Adding to their ever growing list of accolades, Granny Mouse Country House & Spa, has just been awarded Best Country House in Africa, Best Country House in South Africa and Best Spa in South Africa from the Haute Grandeur Global Hotel Awards.

The Haute Grandeur Global Awards was established as an independent and unbiased initiative to honour the very highest achievements from across the global hotel industry in 2014. Unbiased results are guaranteed by placing emphasis on quality feedback from guests, rather than quantity of votes by a panel of judges or general public.  

The Haute Grandeur Global Hotel Awards is a prestigious, globally trusted awards initiative, building its reputation as the world’s leading awards initiative, by rewarding outstanding hotel experiences. The awards is a method of ranking and assisting hotels, and is regarded as the pinnacle of achievements for hotels globally. Not only was Granny Mouse awarded with this particular award, but also honoured with winning the Best Gourmet Cuisine in South Africa, Best Food Styling/Presentation in South Africa and Best Hotel Restaurant in South Africa, in the Eaves Fine Dining Restaurant category where they were up against numerous other dining establishments.Industry awards are proven to enhance one’s credibility, promote morale and increase both market share and client retention.

Sean Granger, manager of Granny Mouse Country House and Spa, is ecstatic! “It’s wonderful when hard work is recognised, especially with such a prestigious award! The team at Granny Mouse always go above and beyond for each client, and I’m so incredibly proud of each and every one of our team members for their efforts- without them, this would never have been possible!” 

Keep your eye on the Granny Mouse website https://grannymouse.co.za/ as their revamp is nearing completion and they can’t wait to share the final product with everybody!  

I am excited to share with you the launch of our new show called Head Start, where Shivad Singh interviews the most successful and inspiring young people in the world. This is done with the aim to inspire and fuel you to take action on your dreams!

People interviewed include Forbes 30 under 30 members, Time's Most Influential teens, successful young entrepreneurs, scientists, inventors, programmers, game developers, a Masterchef Junior Winner, a NY Times Bestselling author and many more successful millennials!

This show isn’t just aimed to inspire us, after all, we have enough of those morning quotes from our newsfeed. It’s aimed to get us moving. Shivad’s vision is to share their journey; see how they come up with ideas; how they started; how they overcome fear and failure; what they have learnt from their mistakes; what are the tips and tricks that made them a success at such a young age, and what they have done differently to take the road less travelled.

The trailer for the show can be found here

The show is also available on iTunes and Google Music. With the links below:
http://bit.ly/fullinterviews
http://bit.ly/googleinterviews

You can learn more about the show here: www.hstart.co

23, January 2015 –Dreadlock Removal Process Now Made Easy with the Take Down® Remover 

The Take Down® Removers is the #1 Best Braid, Weave, Extension and Dreadlock Remover. This is a dry hair detangler which works fast in softening the hair.

The cream prevents any type of breakage during the process of detangling. It offers wonderful results on hair that has not been combed or brushed for a long period. Hair that has become extremely dry and matted can now be softened with the help of this excellent cream. The gentle cream penetrates through the hair and softens each and every strand as and when it is being combed.

Imagine the amount of time and effort it would take to remove the knots and clumps out of that matted and tangled hair. Take Down® Remover is definitely a great relief from pain as well as a feasible solution that offers excellent results.

The cream should be used directly on the matted hair before shampooing. Shampooing the matted hair would lead to more stubborn knots and clumps. It would also create masses of tangled matted hair. All that the users need here is this Detangler Cream, a wide tooth comb, a rat tail comb and of course lots of patience.

Users have to massage and soak the hair with the cream without wetting the hair. The knots, balls or clumps can be picked using the rat tail comb. The strands of hair can be slowly pulled out using the pin tip of the comb. If the hair to too tangled, users may wish to use extra cream – the more the better. This would weaken the matted knots and clumps.

The hair can be shampooed once it is completely detangled. A wide tooth comb can be used to remove all the knots and mats now. The hair can be conditioned with an excellent conditioner at the end.

Even the worst dreadlocks, twists, hair extensions and dread extensions can be detangled easily with the help of this dreadlock remover. Hair restoration is now easy and simple with this excellent product. It is time to say no to painful processes and those time taking sessions to detangle the extremely impossible tangled hair.   

