment round to secure funding from African Rainbow Capital and its subsequent impact 30:34 The impact of load shedding ending 35:24 How GoSolr’s sales approach changed after load shedding ended? 52:29 Why B2C and not B2B? 55:37 The scale of GoSolr 57:14 Challenges faced while scaling GoSolr 01:04:55 Keeping up with high demand and rapid scale 01:15:45 Maintaining a good customer experience working with external installers 01:20:46 Creating a culture of ownership, care and intrinsic motivation 01:29:39 What does the next 6 - 12 months look like for GoSolr? 01:31:25 Where can you sign up for GoSolr? 01:31:53 Outro

Online shoppers, stores and retail companies all love Pargo, a South African logistics company transforming the e-commerce landscape with over 4000 pickup points in South Africa and a recent 500 more in Egypt. Today we are joined by Lars Veul, the co-founder and CEO of this rapidly growing business. Lars shares Pargo's journey—from founding to scaling—offering insights into their successes and missteps along the way. We explore how the Pargo team initially lost focus by trying to tackle new problems that customers brought to them. Lars explains how this shift impacted the business and, despite a financial setback, why they chose to double down on their core identity instead. Spoiler alert—the payoff was huge. We also delve into the strategic decision to expand into Egypt and the process of establishing 500 locations and appointing a managing director. This episode packs many lessons and experience-shares from an amazing entrepreneur running a great business. Enjoy! ---- 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ---- As we gear up for Season 5, we want to make sure each episode is as valuable as possible for you. Your feedback is key, so we’ve put together a quick survey to hear what you think. So if you'd like to help make The Founder Files even better, please take 5 minutes to fill out this survey: https://tally.so/r/wgZ2d4 ---- To support The Founder Files: 🔔 Follow The Founder Files EVERYWHERE ⭐ Leave a review right here 💭 Share your thoughts on Linkedin and tag Cameron Coutts ---- 00:00 Introduction 03:09 What is Pargo? 19:00 The founding story of Pargo 20:56 A look into Lars’ environment 21:43 Finding product-market fit 29:51 The difference between growing and scaling 33:38 International expansion into Egypt 41:43 The consequence of losing focus 55:14 The mindset mistake South African founders make 01:03:35 How Pargo decided which country to expand to 01:07:18 How did Pargo actually expand into Egypt from the other side of the continent? 01:14:40 What the next 6 - 12 months look like for Lars and Pargo

An important part of entrepreneurship that many founders overlook is mindset. So for this episode, we’ve compiled our favourite mindset shift insights and shares from this season so far. If you found any of these insights valuable, be sure to watch the full episodes: 1. Grant Friedman, Africrest Properties: https://youtu.be/ywQSWiXQb74 2. Simon Hartley, WumDrop: https://youtu.be/q8wV9qxFqFA 3. Matt Putman, iKhokha: https://youtu.be/K5fOq9Agg_U 4. Justin Drennan, Parcelninja: https://youtu.be/5BS8itb9yUE 5. Mike Scott, NONA: https://youtu.be/-ehxp0ycjWo 6. Emilian Popa, Ilara Health: https://youtu.be/dlQH3ffwj2M ---- 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ---- As we gear up for Season 5, we want to make sure each episode is as valuable as possible for you. Your feedback is key, so we’ve put together a quick survey to hear what you think. So if you'd like to help make The Founder Files even better, please take 5 minutes to fill out this survey: https://tally.so/r/wgZ2d4 ---- To support The Founder Files: 🔔 Follow The Founder Files EVERYWHERE ⭐ Leave a review right here 💭 Share your thoughts on Linkedin and tag Cameron Coutts ---- 00:00 Introduction 01:43 Grant Friedman, Africrest Properties 03:27 Simon Hartley, WumDrop 12:07 Matt Putman, iKhokha 21:02 Justin Drennan, Parcelninja 29:20 Mike Scott, NONA 39:45 Emilian Popa, Ilara Health

Today I’m joined by Matt Putman, CEO and co-founder of iKhokha, one of South Africa’s most inspiring FinTech success stories. We kick things off by exploring how iKhokha pivoted from hardware to software, which led to a defining shift in product-market fit and reshaped the company’s future. From there, we cover the complexities of scaling, from attracting talent to raising investment—especially as a Durban-based business outside the major tech hubs. Matt also opens up about his own leadership evolution, the mindset shifts he’s had to embrace, and how he now approaches organizational design. Whether it's transitioning from a single-product to a multi-product company, entering new markets, or structuring his leadership team, Matt shares invaluable insights about unlocking scalability and learning to trust a skilled team. For anyone building and scaling a business, Matt’s stories, advice from his network, recommended books and practical wisdom offer an absolute goldmine of insights! ---- 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ---- As we gear up for Season 5, we want to make sure each episode is as valuable as possible for you. Your feedback is key, so we’ve put together a quick survey to hear what you think. So if you'd like to help make The Founder Files even better, please take 5 minutes to fill out this survey: https://tally.so/r/wgZ2d4 ---- To support The Founder Files: 🔔 Follow The Founder Files EVERYWHERE ⭐ Leave a review right here 💭 Share your thoughts on Linkedin and tag Cameron Coutts ---- 00:00 Introduction 05:03 iKhokha’s scale and what life for Matt is like 10:14 Matt’s drive and how he motivates his team 18:46 The founding story of iKhokha and finding product-market fit 34:17 What product-market fit looked like for iKhokha 38:22 Beginning the scaling journey 45:05 Challenges after finding profitability 48:05 Shifting from a problem-solving to a strategy mindset 50:28 Entering a phase of learning 56:15 The organisational design mindset shift you need to scale 01:08:24 Avoiding shiny object syndrome 01:15:21 How to keep entrepreneurship fun 01:22:43 Challenges in attracting investors and talent being based in Durban 01:37:50 What does the next 6 - 12 months look for iKhokha? 01:40:42 Advice to entrepreneurs at any stage of the journey

