Bfab

Whether it’s the ladies or gentlemen, everyone strives for fabulousness and Bfab now offers the option for you to be so. On its portal, there will be a host of vanity and wellness services available within a region made available for user to search and making their bookings.

Whether its hair removal, make up or other wellness services, it’s a portal looking to ease your selection and booking process for all things beauty services under one roof. Still in conception, the stage seems set for Bfab to, well, Bfab.

Postco

We have all been there before. Money’s been long deducted from accounts yet the item bought online is nowhere to be seen. This is where Postco comes in to provide a network of pick up points where buyers can collect their purchases from thoughtfully-selected, strategically-located, safe locations like laundries, pharmacies or even convenience stores.

Definitely one to look out for since convenience is what everyone looks for nowadays with the technology made available to serve.

100% Project

With the recent announcements made with regards to all sorts of budget cuts in the education sector, there’s no better time for such a “project” to surface; and it must have seen this coming considering it only started late 2015. 100% Project is a crowdfunding platform to raise some money to fund any school-related projects whether its fieldtrips or classroom apparatus’ with an aim to provide the best in all educational aspects to school children.

GLOBALLY

Opinio

Opinio is another Bangalore startup making the list. Opinio is an on demand food and grocery startup which connects customers with restaurants, grocers, laundry services and pharmacies. With over 80 employees and $8 Million in funding some of its investors include Accel Partners, Sands Capital Ventures and Delhivery.
Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/tanyaprive/2015/12/22/20-startups-to-watch-in-2016/3/#460cc097801f

Save

Save is a promising startup with headquarters in Paris that provides smartphone repair services with transparent pricing both on-demand and retail locations. Founded by Damien Morin, the company has raised $17 Million from IDInvest Partners and 360 Capital Partners.

Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/tanyaprive/2015/12/22/20-startups-to-watch-in-2016/3/#460cc097801f

Zeek

They say it’s the thought that counts, but anyone who’s received an abundance of unwanted gift cards knows the amount of waste caused by a well-intentioned gift can be truly astounding. It is estimated that 47% of UK consumers receive more than one gift card a year — resulting in the £1bn worth of wasted and unused credit.

Zeek helps turn this credit into cash by allowing people to easily sell their unwanted gift cards well before their expiration date. At the same time, users can purchase gift cards at a discounted price, even off seasonal sales.

Zeek has come a long way since its inception just three years ago. Founded by Daniel Zelkind, Ziv Isaiah, Uri Levine, and Itay Erel the startup has shown tremendous growth, expanding across two continents and securing around $3 million in funding. In just 6 short months, their app was used by over 100,000 users, saving them more than 5M GBP.

With all the success of 2015, 2016 is set to be Zeek’s best year yet. The company just launched a promising TV campaign, securing their place as the UK’s most prominent service for gift card buying and selling. They also plan to continue their international expansion, dominating new markets beyond the UK.

Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/yoavvilner/2016/01/18/16-london-based-startups-ready-to-take-on-2016/#2c4e30296973

It never fails to inspire you when you witness entrepreneurs starting off with a good cause. In their mid 20s, two young and exuberant sisters – Athirah and Syakirin Rosik – founders of VOWS (previously known as Thrift On Wheels) were motivated to do something about the disastrous impacts of textile overconsumption and waste which were affecting the environment and society as well as promoting low-wage labour in developing countries: they were going to start a thrift shop.

Syarikin (left) and Athirah (right) with the Thrift van. Photo by Poskod.my.

In Malaysia, Syakirin told to The Malay Mail, the main issue of textile waste is overconsumption: “We Malaysians buy things we don’t need, don’t want or don’t want to wear again.” And in recent years, big fashion brands have dominated Malaysia by introducing a fast fashion culture that goes against sustainability; increasing the number of clothes thrown away and taking up space in the landfill.

