Patrick Palmer, operating under Remlap Trading $($Pty$)$ Ltd$,$ is a South African$-$born

entrepreneur with an impressive and diverse list of local and global ventures to his

name, ranging from property development to selling industrial equipment. To obtain

some first$-$hand insights into the mind of a global entrepreneur, EDGE interviewed

Palmer about his career, his experiences and his perspectives on entrepreneurship.

Born and raised in Scottburgh, KwaZulu$-$Natal $($KZN$),$ Palmer officially started his

entrepreneurial career in $1985,$ when he returned from the military at the age of $20.$

Recognising that there was little night life in Scottburgh, he bought himself some basic

equipment and began offering his services as a DJ at the local hotels for just R $40$ a

night, while studying engineering by day. As the only DJ in town, he was in high

demand, and quickly grew his venture to a very successful entertainment business

that stretched across KZN$.$

Palmer believes that the key to successful entrepreneurship is to look for opportunities

everywhere, not only in the obvious or eye$-$catching industries or fields. Since his days

as a DJ$,$ he has been involved in a number of diverse, sometimes unusual,

entrepreneurial ventures. This includes salvaging valves from defective tyre tubes,

selling and exporting mining and rubber processing equipment, property sales and

development in South Africa and Australia, and financing struggling businesses.

Palmer describes himself as a natural entrepreneur, always looking for opportunities.

He identifies several key traits in himself that are essential for entrepreneurship: the

ability to focus on a number of things at once, tenacity to overcome challenges,

adaptability, curiosity and being motivated by competition. However, he has also spent

many years working in a corporate environment, during which he learned important

skills for both local and global business. Alongside the essential personality traits,

Palmer emphasises that understanding economics, commercial law, business

accounting and resource management has been very important and helpful to him.

The combination of natural aptitude and an eagerness to learn and apply new skills

has given him a very good grounding for his entrepreneurial career. For example, after

working for a rubber products manufacturer in Durban for seven years, he bought the

factory with his brother and renamed it Palmer Rubber. This venture was so successful

$3$ HENT$300-1-$Jan$-$Jun$2024-$FA$1-$LS$-$V$3-04012024$

that they were able to sell it again, affording him the opportunity to retire at the age of

$41.$

Throughout his career, Palmer has been exposed to a number of foreign markets,

including India, Australia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa. However, his expansion

into global entrepreneurship was somewhat accidental. Having sold Palmer Rubber,

he and his family emigrated to Australia. However, within a short period of time, he

noticed an opportunity in the Australian property market: selling to other South Africans

looking to invest offshore. His South African roots and business experience made him

ideal for this role, and he was even able to demand exclusive rights to South African

clients from the property developer he was working with. However, when he and some

friends decided to establish their own property development company, they realised

that Australia$$s laws and policies were not as $$entrepreneurship friendly$$ as those in

South Africa. Palmer notes this as one of the most important lessons he has learned

about global ventures $$ you have to know the market in order to succeed in it$.$ This

includes knowing the laws, government structures, import$/$export and labour policies,

and consumer habits.

Palmer$$s approach to entrepreneurship is somewhat unconventional. He seldom stays

with the same venture for long, preferring to move on to a new challenge once one

venture has succeeded. However, the strategy has proven successful again and

again. His philosophy is that entrepreneurship should not be about fame, glory and

building a big brand as fast as possible. Instead, he believes good entrepreneurs are

those who are willing to put in long hours, make sacrifices and accept $$when enough

is enough$.$ He also stresses the importance of looking for a win$/$win in every deal,

because $$making a good deal means that people will come back again$.$ In other words,

building a reputation as a reasonable, fair and trustworthy entrepreneur is very

important for securing long$-$term business and return clients. He adds that effective

entrepreneurs, know what skills they lack and $$surround themselves with people who

can do those things well$.$ Finally, Palmer maintains that any entrepreneur should

always know enough about a subject to communicate effectively with someone who is

$3\mathrm{.}1.$ Provide a well$-$supported analysis to substantiate the assertion that 'Palmer$$s

entrepreneurial journey exemplifies an internally motivated entrepan expert at it$.$