Baskin-Robbins, the biggest premium ice-cream brand in the world, will be opened its doors in Cape Town last week.
Grand Parade Investments (GPI), the owners of the franchise licence in SA, says over the next five years 50 stores will be opened.Baskin-Robbins SA chief operating officer Sean Dearham said SA would be the 52nd country the brand would operate in. He said the brand had more than 1,300 flavours in its ice-cream library.
“It is a premium offering but it will be accessible to customers. The prices will be competitive and we’ve thought very carefully about locations too. We will take customers on a flavour journey and we will impress them with how we present the ice cream. Month to month customers can expect a whole host of new flavours on the menu.”
Dearham said the brand would be operating in different formats including the nostalgic ice-cream truck “but with louder and newer music”.
There would be different formats for malls and local neighbourhoods as well.
“The market has evolved and it is very adventurous. You can see this in how the ice cream is served “¦ in milkshakes, in waffle crates and cones “¦ on brownies. People are looking for innovation and we intend to give it to them,” said Dearham.
GPI also owns the licences for Burger King as well as Dunkin’ Donuts. (via Bizcommunity)
Tony Elumelu Foundation opens entries for 2017 programme
On January 1, 2017, The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) will begin accepting applications for the third round of the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme. The Programme is the Foundation’s 10-year, US$100 million commitment to training, mentoring and funding 10,000 African entrepreneurs.
The application portal will be open until midnight (WAT), March 1, 2017. Entrepreneurs must complete the online application and selection is on a rolling basis, so early application is encouraged.
TEF Founder Tony O. Elumelu said: “I believe the seeds we are planting through the Programme will transform Africa. Two years on, it is clear that we have found a key to unlocking Africa’s potential for economic transformation. As ourentrepreneurs grow their own businesses and realise theirambitions, so too does the vision. We are showing what the African private sector can achieve; how hard work and enterprise can catalyze real, sustainable development.”
The Programme is designed to identify entrepreneurs that have the potential to grow their businesses and collectively generate 1,000,000 new jobs, that can contribute at least $10 billion in additional revenues to the African economy.
According to TEF CEO, Parminder Vir OBE, “This programme continues to surpass our expectations and its success is palpable. Your entrepreneurial journey begins when you make the decision to complete the application. We are seeking real entrepreneurs, people who can take risk and reap rewards, not just for themselves, but their communities and countries.”
Accenture Teams with Code.org through ‘Hour of Code’ to inspire students to learn coding
For the second straight year, Accenture is collaborating with Code.org to support Hour of Code, a global educational movement that reaches tens of millions of students through a one-hour introduction to computer science and computer programming.
As part of Accenture’s commitment to inspire and expand the opportunities for students to learn coding and computer science skills, Accenture employees in more than 200 cities across 55 countries have pledged to complete more than 10,000 Hours of Code during Computer Science Education Week December 5-11. This includes more than 2,000 hours pledged by Accenture employees to lead local events or volunteer at schools in their communities by working with teachers and Code.org to help students learn the basics of coding through online tutorials that inspire students to continue learning.
In South Africa, Accenture hosted an Hour of Code Hackathon in Johannesburg to teach learners from Alexandra, Soweto and Diepsloot how to code. “The hackathon is designed to prove that anyone can learn the basics of coding, have fun doing it, and continue learning beyond an hour,” said Khethiwe Nkuna, Corporate Citizenship Lead for Accenture in South Africa.
“The need for more computer science graduates has never been greater. Last year, there were 500,000 new computing jobs available in the U.S. but only 40,000 qualified graduates to fill them. We all must do more to close the skills gap and prepare students to join the workforce of the future,” said Paul Daugherty, Accenture’s chief technology & innovation officer and ‘chief coder’.
“In today’s digital world, exposing each and every student – particularly girls and minorities – to coding is just as critical as teaching reading, writing and arithmetic. I am proud of the personal commitments Accenture employees are making to help introduce students to computer programming and the vast opportunities available to them in the computer science field.”