Travelled to Hong Kong and Europe, the duo were exposed to the thrifting culture and seeing that the idea of thrift store is an unfamiliar one in Malaysia, the sisters decided to start the fashion movement. Essentially going around in a mobile van, their business has flourished in just months which led them relocating to what they call the Thrift House, filled with vintage and eclectic used clothing and accessories, in Sutera Damansara.

The Thrift House at Sutera Damansara. Photo by The Malay Mail Online.

So, how VOWS operates is that it buys your old clothes and you get to make some cash at the same time! VOWS is very strict with the selection for its selling items however: your clothes must be in good condition in order to ensure its quality to its potential buyers. But even though the clothes are damaged, the clothes can be refashioned and “upcycled” – made into new, artistic bags and accessories by VOWS’ creative team and will be featured in the VOWS⁺ line.

Despite all the scepticism among Malaysians including friends and family, the sisters have triumphed in convincing their customers that branded clothing can be bought for much less in a thrift shop without having its quality compromised. The siblings hope to introduce the culture of reusing and recycling so that Malaysian consumers can learn about conscious, responsible and sustainable fashion, and also overcoming the stigma that used clothes are dirty and gross.

Athirah (left) is the eldest sister with Syakirin (right) being the younger one. Photo by Tally Press.

Both sisters have each other’s back with Athirah, the eldest sister, working as an F&B Manager at Wondermilk cafe in Damansara Uptown on weekdays, hence Syakirin runs the philanthropic business full time on weekdays. Regardless how busy they are with their careers, both sisters made efforts in developing VOWS into a better platform for fashion lovers on a tight budget.

Social media have tremendously driven VOWS’ success to its peak by reaching out through various platforms such as Instagram and Twitter. Currently, VOWS is only based in Kuala Lumpur but the sisters are looking to expand to other states as they have received requests from cities like Penang and Johor Bahru. VOWS has launched its website where you can now see the list of selling items online. Shopping and saving the world is now as easy as clicking a button.

To know more about VOWS, visit its website at https://vows.my/

It’s a common scenario at most organisations – corporate or social. You are called in for meetings that sometimes last for a couple of hours but at the end of it, you are still left wondering about specific tasks and operational flow.

Meetings today can no longer be conventional sit ins and presentations as we risk losing the attention of many including the person we are presenting it too.  That said, conventional meetings have not gone obsolete and can work in your favour depending on the nature of the meeting but for routine operations, common or team meeting styles can always be tweaked to suit your needs.

Setting clear and concise objectives

Calling for meeting is one thing but achieving the intended outcomes is another. Don’t call for meetings because it has become a routine. Meet to decide on game plan or solutions that can be acted upon immediately instead of to get updates. Shared Google documents can give you updates.

Have targeted group

You don’t have to call the whole department for a meeting, especially if the updates or discussions do not directly require them to be there. Call only those who are directly involved so you can keep your meeting short and focused.

Online document sharing and technology

This really saves time and effort. Google drive allows for sharing of documents, presentations and spreadsheets and anyone with editing right can view, make changes and get feedbacks directly as long as they are connected. Online meetings can also be held as and when it’s necessary and all those involved can log into an online meeting call, anytime from anywhere.

Have Stand-ups

Stand-up meeting was set up by Scrum Inc after its founder thought sit in meetings were not doing justice to work productivity. Stand ups or scrums make sense for team leads who just need quick updates or follow-ups, or to convey an important message that requires everyone to be on the same wavelength. Such meetings work when you have targeted questions or messages to ask or convey quickly. Since not many enjoy the idea of standing for a long time, they’d effectively deliver their parts just so that everyone can move on.

