Latest news with #supplierdevelopment
Zawya
4 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
South Africa: Why corporates must stop undervaluing SMMEs?
South Africa's 2.5 million small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) employ close to 10 million people, yet corporate South Africa continues to view them largely through the narrow lens of compliance and CSI. This thinking is outdated. If corporations want long-term, inclusive growth, they need to shift from seeing small businesses as beneficiaries to recognising them as strategic partners. Especially in underserved and township markets, SMMEs bring local relevance, innovation, and speed to market that large companies often struggle to achieve, even with scale and budget on their side. Too often, enterprise and supplier development programmes are run in isolation, disconnected from actual procurement. This tick-box approach misses the real opportunity: to co-create, to collaborate, and to embed small businesses in commercial ecosystems. Inclusion is not just about access to funding. It's about access to networks, decision-makers, information and, most critically, markets. One of the simplest yet most impactful shifts corporates can make is paying small suppliers on time. It helps them manage cash flow and grow sustainably. Another is involving them earlier in product development or pilot projects. There's no reason these businesses can't be integrated into innovation pipelines or co-creation labs. Transformation isn't just about representation on panels or stats in reports. It's about sustainable inclusion in income-generating opportunities. This is particularly urgent as we enter Women's Month. Support for women-led SMMEs must go beyond campaigns. These businesses need consistent commercial opportunities, not charity, but a seat at the table. If big business is serious about rebuilding the economy, it must reframe how it sees small business. Not as a side project. Not as a social impact. But as essential to the future of doing business in South Africa.
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Walmart Plans to Bring 100K New Indian Small Businesses Online
Walmart is seeking to boost India business by augmenting an existing supplier development program to bolster the activities of 100,000 micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). Launched in 2019, Walmart Vriddhi has already trained 70,000 such businesses across India, helping them to modernize and scale through digital learning, personalized mentorship, and the facilitation of strategic partnerships, the company said this week. Building these competencies has helped them expand market access both within India (Flipkart, a Walmart subsidiary, is a leader in India e-commerce) and across the globe, with Walmart Marketplace offering opportunities for cross-border trade. More from Sourcing Journal H&M Foundation-backed Circularity Initiative Expands in India Byte-Sized AI: Perfect Corp. and Nvidia Team Up; LuminX Gets Seed Round Shein Reportedly Making Plans With Reliance to Export India-Made Goods The new effort is the result of a collaboration with Ideas to Impact Foundation (i2i). The partners said they aim to see 100,000 MSMEs trained up within the next three years on important business imperatives like finance, marketing, workforce management and sustainable operations. The program's graduates experience on average 55-percent year-on-year growth after implementing their learnings. 'We are constantly inspired by India's vibrant innovation ecosystem and the growth potential of its MSMEs. Many micro enterprises face difficulties in securing the knowledge, tools and market access they need to thrive,' Walmart senior vice president of supplier development Jason Fremstad said. 'Empowering these entrepreneurs with critical business skills and market access has helped them to build and scale their business sustainably, and contribute to India's economic growth story.' Fremstad said that as the company enters the next phase of Walmart Vriddhi, MSMEs will be empowered to use new tools for digital growth and export readiness. Walmart Supplier Academy's e-learning modules and new ecosystem partnerships will help these businesses to sell successfully through both Walmart and Flipkart. Flipkart senior vice president and chief corporate affairs officer Rajneesh Kumar said, 'Our unwavering commitment at Flipkart is to empower MSMEs by democratizing access to digital commerce and vast growth opportunities.' 'Through strategic collaborations like Walmart Vriddhi, we are collectively enabling entrepreneurs to scale their aspirations and significantly contribute to India's burgeoning digital economy,' he added. In addition to marketplace integrations, Walmart said it plans to engage with strategic partners to help drive growth, and the program has already signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of the Indian state of Haryana, which has 22 districts. Walmart Vriddhi plans to sign additional MoUs with other states. Such programs also exist in Mexico (Crece con Walmart) and the U.S. (Grow with US). MSMEs can access the resources through the Walmart Vriddhi website, which features a consolidated resource platform as well as onboarding links for the sales platforms—Walmart Marketplace, Flipkart and Myntra—and information about domestic payment solutions. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Asharq Al-Awsat
08-05-2025
- Business
- Asharq Al-Awsat
ROSHN Group to Participate in Saudi Giga Projects 2025 Summit as Host Partner
ROSHN Group will showcase its development vision and highlight its latest projects during its participation as a host partner at the Saudi Giga Projects Summit 2025. The group will welcome summit participants from May 12 to 14 in Riyadh, where representatives of the Kingdom's major projects will gather alongside construction companies to exchange insights and showcase the sector's significant local developments. The Saudi Giga Projects 2025 Summit offers in-depth analyses and updates on the Kingdom's major projects, including progress reports, innovative solutions, and future trends. The summit comes at a time of rapid growth and significant developments in the construction sector, making it a key platform for exchanging expertise, sharing knowledge, and strengthening cooperation among industry leaders and decision-makers. ROSHN Group is participating in the summit with speakers who will present the group's ambitious strategy, marking a new chapter following the launch of its new brand identity last year. The group will also highlight its efforts to support local content and develop the Kingdom's construction sector through its supplier development program. Attendees will have the opportunity to register as suppliers in Roshn's database in coordination with the commercial team.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Evansville business owners work to build a partnership with city officials
EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WEHT) — Evansville business owners meet in hopes of building a partnership with Evansville city officials. The Southwest Indiana Small Business Development Center is hosting the event to introduce the owners to city department heads to try to earn Evansville's business. The even is part of the center's Supplier Development Program for small vendors to grow their business. 'A lot of times small business owners are wearing multiple hats, and one of those is business development. So, how do you go out and spend the kind of time you need to pound the pavement and talk to potential customers and ultimately land deals,' says Southwest Indiana SBDC Regional Director Dominic Poggi. 'So, we thought, 'hey, what a great way to get a bunch of department heads in a room all at once and give people an opportunity to make contact with them or follow up on those leads.'' Southwest Indiana business owners who may be interested in working with the city can find more at More from Ben Walls Eyewitness News. Everywhere you are. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Eyewitness News (WEHT/WTVW).
