Hela Ben Jabeur, Student and entrepreneur

A role model for the young generation, Hela Ben Jabeur sets an example through her dynamism and her motivation to succeed in every activity she undertakes. Still a student in her 2^nd year of finance and accounting in Tataouine, Hela became an entrepreneur and launched “Helal Print & Application” in November 2021, a company specialized in digital printing on all materials.

“After graduating from high school, I was headed for a university course that I didn’t like. So, I redirected my academic path and during this gap year, I discovered the path of entrepreneurship.”

The idea for the project came from her brother, who encouraged her to go into the booming developing field of printing and new technologies. As there is no specialized training course in digital printing in Tataouine, Hela decided to do her professional training entirely on her own. She spent hours watching tutorials on Youtube to understand the production techniques and tools needed for this job. As time went on, Hela developed a passion for the profession and quickly realized that, beyond simple printing on all materials, new technologies were opening up new opportunities in Tunisia.

“I would like to develop my activities in the long term through the development of a graphic design app for my company, which would allow me to interact more easily with my clients, share information and files and make a graphic design database. But this remains a future project for the moment. Today, I’m fully focusing on my printing activities and getting my university degree.”

After obtaining a space for her activities at the APII incubator, and acquiring her printing machines, Hela officially starts her activities in November 2021.

“I am able to manage my life as a student and as an entrepreneur quite well. It’s all about organization and time management.”

“I print on paper, textiles and objects, t-shirts, mugs… A service that is very popular in the Tataouine and still not very existing. In 2023, I will extend my services to offset production, which will allow me to target more clients and especially companies that wish to print large quantities of paper documents and on a larger size.”

Hela discovers the project Mashrou3i for entrepreneurs training and coaching in 2021, during her self-learning process. She benefits from several trainings including a training in Digital Marketing that helps her develop her brand’s graphic design and techniques to promote her services on social networks.

“Apart from strengthening my skills, Mashrou3i also supported me technically by providing me with an application for the administrative management of my business. This application has saved me a lot of time! It allows me to manage efficiently and quickly all the accounting part of my activities: quotes, invoicing… in a few clicks.”

At only 24 years old, Hela proves that age doesn’t count when it comes to launching a business project. Only motivation and resilience matter. “I was lucky to be well surrounded by my network but also to be assisted and supported by Mashrou3i and the APII. It is very important to keep a strong network to be able to access information easily.”