Moonshot-time, {{ FIRSTNAME | there }}? Mining insiders say companies are signing ridiculous deals in hopes the US and China make it to the moon, ‘cos NASA says there’s 3 million metric tons of Helium-3 up there, a rare element worth $20M per kg. That’s a $60 quadrillion (60 with 15 zeroes behind it) payday.

In Today’s Open Letter

There’s a reason most SA companies don’t attempt major international FMCG plays (it’s tough as nails) – meet the scale-up exporting soft drinks from Cape Town to Chicago…

Walk into any supermarket and you’ll see the problem: shelves packed with sodas either loaded with sugar or tasteless sugar-free. One leaves you feeling guilty, the other leaves you disappointed. There’s no middle ground.

The average South African drinks about 60-90 litres of soft drinks a year, and the US number is nearly double that. We’re hooked on sweetness, but tired of how it makes us feel. But even when you find a “healthier” option, it usually tastes a bit off. 

The result? People are drinking less soda overall, but still craving something real, refreshing and easy to enjoy twice in a row.

The merchandiser feels you

Retailers feel the same frustration: they want to stock new, cleaner products, but importing niche brands is expensive, risky and slow. So they stick to the same-old brands with their same-old tricks.

For SA startups, on the other hand, building FMCG products at scale is even harder, because it’s a resource-intensive game to reach any kind of scale (and funding dries up long before you can go from local fave to global player).

That’s why you gotta get a taste of the local guys who’re actually doing it…

The local scale-up taking clean SA taste, global

PURA Beverages is a South African scale-up that’s solving all of those: How to make drinks less sugary but still taste good, how to manoeuvre retail to actually get to market, how to build a resource-intensive FMCG product in SA and ship it overseas, with unbelievable flair.

Their Joyful Moderation concept, the idea of not chasing “zero everything” but keeping just 4 grams of real cane sugar per 100ml (healthy but also below the sugar-tax threshold), using only four natural ingredients and enough fruit extract to make each drink feel like an actual treat, results in a lekker can of soda.

They’re at Takealot, Woolies, Checkers, virtually everywhere these days.

But this isn’t just about what’s inside the can

PURA co-founder Greig Jansen recalls how obsessive they were over retail-readiness; enough to redesign their packaging for a 1.5-second shelf read — the time it takes to grab attention in a crowded fridge. The new cans say exactly what they are: Pura. Healthier Soda. Cane Sugar. Real Flavour. No small print, no confusion.

These are lessons you only learn on the ground, and Greig spent years running Coca-Cola’s East Africa Bottling business in Ethiopia and FMCG retail at Woolworths. The mix of African pragmatism, global standards and purpose became the blueprint that now carries PURA into markets from South Africa to the world.

And it scales well: Would you believe PURA today manufactures in Cape Town, shipping to 13 countries? You’ll find PURA at Walmart, Target, HEB and Kroger stores in the US (run from a Chicago-based hub). Not least because the team’s dedication to performance attracted $15 million in funding to fuel their expansion.

Perhaps there’s also an element of good timing in PURA, too. The world is craving stuff that’s real and still good for you. And we’ll drink to that.

We’re watching this space.

Who still waits on hold to check an account balance or track an order?

One of South Africa’s biggest homeware retailers, HomeChoice, makes managing your account as simple as sending a message by bringing self-service to WhatsApp.

But here’s what’s really clever:

✅ View your account, make payments and track deliveries instantly
✅ Find showrooms, collection points and see the latest specials
✅ Get accurate 24/7 support and updates

From bedding and furniture to credit and deliveries, HomeChoice is showing what happens when an omnichannel brand meets customers where they already are — on WhatsApp.

What would you build on WhatsApp today?

If you’ve ever heard that question around a braai, this guide’s for you.

Running your hustle through your personal account might feel easier until tax season hits, funding gets denied or a client asks for your business details. That’s when it gets real.

Govchain’s new guide breaks it down simply:

✅ Why keeping business and personal money separate matters
✅ Your best banking options: whether you’re a sole trader or registered business
✅ How to pick between old-school banks or digital players like Lula.

It’s everything a South African founder needs to know before choosing their first business account.

💰 Spreading Their Wages. Local earned wage access player, Paymenow, has doubled its user base to 600’000 in the last 2 years, and now serves more than 400 South African companies. Nice.

📦 Pick and Choose. Amazon SA will now let you pick your ideal delivery window if you’re in Jozi, Pretoria or Cape Town. While it’s still no "30 minutes or less", it's a start. Cool.

🌩️ Cloud Power Grab. OpenAI has inked a massive $38-billion deal with AWS to juice up its AI ambitions with cloud power for the next seven years. Eye-watering amounts, really.

🛒 Pepkor Goes Shopping. Pepkor just beefed up its wardrobe, snapping up Legit and 468 other stores for a cool R1.7 billion. Goodness.

✅ The Stack. Founders need reliable tools, so our Founder’s Stack gives you IP offshoring and global market access with Finance Isle of Man, your VC and startup legal sorted by Dommisse Attorneys and more.

From 15 October 2025 to 15 November 2025, each friend you get to sign up to The Open Letter gets you one entry into a draw to win a brand new iPad Air!

Yesterday, we showed you how RunOS is building a cloud operating system you can take home, asking about your biggest cloud headache. And it’s defs the costs…

🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🧩 The setup (5%)

🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🗣️ Explaining it to non-techies (19%)

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 🧾 The surprise bill at month-end (52%)

🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🔐 Vendor lock-in (aka the Hotel California problem) (14%)

🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🧑‍💻 Fixing stuff that breaks at 2 AM (10%)

Your 2 cents…

Exactly, SD, once you start scaling, there’s no easy way out again. 🪤

Early-stage founder? Investec ESEY Awards (The Easies) offer $50k + global exposure for bold pre-Series A startups. Apply by 5 Nov. Apply here.

Female founder? Aurora Tech Award by inDrive offers $85 000 for women-led tech startups. Apply by 12 Nov. Apply here.

Deep tech founder? Hello Tomorrow Challenge offers €100k equity-free for startups in advanced computing & cybersecurity. Apply by 30 Nov. Apply here.

BioTech innovators: SA–Cuba Biotechnology Collaboration Call invites R&D partnerships on therapies for chronic and neurodegenerative diseases. Apply by 5 Dec. Details here.

Eco-entrepreneurs (16–28): Mercedes-Benz Fellowship funds 1'000 young innovators tackling environmental challenges. Apply by 12 Jan. Apply here.

Want to promote your event/programme here? Let us know.

🎥 Tool to Try: CursorClip is a macOS screen recorder with smart auto-zoom.

⛳ That’s Interesting: Tiger Woods once turned down a jaw-dropping $700–800 million offer to join LIV Golf by staying loyal to the PGA Tour.

🚀 Next Level: Chinese astronauts are literally having a braai in space.

🥦 Hack: A visual guide to foods that heal you — from bananas to turmeric, almonds and more.

📅 Wow Site: Holiday Optimizer helps you maximise your paid time off with clever scheduling.

Vote in the poll, leave a quick comment, or hit reply — we read every single one.