In this episode, we sit down with Paul Raphaely, the co-founder and CEO of Nomu, South Africa’s celebrated food brand known for its premium spices, skinny hot chocolate, and more. From launching the brand with just 12,000 Rand to exporting to over 30 countries, Paul shares the unfiltered story of how Nomu grew from a small kitchen project into a household name. Discover how Paul and his wife, Tracy, turned countless challenges—including economic crises and the demands of scaling—to their advantage through relentless innovation, self-belief, and a dose of serendipity. This is a must-listen for any entrepreneur interested in running a business with your spouse, dealing with stress, building a strong loyal team and much more. ---- 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ---- As we gear up for Season 5, we want to make sure each episode is as valuable as possible for you. Your feedback is key, so we’ve put together a quick survey to hear what you think. So if you'd like to help make The Founder Files even better, please take 5 minutes to fill out this survey: https://tally.so/r/wgZ2d4 ---- To support The Founder Files: 🔔 Follow The Founder Files EVERYWHERE ⭐ Leave a review right here 💭 Share your thoughts on Linkedin and tag Cameron Coutts ---- 00:00 Introduction 05:46 What is NOMU? 07:52 NOMU’s unique product innovation process 10:45 Where the business is at now 12:44 How NOMU started 18:38 What it’s like starting a business with your spouse and how to make it work 32:27 How to deal with stress 38:28 How NOMU reacted to the global economic crisis of 2007 51:00 Pivoting and how it happened 55:38 Figuring out distribution after finding a winning product 01:03:15 Balancing new product development and optimising what’s already working 01:13:34 Running the business with a new approach 01:16:57 What does the next 6 - 12 months look like?01:21:10 How to choose who to hire?

In this episode, we sit down with Emilian Popa, co-founder of Ilara Health, to explore how he's tackling one of Africa’s biggest challenges—access to quality healthcare. Emilian shares his journey of providing essential diagnostic tools, pharmaceuticals, and practice management software to small informal and formal clinics in Africa. We discuss the complexities of growing a healthcare business in fragmented markets, finding product-market fit across different aspects of the business, and how technology is reshaping healthcare in underserved regions. We dive into building a strong management team and trust in leadership and Emilian also opens up about his personal health journey and the drive behind his mission to create sustainable healthcare solutions. Enjoy the episode! ---- 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ---- As we gear up for Season 5, we want to make sure each episode is as valuable as possible for you. Your feedback is key, so we’ve put together a quick survey to hear what you think. So if you'd like to help make The Founder Files even better, please take 5 minutes to fill out this survey: https://tally.so/r/wgZ2d4 ---- To support The Founder Files: 🔔 Follow The Founder Files EVERYWHERE ⭐ Leave a review right here 💭 Share your thoughts on Linkedin and tag Cameron Coutts ---- 00:00 Introduction 04:20 Welcome 04:59 What is Ilara Health? 15:54 Executing on the vision 21:28 Shifting Core Business Priorities 26:14 Finding Product Market Fit 36:21 The scale of Ilara Health 39:07 More about the two different sides of the business 42:22 Having autonomy and prioritising non-work things 58:15 Founder-mode vs manager-mode 01:02:23 Developing a great, trustful team 01:11:50 Dealing with anxiety and the importance of looking after your health 01:31:03 What does the next 6 - 12 months look like for Emilian?

