A new website that maps start-ups in Cape Town wants to encourage better connections between the various new businesses in the city by giving them the opportunity to put themselves on the map — literally.
Mapped in Cape Town went live on Monday and is aimed at the city’s start-up ecosystem. Start-ups and service providers to start-ups can list themselves on the map, allowing them to discover and work with other small businesses in the city. Listings are free of charge.
“The website is intended to promote the idea of a business cluster, providing people that work in close proximity to each other the opportunity to find each other and work together,” says founder Rowan Polovin. The denser the map, Polovin says, the better the ecosystem. “The concept is to add your company, make connections and grow the ecosystem.”
Polovin, 30, became involved with start-ups from a young age. His launched his first business when he was just 10, building and selling educational software to his school. Since then, he has launched a number of other start-ups, including myvideo.co.za, a video service similar to YouTube, in 2006. Most recently, he became involved in a start-up in the finance industry called workloan.co.za.
Mapped in Cape Town is also targeting service providers that could benefit the needs of start-ups. These include tax and legal services and even the location of Wi-Fi hotspots and co-working spaces.
“Mapped in Cape Town will also bring potential investors together with start-ups that operate in the same area.”
Although only covering Cape Town for now, Polovin says he has plans to launch a Johannesburg version of his website by the end of the year.
He has no plans to monetise the website immediately but will consider sponsors to cover costs and grow the business. — © 2014 NewsCentral Media