When Janade du Plessis started his journey into entrepreneurship, it was as a kid selling everything from vegetables to peanuts to the surrounding community. His inspiration came from the women that helped raise him, especially his mom. He always saw these women hustling to make extra income for their families, trying to buy and sell whatever they could. It was this entrepreneurial spirit that motivated him to co-found and run Africa’s largest startup management fund, with investments worth at least R650 million.
His company, Africa Launch, not only invests in new companies but also helps them grow. Janade himself helps manage these companies and give them advice on how to grow. Although Africa Launch has already invested R650 million, it is currently in the process of investing another R1.3 billion. However, this is not Janade’s first investment company.
Back in 2012, Janade was inspired to start Abrazo Capital because of all the women that influenced him. He saw how hard they worked on making their small businesses a success but they never had the money to grow. He used his own money and invested in these small, women-run businesses, giving them advice and helping them grow.
His first investment was into a hair salon, helping the owner buy new equipment and getting it registered as a legitimate business. The hair salon began growing and he used the success of this initial investment to convince other investors to partner with him. Together with his new partners, they invested into everything from small home bakeries to mechanic shops, all run by women. These small investments, initially worth tens of thousands of rands, grew into an overwhelming success story worth R100’s of millions of rands.
Now, Janade didn’t become a successful investor straight out of high school. He registered for a degree in economics at the University of the Western Cape, and went on to complete both his honours and masters. He also has a doctorate in Business Science at Wits, an MBA at the University of Cape Town and a certificate in the Advanced Management Program in Executive Leadership at Harvard Business School.
From 1997 to to 2021, he was a Mergers and Acquisitions Analyst for Standard Bank, Mergers and Acquisitions Analyst and Fund Manager for Goldman Sachs in New York, a Corporate Finance Transactor for Rand Merchant Bank, the Chief Investment Officer for the African Development Bank and an Investment Bank Head of Venture Capital & Alternative Investments. As noted above, he started Abrazo in 2012, as a side hustle, and then in 2021, he co-founded Africa Launch.
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