Anyway, in case you guys didn't knew, 15 November 2010 was the start of the Global Entrepreneurship Week and to kickstart the week, there was panel discussion from Startup@Singapore and also a nEbO Biz Challenge [Finals] being held at the same day, same time.
Well, since I can't split my body into two (rather obviously, XD), I had to choose one.
I decided to go for the panel discussion since I didn't know what's going to happen at the nEbO Biz Challenge since no one I know is in the finals. XD
Furthermore, Johnston has questions for the panel. :)
Sadly, Johnston is not free for the panel discussion that day so I help him to ask the question the panel. :)
However, Keller, being my good friend, accompanied me to grace the event. I feel a bad for him though he was like questioning himself why he was present. Sorry! But I'm sure you learned a few things from the panel discussion and it was enlightening(I hope)! Hahas!
I must say Keller and I were rather funny that day. We were like constantly discussing what's the dress code for the event. I said business wear but Keller don't like that dress code. In the end, I sort of scam him since I ended up wearing Business wear to the event which Keller either claimed I was overdressed or he was underdressed. Actually, the dress code is loosely defined so it's alright for both of us.
We were almost late for the event which would be embarrassing since it's an official event and being late for a penal discussion is like super obvious! Hahas. I was rather clumsy that day, especially since I had no school that day, and I was actually later than Keller, who had school. Sorry, I was distracted by my phone. O.o
Not to mention that this is one of the rare times that I'm the travel guide given my pathetic sense of direction, I did not foresee Keller not having come to HDB Hub before and it's been a long time since I went there.
But I guess my luck was holding that day since I managed to get there without taking a wrong turn(which is to say get lost) unless Keller consider that going one big round when the place was just behind us is a wrong turn. Hahas, opps? (I would take that as a yes. :)
Apparently, we made it in time, still early in fact. yay! I was a bit retarded that day (I said that already, didn't I?) and went to re-register when I had do so beforehand. Hahas!
I was given the rare opportunity to become a nEbO member for free(normally, that cost money) but Keller dissuaded me from signing up. I'm still not sure if that was a bright move but what's done is done.
Finally, before the panel discussion started, someone shocked me when they knew about MJC BizClub and it being a company(of sort) when they found out I was from MJC Wow, I thought we were rather low-profile but we're rather well-known. Wow! Wow! Hahas!
They seems happy that someone from MJC came(though I don't think they know I am from BizClub :P). Hmm. hahas!
Time to get seated for the panel discussion!
Today, our moderator would be Ms Pranoti Nargarkar Israni, Founder of Zimplistic Inventions and Open Category Winner of 10th Start-Up@Singapore. The panelists are
- Mr John Yap, co-Founder of Awfully Chocolate and Everything With Fries
- Ms Christina Lim, Founder of Ocean Healthcare
- Ms Susan Chong, CEO of Greenpac
- Mr Leonard Tan, CEO of PurpleClick Media
Moderator
Ms Pranoti Nargarkar Israni
Founder, Zimplistic Inventions and Open Category Winner of 10th Start-Up@Singapore
Only in her 20s, she left her job at a leading electronic manufacturer to start-up on her own. She recently won the prestigious StartUp@Singapore 2009 grand champion trophy, which comes with $28,000 in prize money and one free year of office space. Prior to this, Israni's Zimplistic was awarded the YES! Spring Singapore grant for young entrepreneurs valued at $35,000. Israni aims to partner or license with a consumer appliance brand to bring Rotimatic to market in 2010.
Panelists
Mr John Yap
Co-Founder of Awfully Chocolate and Everything With Fries
Mr John Yap co-founded Awfully Chocolate in 1998. Today, it is a popular dessert franchise with 22 stores in 8 cities. He has since ventured into the eatery business with Everything With Fries, which has outlets in Holland Village and Joo Chiat. A father of three, he runs the businesses with his wife, Ms Lyn Lee.
What I learned from him:
- Motivation to do well: Enjoying thecareer/field you're in
- Raising the barrier to entry
- Use of advertisement for endorsements
- Bulk purchase may not be wise for F&B (depends)
- Franchise enquiries: The importance of contract (best locally) and danger of imitation
- Sometimes, it is not that important to go to the most crowded mall
Ms Christina Lim
Founder of Ocean Healthcare
Ms Christina Lim is a trained pharmacist and MBA graduate from Singapore, and she founded the Ocean Healthcare (S) Pte Ltd in 1995. Ocean Healthcare (S) Pte Ltd now distributes Ocean Health, Therapeutic Dermatologic Formula and Ocean Derma products throughout Asia. Christina still spends her time pursuing her passion: formulating new products, delivering lectures and sharing with people ways to improve their health condition for a better quality life.
What I learned from her:
- Importance of research/background information
- Importance of acquiring technology
- Importance of gaining support from others.
- Application (how to apply)
- Think of future plans: Venture aboard?
- Use of advertisements
- Difficulty in expanding to regional: Difficulty in acquiring factories and the importance of contracts
- Health supplements are not patent-able
- Importance of communications: Communication between clients to prevent imitation of products.
Ms Susan Chong
CEO of Greenpac
Greenpac (S) Pte Ltd (“Greenpac”) is a knowledge-based company that specialises in designing and distributing environmentally friendly packaging products and solutions. Since starting the company in September 2002, Susan grew Greenpac from a one-woman start-up into a thriving multimillion dollar company.that serves Fortune 500 companies and is the market leader for environmentally friendly packaging solutions in Asia. Susan has won several prestigious awards, including the Entrepreneur of the Year 2008 and the Enterprise 50 (E50) 2008, where Greenpac was ranked #4 in the exclusive list of 50 of the most enterprising privately-held local companies in Singapore.
What I learned from her:
- Importance of networking
- Identifying a niche market
- Identifying a hole/gap in the market
- The need to be hardworking
- Aware of your visions
- Getting aid from government
- Importance of perserverence
- Need for creativity
- Aware that SMEs have very little resources: Most operations done in-house
- Use of avenues to obtain financial help
- Seek advices from senior entrepreneurs
Mr Leonard Tan
CEO of PurpleClick Media
He founded PurpleClick Media Pte Ltd, an online search marketing agency, specializing in Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and online media in 2006. PurpleClick Media is also the first and only agency in Southeast Asia to achieve accreditation from both Yahoo and Google, and has established offices in Singapore and Malaysia. His ability to create a successful and profitable enterprise that is socially responsible also garnered him the “The Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2009” and “Entrepreneur of the Year Award for eCommerce 2009”.
What I have learnt from him:
- Marketing skills is important
- A need to have the ability to sell
- Must be able to market your products.
With that, we adjourned for dinner.