Establish ground rules before the start of the meeting

If you know your meetings are going to take more than 30 minutes, establish some basic rules for listening. This includes the non-usage of mobile devices and tabs while meeting is in progress. This will minimise people fiddling on their phones and increase attention. If feedbacks are being taken into consideration, keep it short and focused

Reach a common ground

Before leaving the meeting room, ensure that everyone understood what was delivered. Asking questions and going one full circle to find out if they have comments or feedback can help meeting chairs gauge their level of understanding or to ensure that everyone is one the same channel because people can leave meeting rooms completely oblivious or with different interpretations of

While there is some truth attached to that sentiment – especially in rapidly developing countries – harvesting solar, wind, water or other renewable energies need not be a distant dream for small or even medium fit entrepreneurs.

SOLAR ENERGY

In tropical countries like Malaysia, where sun light is aplenty, harvesting solar energy shouldn’t be a difficult task.

With fibre optic cables and solar panels, one can use sunlight to light up a building and completely eliminate the need for electricity. This was demonstrated by the Swedish based Parans Solar Lighting who developed and patented this technology slightly over 10 years ago.

Parans technology developed roof panels that absorb sunlight which is then channelled into the building through fibre optic cables. These cables connect to the interior ceiling panels and illuminates the whole space with natural light.

What makes this innovation interesting is the idea of varying degrees of brightness and colour tone which depends on the weather for the day. By eliminating the need for electricity, the building operators and tenants generally enjoy lower maintenance cost and a ‘naturally-lit’ environment

Solar panels lighting up the Kuala Lumpur International Airport. – Pic by SunEdison

The idea was actualised by three students from the Chalmers School of Entrepreneurship in 2001 and it became the selling point of the enterprise after the success of their pilot project at IKEA Bilbao, Spain. With seven fulltime staff, the setup is demand driven and stays connected to other continents via specialised sales agents.

Similarly, Absolicon is another small enterprise that operates with five fulltime staff and 3 researchers and were set up with the intention of commercialising Swedish solar power research. The company develops, manufactures and supplies versatile solar energy equipment. Their system has the ability to provide electricity and heat for large production and manufacturing plants around the world. Their Solar8 sun-tracking parabolic direct sunlight on water-cooled solar PV cells.

The PV cells are generally expensive so Solar8 is designed to use a tenth of PV cells to power up large facilities and according to Absolicon, most of the products needed for the system can be manufactured at simple mechanical workshops anywhere.

Solar Panels connected to fibre optic cables can bring natural light into buildings. – Illustration pic by www.buyawg.com

In Malaysia, there are at least over 20 medium and large companies specialising on solar farming and providing solar solutions for renewable energy like Solarvest, Sol Lite, Green Solar Energy and many more.

Several local solar entrepreneurs have also made the headlines with small start-ups like Apollo and +SOLAR making waves here. Apollo, which focuses on developing phone casings that incorporates solar, kinetic and wireless charging technology, was setup via crowdfunding while Plus Solar was established by two entrepreneurs with a RM100,000 capital, that came from their savings.

AGRO WASTE

One bioenergy company Ecoera found ways to turn agriculture waste into agropellets – a cheaper and carbon-dioxide neutral energy source. Burning these pellets in custom-designed equipment produces biofuel. Their BIOAGRO project is customer driven and the company’s ability to meet the demands have been crucial in sustaining their public funding.

On the home front, the booming palm oil industry has gotten people to believe in the vast potentials to develop biofuels from wastes. One such project is an algae-based bio-fuels production using Australian technology.

Agro wastes includes wood, branches, rice husk, bamboo shavings, sugar residue, coconut shell and many more – Pic from bestbriquettepress.com

The Australian Institute of Commercialisation (AIC) had assisted Australian entrepreneur Lionel Freedman develop a technology that converts liquid waste streams into renewable energy. Upon setting up his tech business, Freedman is said to be exploring opportunities to extend the technology into Asian markets, targeting Malaysian palm oil waste.

Researches on biofuel and agriculture waste are ongoing at almost every local university for research and business students to tap on.

HYDRO SYSTEM

The Penampang Renewable Energy is social start-up that produces, markets and installs clean energy equipment by engaging the local community, allowing a multiple entrepreneurial growth.

