Sunsave Solutions increases access to electricity in rural and semi-urban areas in Cameroon through affordable solar home systems. Image Startup name: Sunsave Solutions Founder: Favour Onyenma School: School of Engineering Three words to describe your entrepreneurial journey: Uncertain. Daring. Collaborative. How did you come up with the idea? Both of my parents are small-scale entrepreneurs and I believe this played a huge role in shaping my business acumen. Growing up, my parents always supported me and never discouraged my business ideas even after numerous failures, although I put my flair for business on the back burner while I focused on my studies and skills development. My desire has always been to build a company to solve salient challenges faced by society. I became interested in renewable energy because of the challenges I saw within the electricity sector in my country, Nigeria. I wanted to bring my creativity to solving these challenges but was uncertain about how I would do this. A few months after completing my MSc in Sustainable Energy, a friend shared some ideas on a rural electrification project that I thought were brilliant. Thanks to our team of four, Sunsave Solutions was born and we are ready to take on the world. What is the idea? The entrepreneurial idea behind the company is to provide low-income rural households with affordable solutions to unlock their potential. Our goal is to enable low-income rural households to acquire clean solar electricity with the same money they would otherwise spend on kerosene and candles. We use a PAYGo plan that allows flexible payment in monthly instalments, equivalent to the average monthly cost of kerosene. What role has Edinburgh Innovations played in your entrepreneurial journey? Edinburgh Innovations has been very instrumental in my entrepreneurial journey. Firstly, Edinburgh Innovations has been crucial in helping my teammates secure a start-up visa, which has allowed us to continue building Sunsave Solutions from the UK. Secondly, Sunsave Solutions now has a dedicated business adviser. Finally, through the Startup Summer Accelerator and the Inspire Launch Grow Awards, I have gained a better understanding of key elements such as marketing, financial projections, sales, investment strategy and effective pitching, which are all essential for a successful startup journey. What’s next? Now, we are currently gathering and collating feedback from the performance of our prototype in the field (Cameroon). In the next few months, we will be incorporating some of these learnings in our product design, production, and distribution. We intend to continue strategic trialling to get more feedback and perfect our product. We are also looking to set up a board and redesign our website to be more reflective of our current position. Finally, as schools resume this year, we’ll launch a campaign called Light for Education Campaign. We will be donating solar kits to 3 – 5 qualified schools in rural areas to power their science or computer labs. Keep an eye out for this! Give entrepreneurship a go Inspired by Favour's story? Why not enter the Sustainable Business Ideas Competition? We have teamed up with the Edinburgh Earth Initiative to bring you this competition focusing on your solutions to the climate crisis and achieving a just transition. Do you have an idea for a startup (including a social enterprise, charity or freelancing proposition) that could contribute to solving our greatest sustainability challenges? Win £1,000 in funding! Deadline 10am on 27th November 2023. Be part of it - enter the Sustainable Business Ideas Competition now Image This article was published on 2024-07-01
