Young minds, soaring ideas

MANILA, Philippines - Ateneo de Manila students Karl Satinitigan, Tim Huelva, and Kim Samson received the gold prize at this year’s HSBC Young Entrepreneur Awards for their proposal for the manufacturing of environment-friendly plates from the fallen leaves of the coconut tree. The prize won them an opportunity to represent the Philippines in the regional grand finals to be held in Hong Kong this June.

The HSBC Young Entrepreneurs Awards, which has been given out by HSBC Philippines for the past six years, is a business plan writing competition that provides opportunities for students in universities and colleges to demonstrate their creativity and acquire practical business knowledge. It also aims to cultivate and inspire young people’s interest in entrepreneurship.

HSBC Philippines president and CEO Mark Watkinson says the awards aim to develop the presentation skills of the participants, and not judge their proposals.

“We’re not seeking to take ideas and turn them into businesses tomorrow,” he says. “What we’re doing is to take young promising people and train them in their skills in business writing and presentation such that when they get older and a little bit mature they can take ideas or other ideas and turn them into reality. This is very much focused on a business writing and presentation skills program. It’s for their personal development.”

This year’s grand finals saw five teams presenting their business plans to the board of judges that included Watkinson, SGV & Co chairman David Balangue, Landco Pacific Corp president and CEO Alfred Xerez-Burgos, Development Bank of the Philippines president and CEO Reynaldo David, Asian Institute of Management president Francis Estrada, JG Summit Holdings president and COO Lance Gokongwei, Stores Specialists Inc. executive vice president Anton Huang, Philippine Daily Inquirer president and CEO Sandy Prieto-Romualdez, Ayala Corp chairman and CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, and fashion designer Rajo Laurel, who delivered the keynote speech.

The winning students, members of Team Beleavers, adapted their plan from an existing technology in India that uses leaves that have fallen from the areca tree to produce environment-friendly and biodegradable plates and containers.

“We just tried to apply it here using actual crops in the Philippines so that we could at least make the most out of something of a waste product,” says Huelva. “It’s actually a waste product that is burned. Now that it’s a useful product, we are helping the environment and the country as well.”

“When we first read about this from a website that distributed the product in New York, we thought maybe it was about time the Philippines have this, too,” says Satinitigan. “In New York, it’s more pricey. It’s a premium product there.”

For the presentation, the group won a cash prize of P300,000, HSBC trophies for each group member, and the opportunity to represent the Philippines in the regional grand finals to be held in Hong Kong this June.

Apart from the grand prize, their proposal also received the Eco-Business Innovation Award, which is given to the team with the most environment-friendly business proposal. This award got them an additional P75,000 cash prize, trophies, and an environmental trip to Hong Kong.

Five groups competed in the grand finals for this year’s HSBC Young Entrepreneur Awards, held at the Conservatory of the Peninsula Manila.

Team Chains for Change, with members Jacqueline Gorospe, Carmela Isabel Deang, and Mary Ann Alampay, patterned their business model after the highly successful rags2riches, which tapped manpower from marginalized communities in creating high-end fashion accessories. This time, they tapped the wives of Bilibid inmates in creating unique bags that are fashioned after donated used clothing from celebrities. The group won the silver prize, receiving a P200,000 cash prize, trophies, and a study tour to Hong Kong.

Karllo Mayordomo and Nathan Garcia of Team Atlantis proposed a high-quality fishmeal for hogs that uses janitor fish as its main ingredient. By combining processed janitor fish meat with corn and soy, hog raisers will have access to cheaper meal for livestock. The proposal also puts to use janitor fish, which is now considered a major environment pest in some of the country’s rivers and lakes. For this proposal, the team won the bronze prize, receiving a P125,00 cash prize, trophies, and a study tour to Hong Kong.

Team Isla members Matthew Cua, Jan Benedict Yap, and Kylo Chua submitted a plan for a free photocopying business that is funded by advertisements. The back pages of all photocopied pages will contain paid advertisements and space the students can fill with their notes.

Ian Patrick Co, Janilyne Patrice Baniel, and Margaux Lagasca, members of the Bluerose team, presented a plan for a farmer-friendly virtual farm market. Consumers can place their orders for produce directly with farmers via a website that they will administer. The proposal aims to cut down the number of middlemen in the process to cut down costs.

While the participants are not required to implement their proposals, Watkinson says there is no reason for them not to.

“We will all be thrilled if they took it and turned them into actual business,” he says.

Close to a hundred teams applied for the awards last year. Shortlisted teams were then coached on their presentation skills and given sessions on preparing and improving their business plans months before the finals. After three rigorous rounds of shortlisting, the number of participants was eventually narrowed down to the final five teams.

Watkinson believes the Philippine students have an advantage in the regional finals because of the students’ competitive edge.

“The Philippines definitely has an advantage,” says the HSBC president. “In the last couple of presentations, they have shown passion and intelligence. You look at their ideas, and I would say that it is not typical. That’s a strong part of the new generation of students. They have the desire to do something to better the people around them.”