Selling lollipops to raise transport money while still in high school ignited an entrepreneurial spark that would see Sindi Pikoli eventually establish her own business.
Sindi vividly remembers the many sacrifices her mother, a cleaner employed by the South African Department of Education, made to ensure she attended school.
Business-minded Beginnings
“I was born and raised in Port Elizabeth. I am the youngest of my mother’s four children. Growing up was okay; we had our best and worst days, but my mother always made sure we went to bed with full stomachs every night.
“My entrepreneurial journey began when my mother bought a packet of lollipops for me to sell in high school so I could have transport money.
“I wanted to go to a multi-racial school, and my mother, who was employed as a cleaner by the Department of Education, would sometimes run out of funds mid-month. So we had to improvise for me to get to school. Thanks to the lollipops and her other plans, she made sure I was educated,” Sindi recalls.
Today, Sindi stands proud as the founder and chief executive officer of Sindi Pikoli Consulting Services. She has not only made her mother proud but has also succeeded in establishing a platform that is empowering many women around South Africa.
Consulting Services
Successfully studying and completing a leadership and business course at the Nelson Mandela University Business School greatly assisted Sindi in gaining an in-depth appreciation of many principles and fundamentals important for getting her business off the ground.
“Sindi Pikoli Consulting Services is a Pan-African consulting firm dedicated to empowering women to achieve their full potential. We believe that gender equality is not just a goal but a transformative journey.
“Our mission is to equip women with the skills, strategies, and support needed to break barriers and succeed in both their personal and professional lives. Through tailored consulting services, workshops, and coaching, we help organizations foster inclusive environments and enable women to lead, innovate, and thrive.
“Our aim is to assist individuals seeking career growth or organizations aiming to enhance gender equality. We strongly believe that together we can build a more equitable and empowering future for women everywhere. Currently, there are three of us working remotely in the business.”
COVID-19 Threat
Disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic were among the major challenges faced by Sindi and her team. To overcome these challenges, Sindi has had to be very innovative and strategic in the decisions she made.
“Trends have evolved immensely since I started my entrepreneurial journey. I remember when events were mainly on-site, but COVID forced everybody to evolve and think outside the box. That led me to develop a custom mobile event platform that I pitched to the Women In Cloud’s digital pitch challenge in September 2020.
“I was selected as one of the seven finalists and trailblazers. This acknowledgment validated me as an innovative entrepreneur. One of the challenges I faced was getting access to funding.
“Nobody tells you how important it is to have an accountant and updated financial records of your business until you need them. Financial management is a crucial part of the business. The first thing investors look at when seeking funding is your financial behavior, as that determines whether you’re ready or not to be invested in.
“Being compliant and always updating my documents really helped me a lot with accessing funding from the NYDA and SEFA. These are some of the things we at S Pikoli Consulting Services assist our clients with.”
Leveraging Support Networks
Sindi is extremely grateful for the support she has received from the many networks and organizations within the industry. She describes such collaborative partnerships as life-changing and educational.
“My events management business was selected as one of the beneficiaries of an EDP program by the Solomon Brothers Group in February 2020 and was given the opportunity to organize and host a business conference at one of their properties, the Pepperclub Hotel in Cape Town.
“This opportunity afforded me the chance to pay it forward and assist with organizing a conference pro bono for an NPO that helps and rehabilitates young women and girls who have been sexually abused and molested.
“This inspired the beginning of S Pikoli Consulting Services PTY (Ltd). The aim was to train young girls and women in skills and entrepreneurship for the purpose of economic development to minimize and eradicate the scourge of GBV. When women make their own income, they are able to walk away from situations that deplete them.”
Significant Lessons
Sindi’s advice to other entrepreneurs is simple: learn from those who have traveled the journey ahead of you.
“The entrepreneurial journey requires faith, discipline, and grit. Also, learn to be self-motivated; the journey can seem quite steep, very long, and lonely, and at those times when no one is supporting you, remember your ‘why.’
“Always be adaptive; COVID has taught us that things can change in a split second; stay prepared. And lastly, your network is your net worth. Use your networks wisely. The most significant lesson for me was to trust and lean on God completely. Entrepreneurship requires you to believe in something bigger than yourself.
“The Lord directs the footsteps of the godly, and to it, He adds no sorrow. There’s nothing of significance that I have ever done that I did on my own. God has always been there, even when it felt like he wasn’t. The entrepreneurship journey really brought me closer to God. That is something I am eternally grateful for,” Sindi concludes.