To know more about this dreadlock remover visit www.hairdetanglerschoolsa.com

Contact Details

Nomsa Beauty Ltd, Johannesburg. 
Tel:(+27) 0791275325
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

We, Kansai Plascon, have achieved one of our best B-BEE ratings to date and are recognised as a Value Adding Supplier. Our B-BBEE procurement recognition level has increased from 110% to 137.5%, which is higher than that of a non-value adding level 1 status supplier. So, when tendering for projects, our combined B-BBEE status and Value Adding Supplier position effectively make Kansai Plascon the preferred procurement choice.

Our B-BBEE status now stands at level 3, as of  September 2014, having increased from level 4 in 2013. With a score of 80.27 points, this rating cements our position as the coatings industry market leader.  

There's great news for our customers too. Companies that  purchase from Plascon will  improve their own procurement scores thereby improving their B-BBEE ratings. By partnering with us, customers benefit through improved B-BBEE procurement scores.  

In contrast, if a customer purchases products from a non-value adding level 5 supplier and not Plascon, then their  procurement recognition will amount to a far lesser 80% only. All this renders Kansai Plascon the obvious choice.  

Kansai Plascon has 125-year long history of leading quality assurance, superb formulation and trusted performance – and now, we have also secured our position as the market leader in benefitting our customers.  

- ENDS

About Kansai Plascon Kansai Plascon is a company within the global Kansai Paint group. Kansai Paint is the world’s sixth largest paint company and Japan’s foremost coatings manufacturer. With the backing of Kansai Paint, Kansai Plascon will continue to drive innovation and excellence in the retail, trade and industrial coatings market in South Africa and will further the company’s interests in Africa.  

For further information, please contact: Alex Coggins Marketing Executive, Kansai Plascon + 27 11 951 4500

We are thrilled to announce that both the public and private sectors appear to recognize the value of board diversity as BPW SA has been approached in the last month alone, to assist with eleven board vacancies for women on our Register.  Women and men have different interests and perspectives in important areas, and boards are starting to see the importance of utilising these varying experiences to tackle the tremendous challenges. 

BPW SA and the Department of Trade & Industry (the dti) want boards of directors to widen the search for talent by looking beyond the traditional pool of executives and bring new potential to light.  It is for this reason that we have joined forces to provide a Women on Boards programme to create a Register of female leaders in South Africa who are excellently trained and, as a result, are highly sought after by Boards.  After all, why on earth would you voluntarily exclude half the smart people?

Our first group of 19 senior women, all thoroughly trained through our 9-month Women on Boards director development programme and certified by the dti, are now available on our register of Board Potential Women Directors and we urge companies to contact us for potential female directors.

Seven of our graduates are in line for board interviews , many have been interviewed by the media – both radio and magazines – and all will be profiled in the KZN Chamber of Commerce Power Book (2015). As an ongoing service to the graduates, BPW SA continues to raise their profile in an effort to access suitable board placements.  We have proven that board diversity is not a supply problem, but rather a demand problem.

BPW SA is proud to announce that we have incorporated an international module into the Women on Boards programme.  Business acumen - incorporating business finance and strategy - a must in today’s complex landscape. Business acumen is a keen understanding of what it takes for an organization to make money.  It combines financial literacy – the ability to interpret numbers on financial statements – with business literacy – recognizing how strategies and decisions impact these numbers.  Call it a sophisticated business simulation. Call it an exercise in experiential learning. Or call it a board game. Whatever you label it, the simple fact is that the training is fun and will gives participants a true competitive edge.

A recent Women on Board graduate, Tebogo Maziya, who holds a Masters degree in Science, a postgraduate diploma in finance and a B Comm degree says the nine-month journey has been fulfilling. “I learnt there’s a risk and that that risk is manageable. So it’s important for the board to be transparent and accountable and for a board member to be aware of decisions made because they will be held accountable.”  Another graduate, Amantha Maharaj, a BSc electrical engineering graduate with an MBA, who works a top management level at an engineering consultancy says of the programme: “It teaches one to know how a board is structured, what to do, and questions one needs to ask when sitting on a board. It also teaches business risk and how one should view business from a higher level. It was certainly value for money.”

