SAYES to Business Growth

By Business SA, Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Chief Executive, Martin Haese.

Published in The Advertiser SA Business Journal on Tuesday 28 September 2021.

Last Thursday evening, the Hon David Pisoni, Minister for Innovation and Skills announced a further two years of state government funding for the SAYES (South Australian Young Entrepreneur Scheme) program. The SAYES program is designed to help grow new and early-stage businesses for entrepreneurs under the age of 35 years.

The minister made the announcement as he delivered a keynote address at the SAYES graduation at the National Wine Centre of Australia where 30 young entrepreneurs received recognition for 12 months of hard work throughout the program.

As the crowd of graduates and their supporters applauded the future certainty for SAYES, I couldn’t help but think about the importance of its existence.

SAYES, the 12-month program managed by Business SA and delivered in partnership with the Department for Innovation and Skills and FIXE creates jobs and drives economic growth.

If we look at the facts, SAYES supports around 35 young people each year to establish and grow their ventures which immediately puts many of these new businesses in a position to make a positive impact on the state’s economy.

In 2020, we saw 37 individuals join the program. As a collective over the last 12 months, these entrepreneurs experienced 38 per cent growth in revenue. In dollar terms, that equates to $3.4m in growth and created 46 new jobs as a result.

Where we see the real magic happen is when we look at the staggering 177 per cent increase in net profit. This is a direct result of a tremendous amount of work that the SAYES participants put into improving their businesses while supported by experienced facilitators and mentors. This is where the SAYES graduates learn how to create sustainable enterprises.

SAYES is about building strong new businesses across all industry sectors and if they can achieve results like this in only 12 months, imagine where they will be in 5 years’ time.

This year’s recipient of the ‘South Australia’s Young Entrepreneur of the Year’ award is Luke Timmins of Adelaide & Hills Lawns & Gardens. Luke has put in the hard work and taken a risk by investing in himself and his business and as a result of completing the program is experiencing tangible growth.

During the last 12 months while participating in the SAYES program, Luke’s business has demonstrated 65 per cent growth in revenue, 53 per cent growth in net profit and an 11 per cent growth in the number of employees.

These results matter and in turn, this program matters.

After 23 years of supporting over 700 young South Australian entrepreneurs, I now realise more than ever the importance of SAYES in the future of South Australian business.

SAYES is supporting the growth of young entrepreneurship in South Australia, and I am proud that Business SA is facilitating this for the next generation of business leaders.

We are excited to be able to continue to deliver SAYES over the next two years with the valued support of Minister Pisoni, the Department for Innovation and Skills and FIXE.

Applications are now open for the next intake of SAYES 2021. More information can be found at business-sa.com/SAYES