Gqeberha-born web developer Anthony van Tonder is tackling one of SA’s most persistent business challenges, getting small enterprises online, with the launch of a platform that can build professional websites in under a minute.
The website-building tool he created, called Lekker.Build, allows business owners with no technical experience to create fully functional, mobile-responsive websites, for R69 a month.
“Over three-million South African businesses don’t have a website,” he said.
“That’s not a market gap — that’s a digital divide.
“The internet should be for everyone, not just for those who can afford an agency or know how to navigate WordPress.
“I see what happens in this industry daily — providers spinning up a basic page and charging a fortune for it.
“The business owner never gets access to their own leads, can’t make changes, and is locked into something they don’t understand,” Van Tonder said.
“We wanted to make it so affordable and so easy that there’s simply no reason for that to exist anymore.”
Van Tonder, 31, and his father, Tony, recently made the news when they raised R100,000 for the Simbonga Sanctuary and Warriors of Wildlife through a 7,000km Africa Rally in 2025.
Lekker.Build, officially launched earlier in March, has already seen strong early traction.
Within its first week, more than 100 South African businesses created websites on the platform, many of them doing so for the first time.
What made the platform so appealing was its simplicity, Van Tonder said.
Users complete a short form outlining their business details and style preferences, and within 60 seconds, a complete website is generated.
The subscription includes a custom domain, hosting, SSL certification and the ability to make ongoing edits through an AI-powered dashboard.
“This is the primary challenge. You want a platform that hits all three: cheap, fast and high quality.
“Traditionally, you could only achieve two at a time, but with the advent of AI, we can ship quality at speed.
“Keeping costs down required clever development that essentially allowed us to bring hosting and SSL costs down to zero, as opposed to the R200 to R300 per month a normal web developer would pay.”
The platform currently supports most top-level domains, allowing global users to secure .com, .org and country-specific domains, though the current focus remains on the SA market.
Several new features are in development to expand functionality and make the platform a comprehensive digital solution for small businesses.
“There are a few exciting features we’re building in.
“The one I’m most excited about is WhatsApp-native building, where a user can simply message us on WhatsApp, describe their business, and a site is created for them, meeting business owners where they already operate.
“We are also introducing multi-page sites, custom email, Google My Business integration and AI-powered automated social media management.
“Ultimately, we see Lekker.Build becoming a one-stop shop for small businesses’ online needs, it just starts with getting them online.
“The name Lekker is deliberate. It’s a word every South African knows,” he said.
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