LIGHTSPEED WordPress Development is a Cape Town-based web development studio specialising in building websites and social networks with WordPress and BuddyPress applications.

LightSpeed, which opened its doors in 2003 as a service provider of choice for specialised network support and computer hardware sales, has won its founder Ashley Shaw a top 10 spot or Platinum Award in the Future 100 Awards.

The top 100 young entrepreneurs were chosen from a pool of more than 5000 candidates as part of a nation-building partnerships project of the SAYCC, NYDA, Sowetan, Sunday World and BizJam.

Shaw, who leads a core team of 11 developers in website development and related projects, has said that in 2007, LightSpeed WordPress Development had moved on to website development. He added that their clients have included MTN, Media24, the Mail & Guardian newspaper, the Democratic Alliance and Touchline Media.

SA Youth Chamber of Commerce president Thapelo Maleka said: "The awards challenge both the public and private sectors to do business with top performing young entrepreneurs, like Shaw, who is among a special group that shows no signs of falling prey to compromising quality at any stage of their delivery of services and or products.

"Young entrepreneurs who are emerging through the yearly Future 100 Awards will become South Africa's future business industry captains, if they are affirmed further, empowered and nurtured," Maleka said.

Shaw is the latest top winner to be profiled by Sowetan, after:

• Tom-Ross Fortuin, who leads TRF Sport, which buys, sells, distributes and manufactures sport equipment;
• Rethabile Maimane, who owns and runs Golden Goose Catering & Cake Decorating in Welkom;
• Buhle Dlamini, a business author and sought-after motivational speaker, who heads Young & Able; and
• Ofentse Sebitlo, who heads Montsamaisa Bosigo, a Mmabatho, North West, consulting firm that mostly provides SMEs with services such as bookkeeping, business and financial administration, business feasibility studies, due diligence facilitation, business plan development and legal compliance.