📺 Stream EntrepreneurTV for Free 📺

Unpacking The Economic Benefits Of Buy Local Campaigns Proudly SA's Buy Local Summit & Expo explores policy & preference issues around local procurement. Find out more on 14 March at the Sandton Convention Centre.

By Proudly South African

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

You're reading Entrepreneur South Africa, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

Supplied

The 7th annual Proudly South African Buy Local Summit & expo extends over 2 days, taking place in 2018 on 14/15 March at the Sandton Convention Centre.

The Summit & Expo has grown over time from a standard conference with speakers, and modest sized exhibition of local businesses into the single most important platform for SMMEs to learn about becoming a successful and sustainable enterprise that may one day bear the Proudly South African tick of approval, and for procurement professionals to learn about all aspects of policy and preference when it comes to making buy local decisions.

Day 1 of the Summit is dedicated to SMMEs and is free to attend

As a start up or emerging business, do you know how to position your business and gain access to new markets? Do you know how to make a sales pitch and write up an order? And if you land a big deal, are you equipped to take on more work, more clients, hire more staff, manage increased output and more orders? Do you know how to package your business or product in a way that is both attractive and compliant with current legislation? Are you communicating with potential buyers and suppliers in the most effective way possible?

Our dedicated workshops and panel discussions for SMMEs on Day 1 of the Summit & Expo are indispensable if you need to know the answers to even some of these questions.

As an established business do you know how you can leverage being a member of the Buy Local Movement? Come and find out what additional exposure, profile and access to new markets Proudly SA membership can bring.

Day 2

Expo

The Exhibition element of the Buy Local Summit & Expo is open to Proudly South African members only – as exhibitors. Visiting the expo however is free of charge and open to anyone.

If you're ready to make a commitment both privately and professionally to increase the amount of local goods and services you will actively include in your shopping trolley or in your procurement process at work , then the Proudly SA Buy Local Expo is one of the single biggest market (around 200 exhibitors in 2017) of local suppliers of everything from confectionery, artisanal products, manufacturing capacity including haulage, chemicals, mechanical machinery, and printing works to clothing and accessories.

At the expo you will find new suppliers for many items which you have traditionally imagined could only be bought from overseas, and who knows, you may even find new markets and buyers for your own goods and services.

Day 2

Conference

The Buy Local Summit is a place for all stakeholders in the procurement value chain to unpack what it means to be a buy local champion. It goes beyond economic benefits and job creation. For some sectors, government legislation has elevated their status to one of a preferred sector under the terms of the Preferential Procurement Policy Framework Act (PPPFA) and so companies operating in these sectors need to understand how to maximise that home team advantage.

Some industry sectors are especially vulnerable to equivalent cheaper imported goods or overseas government subsidised products, and at the conferenced companies in these sectors can find out how to become part of the Buy Local movement and leverage their Proudly SA status.

To register for either Day 1 or Day 2 or both or as an Expo visitor (all free to attend) visit www.buylocalsummit.co.za or go to www.proudlysa.co.za

Follow us on our social media platforms:

The Proudly South African Campaign was born out of Socio-economic necessity in 1998 with the Presidential Jobs Summit – under leadership of former South African Pres. Nelson Mandela. It was formed from the international research that was based on the Australian buy local campaign. The same concept was bought here in South Africa to address the issues of Job creation through local investment in local products and services.
Thought Leaders

It's the End of the Entrepreneurial Era As We Know It

With the rise of advanced technologies and AI, are we losing all sense of the independent business person and entrepreneur?

Side Hustle

He Started a Luxury Side Hustle at Age 13 — Now the Business Earns More Than $10 Million a Year: 'People Want to Help You When You're Young'

Michael Morgan, now the owner of Iconic Watch Company, always had a passion for "old things" — and he turned it into a lucrative venture.

Starting a Business

5 Things to Know and Do Before Writing Your Business Plan

If you need a business plan, there are certain things you need to know and do before you sit down to create it. In this article, you'll learn five things to complete before writing your plan to ensure you get the best results.

Growing a Business

Here's How to Make Your Expansion Into New Markets a Success

Having lived through the successes -- and the failures -- of helping companies enter new markets, we've learned that a rigorous and disciplined approach is critical.

Marketing

The Secret to Creating Content for Millennials? Skip the Short Form, and Go Deep.

Surprise! Turns out that millennials are voracious readers of news, even if they rarely pick up a newspaper.

Starting a Business

Checking the Availability of a Company Name with CIPC

Have you found a business name? Here is how to check the availability.