Entrepreneur Carlson Dudtz in life-and-death struggle against the 96% small business failure rate

A new cartoon series by Allon Raiz, CEO of Raizcorp, presents an insider’s take on the daily trials and tribulations of entrepreneurs

Avoiding the 96%, a new cartoon appearing weekly on Entrepreneur Magazine Online and monthly in Entrepreneur Magazine, gives its readers a peek behind the scenes in the life of its main character, an archetypal entrepreneur: Carlson Dudtz, a candle manufacturer with greater entrepreneurial ambitions.

The title of the cartoon refers to the fact that 96% of South African small businesses fail within 10 years. In this difficult environment, the entrepreneurial journey is a lonely one. Avoiding the 96% is written from the perspective of entrepreneurs, and reflects how they see themselves, allowing them to relate to the challenges that Carlson faces.

Avoiding the 96% is the brainchild of internationally recognised entrepreneurship expert Allon Raiz, serial entrepreneur, CEO of Raizcorp, and member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council for Fostering Entrepreneurship. Raiz has distilled his deep insight into the world of small business owners into these cartoons. In each strip, entrepreneurs and other readers are treated to the author’s wry view on the often mundane challenges that Carlson stumbles upon in the pursuit of his glamorous dream of owning and growing a successful business.

Meet Carlson Dudtz in Avoiding the 96%

The experience of writing two bestselling books for entrepreneurs, Lose the Business Plan and What to Do When You Want to Give Up, led Raiz to the belief that the stories of the day-to-day challenges that entrepreneurs face also deserve to be told. Raiz commented, “Like many entrepreneurial ideas, Carlson was born at 02:13 on a Tuesday morning, after an extremely long working day!”

The cartoons in the series fall into two broad categories. The first covers those that reveal an often unspoken truth about what entrepreneurs do to survive, and the other those that are simply situationally funny. “In my dealings with entrepreneurs, I’ve often come across stories that, apart from being funny, also encapsulate various aspects of what being a true entrepreneur really means, including resilience, hard work, perseverance… and being able to keep your sense of humour!”

Always entertaining, often enlightening, sometimes bittersweet: Carlson’s experiences of the highs and lows of his entrepreneurial journey has been published weekly on entrepreneurmag.co.za from February 2013.