For more information about our Women on Boards Programme, please visit our website at www.bpw-jhbsa.co.za or contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or (011) 794-4991.

In the first quarter of this year, Tilda Technologies (Tildatech), an IT software development company based in Johannesburg, South Africa, successfully deployed a CaneMill Pro 7 software upgrade for the Royal Swaziland Sugar Corporation Limited (RSSC). This enhancement was implemented to improve the automation effectiveness of the procedure for capturing laboratory test results during the cane crushing and sugar refining process.  

Rob Coombe, group IT manager for RSSC said, ‘Our CaneMill system has served us well over the past 8 years, however it was due for an upgrade in order to leverage new technologies.’ 

Software development of CaneMill Pro 7 began in 2012 and was concluded the following year. ‘It is a complete rewrite utilizing Microsoft Windows 7 and 8 technologies, featuring a new front-end that was developed with Microsoft Presentation Foundation,’ explained Brett Robertson, CEO of Tildatech. 

The RSSC CaneMill upgrade project was deployed in November 2013 and went live in April of this year. ‘To date it is running smoothly and the new functionality has greatly enhanced the capability and flexibility of our laboratory, improving our IT efficiency and increasing our productivity gains,’ confirmed Rob.

Laura Reynolds - CEO of Recruitgroup, last night was announced as Winner of the Standard Bank Top Women Awards in the Top Young Female Entrepreneur of the Year 2014 category. Laura has implemented exemplary vision, innovation, leadership and direction in the past eight years to create a business that has flourished to become an award-winning leader in the industry both as a service provider and as an employer. Laura's dedicated service and passion for her business has created a unique, positive and dynamic working environment that not only continuously grows its own people but fosters a culture that is respected and admired by clients, candidates and employees. Last night this dedication was recognised at a lavish gala event held at Emperors Palace.

Says Laura: "It is an absolute privilege not only to win but just to be nominated in a category with such incredible business women. These women are leaders in their industry and it is most humbling to be announced as the winner. I am so proud of my team at Recruitgroup on what we have achieved together and I thank them for their hard work and dedication as well as all at Topco Media for hosting such a fantastic event." 

In collaboration with the Top Women publication, the Top Women Awards is a prestigious event in which inspirational female leaders are celebrated for outstanding performance in the world of business and government. 

This year, over 160 companies from a range of different sectors, including agriculture, science and technology, transport, and retail, have entered the awards. In order to be shortlisted, as a finalist companies must meet certain criteria, like have an annual turnover of R35 million, 30 percent female staff, 10 percent and above female senior management, and one to 1.5 percent of per capita is spent on skills development for women in the industry. 

"Judging the entrants to the Top Women Awards is such an eye-opening experience because it gives a window into just how much is being done to help uplift women in South Africa," says Topco Media's Managing Editor, Nick Krige. 

Recruitgroup is one of the largest privately owned recruitment organisations in South Africa in finding and placing top talent. 

On the 7th August, 2014, BPW South Africa and the Department of Trade & Industry launched South Africa’s first database of “Board Potential Women” at a Business Breakfast held with over 200 CEO’s and high level government officials.  Acting Director General, Mrs Pumla Ncapayi of the Department of Small Business Development (The Department of Trade & Industry) handed over certificates to 19 senior businesswomen who have completed the intensive BPW SA “Women on Boards” director development programme and have now been profiled on the “Board Potential Women” database.  

The first 19 women on this database all fulfil stringent criteria for corporate governance and legislation and are well trained through our “Women on Boards” director development programme.  This list of "Board Potential Women" makes it clear that there are more than enough eminently qualified women to help lead South Africa’s corporations into the 21st century and that it is now time to shatter the glass ceiling that keeps these women from ascending to board positions.  Furthermore, it’s time we provide opportunities to more women than just the “high flyers” who currently occupy most board seats.  

