KIPCO – the Kuwait Projects Company – and the Youth Empowerment Organization (Tmkeen) announced the names of the three e-media and technology businesses that have advanced to the final judging round of the Fifth KIPCO Tmkeen Award for Young Entrepreneurs.
The three businesses that qualified are Drop In (@dropin_kw) – a local concierge application that allows you to place orders from stores near you; Fanajeen (@fanajeenbooks) – an application that offers audio and written summaries of books that you can read in under 20 minutes; and Routine (@lets.routine) – an application that offers users healthy nutrition options and subscriptions.
The entrepreneurs each gave a 5-7 minute presentation about their companies in the preliminary judging round. The judges were KIPCO Group professionals representing Burgan Bank, Gulf Insurance Group, OSN, United Real Estate, KAMCO Investment Company, Qurain Petrochemical Industries, United Networks, AUK and Marina FM.
Ms Eman Al Awadhi, KIPCO’s Group Communications Director, said:
“First and foremost, I thank all the entrepreneurs who participated for taking up this challenge. Every year, they set the bar higher, making it increasingly more difficult for our judges to decide who moves on to the next round. Many of the businesses showed strong potential, and we are proud to be able to shed light on the work of these entrepreneurs through the KIPCO Tmkeen Award. I would also like to extend my appreciation to all my colleagues from across the KIPCO Group who formed the judging panels. I hope that the young business owners will continue to seek the guidance of the KIPCO professionals they interacted with on the judging panels today, and benefit from their expertise as they expand their businesses.”
Mr Abdulrahman Al Adsani, Head of the Tmkeen Symposium Organizing Committee, said:
“Year on year, the interest in this award grows, and we are delighted with this year’s turnout and the impressive businesses we saw presented today. The presentations were very promising, and we hope that this has been a learning experience for entrepreneurs on how to successfully pitch their businesses to potential investors. Together with KIPCO, we have taken Tmkeen’s mission beyond inspiring and educating young entrepreneurs to providing actual support to ensure that their businesses are sustainable. We wish the top three finalists all the best in the final judging round.”
The final judging round will take place on December, and the winner will be announced during the Youth Empowerment Symposium.
This year’s winner will be awarded with $100,000 worth of services from the KIPCO Group as well as $15,000 in cash. In addition, the second and third place winners will be rewarded with $10,000 and $5,000 respectively.
