For South African Founders

Get access to the capital and mentors who have built, scaled, and sold their tech businesses internationally.

Unleash is a community of former builders for South African founders. Access the right capital at the right time — without entering the fundraising rat race.

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Free to join. No commitment. Apply in 5 minutes.

"A single conversation broke through clouds I'd been stuck in for months." — Gavin W., Digify Africa

"The most detailed and constructive input I've received so far." — Phumi K., Kloset Klub

"We've used what I learned to completely reframe our strategy." — Phinda N., Four Minute Medicine

"We are now moving full steam ahead to implement these." — Rene H., Proco

"A single conversation broke through clouds I'd been stuck in for months." — Gavin W., Digify Africa

Billions ZAR

Enterprise Value Generated

1,000+

Founders Supported

Incubation → Exit

Full-Cycle Track Record

Who's Behind This

Meet Phil

Exited Founder & Investor

Philipp Ströhemann first landed in Cape Town in 2014 for a business school exchange — and never really left. He co-founded his first company with a South African partner that same year.

Over 15 years, Phil has built and scaled multiple businesses across B2B SaaS, marketplaces, and tech-enabled services — from founding to exit. He's been through the full cycle: bootstrapping, building sales teams, scaling revenue, and selling to private equity.

Now he's putting that experience — and his own capital — behind the next generation of South African founders. Not as a fund manager, but as someone who shows up, rolls up his sleeves, and works alongside you on GTM, sales, pricing, hiring, and execution.

The ecosystem doesn't need more advice. It needs people who have done it.

Learn more about Phil → LinkedIn · Substack

15+

Years Building

Multiple Exits

to PE & Strategic Buyers

2-3

Deep Engagements/Year

What We Believe

Our Principles

This is not another venture fund. This is a community of builders who invest their own money, share what they've learned, and show up when it matters.

Community, Not a Fund

No external LPs. No fund structure. We invest our own capital alongside founders. Full alignment, full skin in the game.

Experience, Not Advice

Every insight comes from having built, scaled, and exited. Not from reading about it. From doing it.

Radical Alignment

Same shares. No preferred stock. No liquidation preferences. We only win when founders win.

Funded for SA Reality

SA tech startups need to be funded for South African reality and for flexibility — not shoehorned into Silicon Valley playbooks.

Cash-Flow First

SA rewards efficiency, not burn. Companies reach customers and revenue early — without fundraising dependency.

Founder Ownership

Realistic valuations. Founders keep real ownership and achieve real economic outcomes. No zombie companies.

How It Works

From Application to Access

One application. One quarter to prove engagement. Then you're in.

Apply

Apply using the application form. Tell us about your business, your stage, and what you're working on.

We Review

The Unleash team reviews every single application and will reach out to you personally.

Community Access

If granted, get community access and get engaged immediately. Mentorship, peer groups, events, our network — all from day one.

One Quarter to Show Engagement

You get a full quarter. Show up, contribute, execute. Your engagement pre-qualifies you for continued access in the next quarter.

Ongoing Access & Deeper Engagement

Founders who show up earn continued access. Deeper investment or advisory engagement comes from the relationship — not the application.

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What Unleash Members Say

From Our Founders

Real feedback. Real founders. No fluff.

I walked away with a breakthrough in my thinking. Amazing how a single conversation can break through some clouds. I've started discussing it with the team and it's definitely the way we need to go into 2026.

Gavin Weale

Founder & CEO, Digify Africa

This is genuinely the most detailed and constructive input I've received so far. The process was hugely valuable — rebuilding the model and pressure-testing assumptions gave me much more clarity.

Phumi Korber

Founder & CEO, Kloset Klub

It gave me a lot to report back and think about with the team. We've used what I learned to reframe our strategy and I'm still working through the frameworks.

Phinda Njisane

Co-founder, Four Minute Medicine

Tremendously helpful. The call crystallised key points I've been reflecting on — we are now moving full steam ahead to implement these.

Rene Hartmann

Co-Founder, Proco