Globe launches technopreneur incubator plan

MANILA, Philippines - Globe Telecom has launched Kickstart Ventures Inc., a pioneering business incubator designed to provide aspiring technopreneurs with the necessary support mechanisms for them to start their own business.

Kickstart Ventures, builds on the science park concept in the 1970s which provided physical infrastructure for startups. It will give selected startups the tools needed to build and test their ideas, seed funding for faster execution, training and mentorship from experts in various fields, and introductions to partner companies within the Globe, Singtel and Ayala networks in the Philippines and abroad to help them scale bigger.

Minette Navarrete, Kickstart president and Globe New Business Group head, said that chosen startups have the advantage of access to various platforms of Globe which are usually open only to large established companies.

“This is a unique way of reaching out to tech startups and helping them get off to a faster start, and a better trajectory. While this project has access to the ‘big company’ resources that an enterprise like Globe would have, it has an independent mandate and the soft touch grassroots community focus necessary for supporting the Philippines’ bourgeoning startup ecosystem,” Navarrete said.

Kickstart Ventures affirms the overwhelming response by developers, designers, marketers and aspiring technopreneurs to the Philippines’ first ever Startup Weekend event held in October last year by co-organizers Globe and web-engineering firm Proudcloud. Startup Weekend 2011 Manila winner HobbyMash is one of the international teams now participating in the 100-day Bootcamp in Singapore being run by Singtel Innov8, the corporate venture arm of the SingTel Group, and Joyful Frog Digital Incubator (JFDI).

Navarrete said that the Startup Weekend 2011 experience demonstrated that many Filipinos have breakthrough ideas to start independent businesses, as well as the capability to make these grow through ICT, web and mobile applications; but most of them lack the resources to pursue their ambition to full scale.

With Kickstart, she said, startups can start their business with a better chance of overcoming the toughest hurdles at their earliest stages. “We make resources available to those who need them, before established companies are willing to take a chance on them. Kickstart will offer seed funding, but cash is only part of the story. We will make facilities available, offer education and mentorship, and introduce entrepreneurs to the people and companies who can help them expand and succeed,” she said.

Given the nature of the founders and backers, Navarrete said the startups can engage in developing new ICT applications, websites and other tech-related undertakings. They could equally be traditional businesses which would use technology to create a better customer experience, improve operating efficiencies or expand their reach within and outside the Philippines.

“Some of the most valuable companies in the world – Google, Facebook, and Twitter for example – were tiny startups 10 or 15 years ago,” Navarrete said. “Why shouldn’t something like that come from the Philippines?”