UWC and Lekker.Build Create 71 Websites in Two Workshops

By Grace Kim

The University of the Western Cape’s Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CEI) and Cape Town start-up Lekker.Build created 71 business websites in two hands-on workshops. Founder Anthony van Tonder said most owners built their own sites in under 10 minutes.

What did UWC and Lekker.Build create?

According to CEI, the initiative served aspiring and established entrepreneurs from the community. Lekker.Build’s platform builds a business website from a simple chat. Participants described their businesses in their own words and created professional, mobile-friendly websites without writing code, CEI said.

CEI said the workshops used a direct workflow: an owner supplied a plain-language description and Lekker.Build generated a site for that business. The centre added that several owners kept refining their websites after the session ended.

UWC said a website often serves as a business’s first point of contact with customers. The university tied the project to digital visibility and to its commitment to equip entrepreneurs with practical skills and tools for a technology-driven economy.

Abraham Oliver, the director of CEI, said the project matches the centre’s broader mission of supporting entrepreneurs through practical interventions with measurable outcomes.

“We need to level the playing ground. Our entrepreneurs need practical tools, not just theory. In two sessions, they built these 71 websites, each for their own businesses, and several kept improving them after the session ended.

That is exactly the kind of practical toolkit we want every community SMME to leave with, to increase their visibility and credibility in the marketplace.”

In plain terms, CEI delivered 71 participant-built websites, and several owners kept improving their sites after the sessions.

Who joined, and what support followed?

CEI said the workshops formed part of its Unemployed Youth Entrepreneurship Programme, funded by the Wholesale and Retail SETA (W&RSETA), and its Fellows Leadership and Mentoring Programme (FLMP). Participants represented businesses from agriculture and manufacturing to wellness services and consulting, CEI said.

UWC said the initiative went beyond website creation. It introduced entrepreneurs to digital tools for reaching customers, promoting products and services, and strengthening competitiveness.

Under the W&RSETA-funded initiative, UWC said the 10 top achievers receive a full year of online support:

• A .co.za domain.
• Hosting.
• Website-editing capabilities.
• Online payment functionality.
• Business email accounts.

“A website used to cost a small business thousands of rands and weeks of waiting. Through this programme offered by UWC, the owners built their own, in their own words, most of them in under ten minutes. Put the tools in the owners' hands and they run with them,” said Anthony van Tonder, founder of Lekker.Build.

UWC’s support package pairs rapid, no-code publishing with one year of online services for the 10 top achievers.

Why does UWC say the model matters?

UWC said the partnership shows how emerging technology can remove traditional barriers to establishing an online presence. It said small businesses, particularly those in township and community settings, can use a website to build credibility, increase visibility and access new markets.

Oliver said, “The idea is to combine entrepreneurship education with practical digital skills to continue creating opportunities that help entrepreneurs translate ideas into sustainable businesses. The website-building initiative illustrates how targeted support, innovative technology and community-focused partnerships can help small businesses strengthen their presence in an increasingly digital economy.”

For inquiries, UWC listed 083 742 5996 as Anthony van Tonder’s contact number.

UWC frames the 71 websites as a practical step toward visibility and credibility, not as the final business result.