Local community setting up the micro-hydro system at Kg Babalitan – Pic by Adrian Lasimbang, The Nutgraph

Local community setting up the micro-hydro system at Kg Babalitan – Pic by Adrian Lasimbang, The Nutgraph Apart from solar power, the start-up is known for hydro-power harvesting to produce energy for interiors or rural areas with water source but limited power supply. Considering most of Malaysia’s hydropower facilities are located Sabah and Sarawak, not many entrepreneurs have tapped on available investments or funding prospects, particularly the Entry Point Projects (EPP) by Pemandu.

Any individual or corporation, regardless of size can set up businesses with Pemandu projects by engaging the relevant agencies with a proper project proposal, a robust investment analysis and business case and proper follow up meetings.

There are ample funding opportunities available for start-ups that wish to expand on renewable energy sources, provided they have a well-structured working system or proven technologies.

These technologies are certainly being sought especially since the government has taken a pledge to reduce carbon emissions by 2030.

For the record, reports by Solar Energy Research Institute at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia reveals that Malaysia is the biggest electricity consumer among Asean countries and a 2007 report by the Energy Commission shows that the biggest energy user in the country is the industrial sector (48%), followed by commercial sector (32%) and residential (19%). Malaysia has pledged to cut down it’s emission by 45% in the next 10 years by introducing mitigations plans like low energy office project and investing in the Centre for Education and Training on Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency.

With such public mitigation plans and developers looking into sustainable, green developments, it makes growth opportunities that much easier for entrepreneurs who are planning on investing in green or renewable energy technologies.

Pic from pixabay

Never miss this one out, especially if your business is looking into tapping new customers. Businesses are reaching out to younger and younger crowd every day to sustain and grow. With countless number of business or customer-related applications, tech tools are no longer a luxury but a necessity. Apps can help you reach out and understand your customers and at the same time keep your progress in check. So think of it as an opportunity instead of a distraction.

Pay attention to grouses

Pic from pixabay

Instead of pondering on the technicalities of a complaint, pay a little attention on how the customers feel. Use the right words to reply to their complaints and assure them that their grouses will be looked into. Most importantly, look into it.

Find a mentor for yourself

Pic from commons wikimedia

Do something to keep a healthy mind and body so that concentration and productivity increases. By focusing on yourself and the well-being of your employees if you are the boss – in terms of maintaining good physical and mental health at work, business coaching or skills development – mentors can keep that motivation intact.

Quality matters

Pic from wikipedia

This includes your goals. Quantities are important but quality and business visions carry greater weight. Resorting to cheap labour to mass produce low quality products may help with the profit but you lose trust and credibility among consumers.

Take care of your staff

Pic from pixabay

Your people matter. A lot. Showing your staff that you care helps improve their loyalty. Engaging them for opinions helps them feel valuable.  They are likely to stay on at times of crises instead of bailing up on you. After all, your staff is the backbone of your company. Take good care of them and they’d take good care of your business.

Changing the game

Pic from pixabay

Everyone and everything hits a plateau at some point. Don’t settle for that sales target, campaign, objective or target market just because it worked the first few times. Always keep a backup plan or secondary target in mind. Better still, store them because you never know when you’d need to change your game plan.

Retrenchment: Birth of an Entrepreneur

Our worst nightmares are looming, in fact for some, it’s already here. With all the recent hoohaa in our country’s administration, the dollar declining causing our hairlines to recede further, foreign investors away, oil prices per barrel costing less than a slab of meat, the pressure is on for employers and higher management, especially of large multi-national conglomerates to look into cost reduction.
While smaller operations are able to handle the strains, absorb the costs and wait out the rainy days with their lower overheads, the bigger corporations very commonly opt for one measure, the one word all employees don’t look forward to hearing, retrenchment.
With this phenomenon taking place like a clearance sale of employees, the job market just doesn’t have enough openings to cater to the flash flood of applicants, unless of course you’re talking about the Malaysian civil sector. While some may opt to take pay cuts in accepting a lesser job, post retrenchment shouldn’t be all doom and gloom. It should be seen as an opportunity to take hold of your own destiny, emerge from your own shell and stamp your mark in the world of self-employment.

