Flipping His Way to Success: Mhlengi Ngcobo Moved Up From Flipping Bicycles to Houses

• Mhlengi Ngcobo decided he wanted to be an entrepreneur after dropping out of university after eight years of studying
• He didn't have a job, investors or seed money to fund his entrepreneurial journey, only R150 and a bicycle
• The 29-year-old used "flipping", which is buying and selling products in short periods of time, to generate the money he needed to start his business
• Mhlengi Ngcobo is one of Briefly News' Young Money Makers and he shares the art of flipping

Most businesses need funding to start up. So, what can one do when you have no source of income to save or no investors to provide the necessary seed money? Mhlengi Ngcobo faced this major hurdle when he decided to drop out of university and pursue entrepreneurship.

When Ngcobo started his business, he had only R150 and a bicycle. The 29-year-old shared his tips and tricks for generating funds with Briefly News.

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The art of 'flipping': Ngcobo generated funds through buying and selling

Mhlengi Ngcobo told Briefly News he self-funded his business, CoffeeMM, and four other businesses through 'flipping'. What is flipping, you might ask? Investopedia defines the business practice as buying something and re-selling it a short period later for a profit.

A year after failing to sell coffee the first time, Ngcobo decided to give it another shot. He sold a R1 500 food voucher for R1 100 and used the money to buy coffee beans. Ngcobo said he delivered his stock on his bicycle before flipping it.

"I took a bicycle I bought for R1 600 and sold it for R4 600," he told Briefly News.

Ngcobo then bought another bicycle on Facebook for R4 200 and sold it for almost double that amount. He continued 'flipping' bicycles until he had enough money to buy his first car - which he later sold for capital.

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The entrepreneur has come a long way since flipping bicycles to buy his first car. Mhlengi Ngcobo now owns two impressive whips: a Mercedes AMG and a BMW Z4.

From flipping bicycles to flipping houses

Ngcobo has come a long way since his days flipping bicycles. He still uses this business technique but on a much later scale. The 29-year-old owns five businesses, one of which is in real estate.

The young entrepreneur now buys houses and renovates them through his construction company. He then sells the homes for a profit and repeats the process.

Chartered accountant and entrepreneur gives 4 proven tips to help save money

Tinashe Zano is a master of finance. Not only is he a chartered accountant but he saved enough money over two years to fund his business.

In an interview for the Briefly News' Young Money Makers project, Zano gave his top tips for maximising savings to achieve financial goals.

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Zano is the owner of Nspire, a sneaker brand that gives back to underprivileged communities.

Source: Briefly News