Motivation & Leadership
When the Right People Meet: How Collaboration Can Turn Connections into Opportunities
By Isabela Pereira | Entrepreneur | Founder & CEO, SHE FITS
The full day of the “Girls want Just wanna have funds” orchestrated by Nicolette Matuku Co-Founder of Walking the Africa journey
There are opportunities that come from attending a room.
And then there are opportunities that come from helping bring the right people into the same room.
On 4 March 2026, I had the opportunity to support the hosting of “Girls Just Wanna Have Funds” at the Johannesburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), in collaboration with Walking the African Journey. The initiative brought together women entrepreneurs, business professionals, financial institutions and ecosystem partners around an issue that remains critical for many women building businesses: access to funding, financial knowledge and the preparation required to become fund-ready.
But for me, the significance of the day went beyond funding.
It was also about collaboration, connection and recognising the power of bringing different people and organisations together around a shared purpose.
When the Name Becomes the Message
When the event was named Girls Just Wanna Have Funds some people laughed. But behind the playful name was a serious message. For years, women have heard the phrase, “Girls just wanna have fun.”
Yet women entrepreneurs across Africa are building businesses while navigating questions of access:
Access to funding.
Access to markets.
Access to knowledge.
Access to networks.
Access to opportunity.
So the conversation was flipped.
Girls don’t just want to have fun.
Girls want funds.
They want to build sustainable businesses, participate in the economy, enter new markets and create businesses that can grow beyond survival.
That is a conversation worth having.
My Role: Connecting the Right People
My role in the initiative was not to lead the programme.
That was the work of Nicolette and Walking the African Journey.
My contribution was helping connect the organisations and create the opportunity for them to work together.
That distinction is important to me because entrepreneurship is not always about being the person standing at the front of the room.
Sometimes your greatest contribution is recognising that two organisations, businesses or individuals have something valuable to offer one another and helping create the connection.
I have increasingly realised that being a connector is also a form of leadership.It means recognising potential.
Making an introduction.
Opening a door.
Bringing people together.
And then allowing the people in that room to build something bigger than what either organisation could have created independently.
A Room Full of Different Expertise
What made the conversation particularly valuable was the range of expertise brought into the room.
The programme was facilitated by Prudence Mcube CEO of Queen Mother Digital Agency, whose role as Programme Director helped guide the event with professionalism and energy.
Prudence Mcube, CEO of Queen Mother Digital Agency
The keynote was delivered by Rajeshwari Budree CEO of BrandCheck Academy and BrandCheck Audit, bringing more than two decades of experience across branding, marketing, business and financial services.
Rajeshwari Budree CEO of BrandCheck Academy and BrandCheck Audit
Her session highlighted areas entrepreneurs can sometimes overlook when thinking about funding including personal branding, business etiquette and compliance alongside the importance of preparing both the entrepreneur and the business for opportunity.
Other speakers brought perspectives from banking, business support, debt management and financial services.
Mpanza Nonkululeko with extensive experience in banking and business advisory, spoke from a background in financial services and enterprise support.
Ashley Peters a Business Development Manager at Access Bank
Ashley Peters a Business Development Manager at Access Bank, brought insight into business development, financial solutions, partnerships and opportunities for SMEs and emerging entrepreneurs.
Paulvia Shiburi Founder and CEO of PS Debt Management, brought another essential part of the financial conversation: understanding debt, managing finances responsibly and building financial confidence.
Together, these perspectives reinforced something important:
Funding is not simply about finding money.
It is about understanding the financial system and building a business that can responsibly use capital to grow.
Becoming Fund-Ready Is Part of Building a Business
One of the most important lessons from conversations like these is that starting a business and preparing a business for funding are not necessarily the same thing.
An entrepreneur can have an excellent product or service and still struggle to access capital because the business is not prepared to communicate its opportunity clearly.
Funders need to understand the business behind the idea.
They need to see the model.
The market.
The numbers.
The compliance.
The potential.
The strategy for growth.
And, importantly, the entrepreneur’s ability to execute.
That is why funding readiness matters.
It is not simply about completing an application.
It is about building the foundations that allow a business to stand up to scrutiny and demonstrate why investment or financing could help it grow.
Beyond Funding
But there was another lesson that stood out to me.
Entrepreneurship development cannot only be about finding money.
Funding can help a business grow, but entrepreneurs also need:
- Knowledge
- Mentorship
- Customers
- Market access
- Networks
- Business systems
- Compliance
- Financial literacy
- Opportunities to showcase their businesses
And this becomes even more important when we talk about women entrepreneurs.