Where to “cari” (find) that “LohBang” (opportunity)?

Despite the slowing down of global economies, there can never be a shortage of opportunities. As an optimist, I always believe that our opportunities are bound by our imaginations. It’s like that saying in Cantonese, “If your horse dies, get on your feet and start walking”. Jack Ma, the multi, multi, multi billionaire and founder of Ali Baba (on hindsight, what kinda name is that?) once said something along the lines of, “to make money, one must think or find the gaps in the everyday lives of society and plug those with creative solutions”.
That said, if you think about it, that’s a pretty wide spectrum to look at; there are still so many opportunities or rather the lack of in the everyday lives of people that can be made more convenient. And even if an idea has already existed, it doesn’t mean the market has been fully monopolised. Fresh new ideas to supplement and compliment an already existing product can cater to a market of different audiences.
Take the former MyTeksi (now known as Grab) and Uber, the both offer people-moving services but the former is driven by a licensed (which is highly questionable) taxi drivers, while the latter offers money making opportunities for the everyday person to make some money carting people around. Also, look how SmartTag can prosper on it’s on from the existence of an already prosperous Touch ‘n’ Go which shares pretty much the same function really; essentially to offer a more fluent passage through toll gates, burning holes through our already tattered pockets all so that our cars needn’t come to a standstill.

Explore your inner self.

Moving on, self-discovery is all about who you are? Do you have any interests? Are there business opportunities in your line with your areas of interest? What are your strengths and do these strengths have any application in the real world? Ask yourself these things, and more. I mean if people are making money, and tons of it by playing in Dota tournaments, there must be a skill you can monetise. It has to be a skill of some significance of course, (Yeap, knowing how to play Dota well is a legitimate skill nowadays) don’t tell me you’re good at launching M&M’s into your mouth and you should be paid for it? Then again, maybe M&M companies need tasters to ensure that all the colours are just as popular.
The problem with society nowadays is that everyone wants to make the most amount of money doing the least amount of work with even least-erer skill. Well there’s no such thing, but if there is, please do share in the comment section below. Everyone wants to get into this whole start-up thing, but do you know how much work and technological know-how goes into it? Take your involuntary holiday and make the most of it (not like you won’t, Netflix just came to Malaysia) and discover the business person in you; there’s really no harm opting out of your comfort zone, there’s only positives to come from it.
The most important thing, like everyone says, is to like what you’re doing and if a certain job or entrepreneurial venture takes your fancy, well, go for it. Be open to learning new things; diversify your knowledge and emphasise on transferrable skills. All that said, if you already have liabilities like kids, loans, and more kids, thread even more carefully with those entrepreneurial prospects or you’re screwed!

Put pen on some paper (in short, go scribble some plans out!)

When you’ve discovered a niche that you can embark on, start putting that pen on some paper, rather than just twirling it around or putting it in your mouth. Solid research is obviously necessary; you wouldn’t jump into a pool without knowing its depth, would you? A business plan and marketing strategy should follow suit. It is of utmost importance for determining the starting point and progress to be made.
A checklist of essential things to do like business licenses and patents, is important unless you want to backtrack to basics after taking off with your business. I mean, have you literally tried looking for a needle in a stack of hay? Subsequently there should be a structure as to the roles and responsibilities chartered out to determine the functions of each personnel. Micro-managing is a no-no too. You can’t ask a little bird to leave the nest and spread its wings then climb on its back and tell it how to flap its wings. That’s just not right. What is right though, is taking that leap of faith. It is going to be more value-added than life threatening.
Discover the entrepreneur in you!