Director: Innate Investment Solutions

It sounds clichéd to say it about a property professional, but 28-year-old Lynette Ntuli is passionate about development. It’s the reason she is making it her life’s work to build people, businesses, ideas and South Africa through hard work and innovative thinking. At 24, this articulate young Durbanite was appointed general manager of the Pavillion Shopping Centre in Westville — the first black female to head a “super- regional” shopping centre. By 27 she had opened Innate Investment Solutions and been headhunted to lead Durban Invest — a business development initiative created to unleash the city’s economic potential. As a member of the national executive of the Women’s Property Network, Young Leaders Connect and Businesswomen’s Association, Ntuli uses these platforms to empower women, the youth and social entrepreneurs – work she continues through her social media platform, Ignitesa.com. Smart, astute and an international speaker to boot, she’s changing the face of the local property industry, one development at a time.

— Cat Pritchard

Twitter: @MsNtuli