[250214.EN.BIZ] Thai Teenage Entrepreneurs Shine At Regional Business Competition

JA WORLDWIDE (Junior Achievement) awarded teenage entrepreneurs of student company Bagtastiq from Thailand as the Asia Pacific JA Company of the Year, and named another Thai student company KU Space as the FedEx Access Award winner.

Organised by JA Asia Pacific, the three-day competition in Singapore saw 15 student companies from China, Guam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand participating.

In a trade fair setting, the teenagers pitched their companies to a judging panel of business leaders at the US-based JA Worldwide event that helps young people move towards their own economic success.

Bagtastiq took the first place in the JA Company of the Year competition with their environmentally friendly personalised waterproof messenger bags made up of old and discarded banners.

The second place went to Korea's Orabird student company with its mobile app on Google Play Store, providing consumer reservation services with small lifestyle, retail and food and beverage companies.

Third place honours went to Akram student company from Indonesia that designed handmade educational toys and trinkets made from expired bread clay.

Under the mentorship of local businesses, entrants start and run their own companies, developing and marketing products or services to realise profits.

These teams were selected to represent their countries and showcase their business acumen before a panel of independent judges who evaluate each student company's annual report, business presentation, trade booth display and through interviews.

"The 2014 Asia Pacific JA Company of the Year Competition provides a unique experience of entrepreneurship and global business to the youth of the region," said JA Worldwide CEO Sean Rush. 

JA Worldwide is one of the largest global NGOs dedicated to addressing fundamental social and economic challenges of young people through business development, experiential learning, financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship.

The 121-country JA Worldwide network is powered by 400,000 volunteers and mentors from all sectors of society, reaching 10.2 million students around the world. For more information, visit www.jaworldwide.org .

Source : HKSG.