Logistics is often the least exciting aspect of e-commerce. That’s where Parcel Ninja comes in, taking care of all the logistical hassles for e-commerce businesses. By providing top-notch logistics services, Parcel Ninja empowers small to medium-sized e-commerce players to have the same logistics capability as the largest players in South Africa. In today’s episode, we dive deep into the success story of Parcel Ninja with co-founder and former CEO Justin Drennan. We begin by discussing the autonomy and freedom Justin enjoys post-exit and what that means for entrepreneurs. He shares insights on how Parcel Ninja tackled its own challenges, what product-market fit looked like for them, and the strategies they used to build a strong team and scale internationally. We also explore the significance of entrepreneur communities, the complexities of international expansion, and the process of integrating with large corporates. Expect to learn about the essential mindsets and skills that every entrepreneur needs, including the importance of building a solid network, the value of giving before taking, and ensuring you have a robust support system to combat loneliness, imposter syndrome, and self-doubt. This episode is packed with invaluable insights and offers something for entrepreneurs at any stage of their business journey. ---- 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ---- As we gear up for Season 5, we want to make sure each episode is as valuable as possible for you. Your feedback is key, so we’ve put together a quick survey to hear what you think. So if you'd like to help make The Founder Files even better, please take 5 minutes to fill out this survey: https://tally.so/r/wgZ2d4 ---- To support The Founder Files: 🔔 Follow The Founder Files EVERYWHERE ⭐ Leave a review right here 💭 Share your thoughts on Linkedin and tag Cameron Coutts ---- 00:00 Introduction 03:27 Entrepreneurs and ADHD 05:11 What does Parcelninja do? 22:47 What is post-exit life like for Justin? 25:41 How to hand over strategic knowledge when exiting 37:50 The benefits of entrepreneur communities 39:31 The scale of Parcelninja 46:15 Challenges of geographical expansion 50:35 Building a strong team to scale 53:03 Complexities of integrating with a corporate 58:31 Expanding to Brazil 01:12:47 What does product-market fit actually look like? 01:18:07 How to build a powerful network 01:27:28 Building vs scaling mentality 01:39:21 What the next 6 - 12 months look like for Justin 01:41:20 Entrepreneurship's impact on family

In this episode, we get to chat with Simon Hartley, the founder of WumDrop, which is Africa's largest last-mile on-demand delivery service. Simon shares his incredible journey from launching a B2C retail business to pivoting into the B2B delivery space, unlocking product-market fit and scaling to success. We dive into the challenges of growing a logistics business, raising funds, investing in technology, and dealing with the pressures of scaling—while managing the constant threat of burnout. Simon also shares insights about WumDrop’s acquisition by MassMart in 2021 and what it’s been like navigating a three-year earnout period. He shares the lessons learned along the way, everything from leadership, hiring senior executives, and dealing with corporate politics and stakeholders. This episode is packed with practical lessons from all stages of the journey that you won’t want to miss! ---- 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ---- As we gear up for Season 5, we want to make sure each episode is as valuable as possible for you. Your feedback is key, so we’ve put together a quick survey to hear what you think. So if you'd like to help make The Founder Files even better, please take 5 minutes to fill out this survey: https://tally.so/r/wgZ2d4 ---- To support The Founder Files: 🔔 Follow The Founder Files EVERYWHERE ⭐ Leave a review right here 💭 Share your thoughts on Linkedin and tag Cameron Coutts ---- 00:00 Introduction 03:30 What is WumDrop? 09:38 WumDrop’s Competitive Environment 17:38 How to Sell To Corporates 25:19 Simon’s First Business 37:40 Learning The Importance of Customer Experience 42:26 Pivoting to a Delivery Service 47:54 Scaling With Technology 52:43 Brought To You By Metavolve 54:06 Building Our Own Technology 57:06 Fundraising Struggles and Mistakes 01:01:14 Losing Your Co-Founder and Feeling Hopeless 01:04:44 Getting Acquired by Massmart 01:08:07 Struggles In The Scaling Journey 01:13:49 How To Overcome Burnout 01:23:33 Tips For Working With Corporates 01:38:13 Becoming Coachable 01:46:50 Getting Mentored by Sylvester John 01:58:04 The Difference Between Management and Leadership 02:04:42 How Metavolve Navigates Strategy, Leadership, and Scaling Challenges 02:10:52 What does the next 6 - 18 months look like for Simon? 02:13:26 Would Simon Change Anything About His Journey?

Merchant Capital is South Africa's leading non-bank alternative lender for SMEs. In this episode, we discover how they grew from zero to 10 billion rand in loans for their clients over the past 12 years. You'll learn how they initially financed this venture, scaled the business through partnerships, invested in hiring the country's top CTO, and successfully navigated a culture shift. We also get insights into their innovative business model and product, explore the challenges they faced, and discuss hiring and culture strategies you can apply to your own business. ---- 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ---- To support The Founder Files: 🔔 Follow The Founder Files EVERYWHERE ⭐ Leave a review right here 💭 Share your thoughts on Linkedin and tag Cameron Coutts ---------- 00:00 Introduction 03:39 What is Merchant Capital? 09:59 Loan Financing or Equity-Based Financing? 16:59 Mitigating the Default Risk 19:55 The Vision of Creating Sustainable Businesses 26:18 Founding Story 38:56 Using Merchant Capital Funding Properly 46:49 Brought To You By Metavolve 48:12 Where Does Merchant Capital Get Their Money From? 59:59 Dealing with Corporate Partners and Small Business Customers At The Same Time 01:03:37 Hiring A Great Leadership Team 01:15:04 Building, Protecting and Strengthening Culture 01:28:34 The Future of Merchant Capital 01:32:41 Would You Have Done Anything Differently? 1:35:40 Daniel’s Biggest Learnings From The Journey