Creating spaces where women can exhibit their products, learn about funding readiness, meet financial institutions, build relationships and learn from experienced professionals contributes to a stronger entrepreneurial ecosystem.
One conversation can lead to a customer.
A customer can lead to growth.
A relationship can lead to mentorship.
Mentorship can lead to a new opportunity.
And a prepared business can eventually become a business that attracts investment.
That is how ecosystems are built.
From Survival to Scale
The conversation around women entrepreneurs must also evolve.
Women are not only looking for ways to survive in business.
Many are looking to scale.
The event created space for conversations around funding, business growth, financial systems and opportunities that can extend beyond the local market.
Partnerships involving organisations such as Mukuru and Access Bank also demonstrate the importance of bringing established financial and business institutions closer to emerging entrepreneurs.
When women can move from simply running a business to understanding capital, markets and growth opportunities, the conversation changes.
It becomes less about:
“How do I keep my business alive?”
And more about:
“How do I build something sustainable?”
“How do I scale?”
“How do I enter new markets?”
“How do I participate in global trade?”
Those are very different questions.
The Power of Relationships
For young entrepreneurs, especially those still building their networks, there is an important lesson here:
Do not underestimate the value of relationships.
Your network is not simply a list of contacts.
It is a collection of people, organisations, ideas and possibilities.
But networking should not be about collecting names.
It should be about creating meaningful connections and asking:
What can we build together?
That question changes the way we approach relationships.
Instead of asking only what someone can do for us, we begin thinking about what value we can create together.
And sometimes, the person who connects two people never receives recognition for what happens afterwards.
But that does not make the contribution less valuable.
The Entrepreneur I Am Becoming
My involvement in “Girls Just Wanna Have Funds” also made me reflect on the kind of entrepreneur I am becoming.
I enjoy connecting people.
I enjoy seeing where different ideas, organisations and opportunities can intersect.
And I believe that is part of my purpose.
I don’t want to only build businesses for myself.
I want to be part of building pathways.
Pathways between people.
Between organisations.
Between Africa and the rest of the world.
Between entrepreneurs and opportunities.
Between ideas and execution.
Because sometimes, the opportunity someone needs is not something you can personally give them.
Sometimes, you simply need to introduce them to the person who can.
What Young Entrepreneurs Can Take From This
If you are a young entrepreneur reading this, I hope you remember that you do not have to build alone.
Find people who know things you don’t know.
Learn from people who have travelled the road before you.
Build relationships before you need them.
Show up in rooms.
Ask questions.
Share opportunities.
Introduce people.
And when you have access, create access for someone else.
That is how ecosystems become stronger.
That is how networks become communities.
And that is how individual opportunities become collective progress.
Building the Ecosystem We Want to See
I left “Girls Just Wanna Have Funds” reminded that entrepreneurship does not have to be a lonely journey.
There are women building.
There are organisations creating platforms.
There are financial institutions looking for opportunities to support businesses.
There are mentors willing to share knowledge.
There are entrepreneurs looking for markets.
And there are connectors who can help bring these different pieces together.
The more intentional we become about collaboration, the more opportunities we can create for one another.
For me, “Girls Just Wanna Have Funds” was therefore more than an event I supported.
It was a reminder of the kind of entrepreneurial ecosystem I want to contribute to one where women are not only encouraged to start businesses, but are given the knowledge, networks and opportunities to become investment-ready, market-ready and growth-ready.
Because African women are not lacking ambition.
We need to keep building the access and ecosystems that give that ambition somewhere to grow.
And sometimes, creating that ecosystem starts with something as simple as making the right introduction.
Because when the right people find each other, possibilities become opportunities.
About the Author
Isabela Pereira is a South African entrepreneur, speaker and Founder & CEO of SHE FITS a women’s activewear and wellness business. She was recognised among the Mail & Guardian 200 Young South Africans 2026 in the Entrepreneurship category.
Her work and interests sit at the intersection of entrepreneurship, women’s economic empowerment, youth development, regional trade, international business and community building.
Through her entrepreneurial journey, Isabela is passionate about creating connections that open pathways to opportunity particularly for young people and women seeking to build sustainable businesses and participate more meaningfully in the economy.
She continues to use her experiences in business, international delegations, investment and entrepreneurship development to explore how collaboration, access and exposure can help turn ideas into sustainable opportunities.
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