We need to use all of our society’s talents to ensure that South Africa’s economy thrives. We often hear the argument that there are insufficient qualified women to occupy positions in the boardroom. Today BPW SA and the Department of Trade & Industry are shattering those myths as well as glass ceilings! The database shows that the qualified women are there – it’s just a matter of finding them and we’ve made it easy through our database.  There is no longer any excuse for recruiting unqualified non-executive female directors onto a board.  

The programme and database is administered by BPW SA in consultation with the Department of Trade & Industry. All women listed in the database are suitable to be considered for company board-level positions and meet a clear set of criteria.  Every application to be part of our “Women on Boards” programme and database is formally assessed and reviewed and only those women who meet the criteria are accepted. Notably, all women on the database have extensive formal qualifications and at least five years senior management experience.  

Companies should now make use of this untapped pool of talent, and businesswomen interested in potential board posts, should be joining the “Women on Boards” programme and ultimately our national database, in order to promote their profile amongst a larger audience.

For more information, give us a call on (011) 794-4991 or 083 212 9134 or visit our website at www.bpw-jhbsa.co.za.

Leading South African Payment Gateway, Setcom Payment Solutions, today announced their partnership with innovative e-commerce solution provider, Digital Planet. This partnership will enable Setcom to introduce a wider range of e-commerce services to their existing portfolio of online credit card processing, SID Instant EFT and mobile payment solutions.

“We feel that Digital Planet’s services would be of great value to our client base, as they have a proven track record in terms of optimising efficiencies across the entire e-commerce value chain. We look forward to collaborating with Digital Planet to provide our clients with holistic e-commerce solutions that will have a positive impact on their business performance,” said Setcom CEO, Kumalan Naidoo.

Digital Planet has been assisting some of South Africa’s biggest businesses and brands for over 15 years by enabling e-commerce efficiencies and helping their clients realise e-commerce goals. Running a successful e-commerce business can be very challenging, as it requires efficiencies in a number of areas, such as website design and development, payment integration, digital marketing, fulfilment, customer service and logistics. This is where Digital Planet’s expertise can help improve and streamline competencies across the board.

“Digital Planet continually strives to add value to our clients, and working with Setcom has allowed us to offer more flexibility to our clients when it comes to online payments. This is very important to us because secure payment methods are one of the most important consideration factors for online shoppers in South Africa,” added Cassie van Wyk, Head of E-commerce at Digital Planet.

Setcom facilitates secure credit card and SID Instant EFT transactions across multiple channels, making them a one-stop payment solution partner. Setcom’s payment infrastructure paired with Digital Planet’s e-commerce expertise will surely make for a winning combination for years to come.

About Setcom:

Setcom has been one of South Africa’s most trusted Payment Gateways since 1998. They offer secure online and mobile credit card payment processing, SID instant EFT and fraud prevention services to entrepreneurs looking for a reliable, affordable payment solutions partner.

Part of the Setcom methodology is to offer traditional and non-traditional payment types across multiple channels, partnered with an effective reporting and reconciliation platform that enables efficient processing of payments. The offering is further enhanced by a fraud and risk management system that operates across multiple channels to ensure optimal business performance.

As payments evolved through traditional retail environments and the Internet, Setcom has been at the forefront of developing products that not only differentiate, but allows business to partner with technology to expedite growth and revenues. For more information, visit www.setcom.com.

About Digital Planet:

For more than a decade, Digital Planet has helped companies build and manage profitable online businesses. They offer a complete solution: world-class e-commerce websites, back-end order management systems, e-commerce expertise, online marketing, call centre services and fulfillment services.

Digital Planet was founded in September 1999 when they launched the Digital Planet online electronics store. It was early days for the e-commerce industry in South Africa and there weren’t many skills available, so they built our own end-to-end solution for the business. This solution included the front end marketing, merchandising and technology, as well as the back-end logistics and customer services. They mastered all the nuances of a virtual business in South Africa.

They soon had customers knocking on their door to help them build and run their own online businesses. Digital Planet quickly won clients including the major brands Hewlett-Packard and Discovery Vitality, both of which are still with Digital Planet today, more than a decade later. For more information, visit www.digitalplanet.co.za.

{pp}In the digital age, our Digital Footprint is often people's first impression of us. The changing social media environment requires that we manage our online personal brand more carefully than ever.