Co-Founder Opportunity At Mzansi App Store (Equity-Only, Real Ownership)

Mzansi App Store; Cape Town; On-site; ZAR 600 000 - 750 000; Full time

Job summary

A local app distribution platform is seeking motivated co-founders to join their collective. This is an equity-only opportunity for South Africans with innovative ideas or industry expertise. Successful candidates will own significant equity in their projects that target pressing local issues while receiving support and resources. Ideal for those looking to build wealth through entrepreneurship rather than a conventional salary. Join to make a meaningful impact in your community.

Benefits

Equity ownership

Access to funding resources

Support from matched co-founders

Qualifications

• Deep understanding of a South African industry or community.
• Ability to treat the company with extreme ownership.
• Willingness to build wealth through equity rather than salary.

Responsibilities

• Bring your own MVP or take ownership of a validated project.
• Work with a matched co-founder to ship fast.
• Lead fundraising and go-to-market execution.

Skills

Understanding of South African industry

Extreme ownership mindset

Hunger to build wealth through equity

Ability to work remotely

Job description

Co-Founder Opportunity at Mzansi App Store (Equity-Only, Real Ownership)

We're building the apps that will power South Africa and are looking for the next 50 mission-driven South Africans to own them with us.

This is not a job. This is co-founding the next Yoco, Ozow or Luno while it’s still day zero.

Summary of the Role

Join the Mzansi Co‑Founders Collective as an equity-only Co‑Founder. You will bring your own idea/MVP or take ownership of one of our live, validated projects in high‑impact South African sectors. You’ll be paired immediately with a complementary co‑founder (technical, growth or domain expert) and supported by a platform that has already deployed R45 million+ in founder funding.

What Success in This Position Looks Like (months)

• Your app is live and exclusively launched on the Mzansi App Store.
• You have paying users or clear enterprise contracts.
• You’ve raised pre‑seed / seed capital or government grants through our Investor Hub.
• You own a significant equity stake in a company becoming the default solution in its category inside South Africa.
• You’re generating real revenue and building generational wealth for yourself and your family – on South African terms.

How This Role Fits Into the Organization

Mzansi App Store is creating a parallel app economy owned by South Africans, for South Africans. Every co‑founder we back strengthens the ecosystem: the only truly local app distribution platform, the largest collective of SA‑focused founders, and the pipeline of proudly South African unicorns.

Success directly accelerates financial independence for township entrepreneurs, better healthcare access, cleaner energy, modern agriculture, and every other sector we touch.

Two Paths – Both Paid Only in Meaningful Equity

Path 1 – You HAVE the idea (or MVP)

You're a hustler with a clear problem and early validation in one of our target sectors.

• Own product vision and roadmap
• Drive customer discovery and validation inside your industry
• Work daily with your matched technical or growth co‑founder to ship fast
• Lead fundraising and go‑to‑market execution.
• Build a category‑defining South African company in your space

Path 2 – You live the problem (but don’t have the idea yet)

You're a domain expert who knows your industry inside out – doctors, nurses, teachers, accountants, pastors, spaza shop owners, solar installers, municipal workers, farmers, B‑BEE specialists, etc.

• Take full ownership of a ready, pre‑vetted project in your field
• Bring unrivalled on‑the‑ground insight and networks
• Validate and adapt the product with real users from day one.
• Co‑lead product, sales and fundraising alongside your matched dev / growth co‑founder
• Turn your expertise into equity in a high‑growth startup

Qualifications & Skills (for both paths)

• Deep understanding of a South African industry or community (lived experience beats degrees)
• Extreme ownership mindset – you treat this company like it’s your only one
• Hunger to build wealth through equity, not a salary
• Ability to work remotely and asynchronously with a co‑founder

Bonus

• Existing network of potential customers, partners or mentors in your sector
• Early traction, MVP, or customer interviews (Path 1)
• Immediate matching with a vetted technical or growth co‑founder
• Launch exclusively on Mzansi App Store (zero 30% tax)
• Direct introductions to VCs, angel investors and government grant programs
• Weekly matching calls until you’re paired

Community & Next Steps

Ready to stop building other people’s billion‑dollar companies and start building ours? Apply in 90 seconds. Drop your field in the comments (doctor, teacher, farmer, developer, accountant, pastor, spaza owner, etc.) and we’ll DM you personally.

Let’s build the future we want to live in.

Job function: Business Development and Sales

Industries: Technology, Information and Internet