Sibusiso Xaba: Reshaping cannabis industry with Africa Cannabis Advisory Group
Beyond's Top 10 Most Inspiring CEOs to Watch Out in 2021
With the passion for entrepreneurship and
realizing the power it holds, Sibusiso Xaba, Co-founder and CEO of Africa
Cannabis Advisory Group, is aiming to change Africa’s social and economic
reality. Sibusiso grew up in rural Eswatini, a small land-locked country in
Southern Africa. He witnessed how his family survived through entrepreneurship.
He states, “We were farmers and sold produce to the surrounding communities.
This appreciation regarding the power of entrepreneurship was entrenched in me
from a young age.” In search of a better life, Sibusiso’s family moved back to
South Africa after apartheid ended. He saw first-hand how entrepreneurship was
building a young democracy with immense potential.
Behind the scenes
Sibusiso began his career working as an
investment banker in London at Goldman Sachs, focused on covering African
clients, including governments, central banks, financial institutions, and
corporates. He was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to move to London
right after university in South Africa.
He adds, “This opportunity to work and
learn in a global, competitive, and high-pressure environment taught me a range
of skills related to global commerce, investments, policy and risk management
which has been invaluable on my entrepreneurial journey.”
After spending over eight years working in
investment banking in London, he stumbled across the cannabis industry whilst
researching agricultural businesses in India.
Initially, he was skeptical about the
industry as he was not a user himself. However, after months of thorough
research, he had a strong conviction that cannabis had the potential to
transform multiple industries across the world and Africa. He expresses, “That
was enough to make the decision to leave corporate and pursue an
entrepreneurial journey specializing in the cannabis industry.”
Hurdles along the way
COVID lockdown disrupted everything around
the world. Sibusiso and his team also faced a lot of hurdles as they
experienced a decline in client activity across Africa for several months.
To overcome this, he adds, “We had to
quickly analyze what the short and medium-term impact of Covid-19 was, and
recalibrate our client strategy to remain relevant and supportive of current
and future clients as they navigated through an exceptionally challenging
period.”
They created an engagement model that was
more agile in order to ensure their survival as a business and, more
importantly, continue to support their clients through an unpredictable and
volatile period.
Reshaping the industry with Africa
Cannabis Advisory Group
ACA Group is a services provider
specialized in the cannabis and industrial hemp industries. He states, “We work
with a broad range of stakeholders including governments, corporates, financial
institutions, communities and entrepreneurs to assist in the commercialization
of their cannabis operations. In particular, we focus on strategy consulting,
capital raising, investments, technology solutions, and product sales and
distribution.”
He further adds, “We have also recently
entered into a strategic partnership with Global Go, a US-based consulting firm
specializing in the cannabis industry. Due to the global nature of the cannabis
industry, this partnership will be invaluable as we look to facilitate the
movement of capital, knowledge, products, and ideas between the North American
market and Africa.”
Sibusiso expresses that the team has been
privileged to work with some of the leading cannabis businesses in Africa,
supporting their commercialization efforts, including raising capital, product
distribution, strategy, and brand development.
With time, the cannabis industry has
evolved a lot. The industry seems to be rewarding long-term, patient, agile and
capital-efficient models.
He states, “It isn’t always obvious with
some much news flow in the industry, it’s difficult to assess what businesses
are on a good, long term trajectory and which are more short-term results
oriented. Over time, it’s becoming quite clear that operators that are focused
on the long term are beginning to emerge as the pioneers of the industry.”
The cannabis services industry has a
complex, competitive nature. The industry remains fragmented, with very few
firms being able to offer comprehensive support to the young and evolving
industry.
He expresses, “We aim to differentiate
ourselves by focusing on a comprehensive range of services that we see as
addressing pain points for operators in the cannabis industry. Our range of
services are much broader, and due to our decision to solely focus on cannabis,
we tend to offer in-depth, quality services that address many of the key
challenges in commercializing a cannabis business.”
Life as the Co-Founder and CEO of the company
Taking the onus of the CEO role in the
company, his major focus is on building the company in a way that ensures its
relevance in shaping the cannabis industry in Africa. This includes managing
the company’s product offering, partnerships, client engagements, technology
integration, and capital needs.
He expresses, “Our employees and partners
are motivated by our vision. By continuously referring to this, our team is
motivated to make an impact by doing everything we can to ensure our clients succeed.
When we see jobs being created, funds being raised, products being developed,
and goods being exported internationally, we see the tangible impact of our
daily commitment towards our mission. This is the best source of motivation for
anyone.”
Sibusiso works very hard to fuel the growth
of the company. He burns the midnight oil to expand the horizons. At the
current stage of the company, he has to indulge a lot of time in managing
different aspects to pave the way to the top.
He states, “At present, my personal and
professional life is one and the same thing. I spend almost every waking minute
of the day focused on building ACA. Prayer, meditation and exercise help keep
my mental health in check. I think as the business grows and matures; I’ll be in
a position to live a more balanced life.”
Future roadmap for the company
Sibusiso and his team have the vision to
see every one of their clients establish cannabis operations that can stand the
test of time in an increasingly competitive and global landscape. As they
succeed, the social and economic dividend will have a material impact on
communities across the continent.
Regarding the future prospects, he states, “The major development for ACA Group is our recently established strategic alliance with Global Go. Alongside Global Go, ACA will be in a strong position to expand its coverage to other regions across the world including South America, Australia, Israel and Europe. ACA will also be concluding a capital raise in the next few months to support the expansion of the business both organically and through select investments.”