Applications for Saturn Startup School 001 now open

Saturn foundation

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saturn startup school

Pitch for up to R100,000 to turn early traction into a business.

A practical online program for entrepreneurs with early users or early revenue. Weekly sessions with founders and business owners who have built and sold real companies.

the foundation

What is Saturn foundation?

Saturn foundation is the CSI and nonprofit arm of the Saturn group. We hold that entrepreneurship is one of the most powerful and scalable routes to economic equity for communities left out of the formal economy.

Through incubation and acceleration programs, the foundation trains entrepreneurs across South Africa and mentors a new generation of business builders. Each business that grows creates jobs, and each job widens the circle. That cascade is the impact we measure ourselves against.

the program

What Startup School is

A focused online entrepreneurship program for people who have already started and are ready to grow.

You get practical commercial training, weekly sessions with founders and business owners who have built and sold real companies, and the opportunity to pitch for a nondilutive grant of up to R100,000.

Read more about the program →
what you get

A grant of up to R100,000, weekly founder coaching, practical skills and a network.

Skills

Commercial skills from week one

Pricing, sales, cash flow and go to market, applied to your business as you learn them.

Coaching

Weekly sessions with founders who have built and sold real companies

Direct feedback on your numbers, your customers and your next decision.

Funding

Up to R100,000 in nondilutive grant funding

Pitch at the end of the program. No equity, no repayment.

Network

A network that stays with you

Introductions to partners, customers and mentors, and a cohort of committed entrepreneurs.

who should apply

Who we’re looking for

Entrepreneurs who have already started. We look for early validation, in any sector.

  • A product, service or prototype that already exists
  • Early users or early revenue
  • Focused on customers and sales
  • Building something that matters

For example

  • A software product with early users
  • A hospitality business with returning customers
  • A consumer product with online sales
  • A services business with paying clients
  • A side business ready to scale
track record

Our record to date

R72M+capital catalysed
R9M+grants deployed
80startups supported
4programs delivered
get involved

Apply, mentor, or fund a program.

Apply to the program For entrepreneurs with early users or early revenue. Apply now
Apply to be a mentor For founders and business owners who want to coach the next cohort. Become a mentor
Fund a program For funders and partners who want to back the next cohort. Email us