It was another engaging and informative episode of Vigattin Radio at Radio Inquirer 990 as the program dealt with checking up on the tech startups that have been featured in past editions of the program.  Being a startup company itself, Vigattin Inc. takes particular interest and gives much support to small businesses that strive to make a difference in our technologically dependent world.

First on the roster of special guests was Dave Overton, co-organizer of Geeks on a Beach, the newest conference that features technology and startups and how these can change the world.  He talks of Geeks on a Beach as a coming together of great minds and those at the grassroots level to have great discussions about innovation, startups and technology, at one of the best beaches in the world, Boracay, on September 26-27. Dave says it will be headed by experts from all around the world, particularly Silicon Valley entrepreneur Bowei Gai, all in a friendly atmosphere where people get together to share and learn and build meaningful networks.  Dave describes the event as a great mix-up of technology, talent and design community building that will cover the role of startups in today’s world, particularly in emerging markets like the Philippines.  With over 230 registrants and 50 plus speakers and participants already signed up, Dave says that Geeks on a Beach will be such a significant and exciting event  to people who are passionate about technology and design, and connecting this very unique community together working for greater goals in the future.

The discussion then moved to checking up on the progress of startups by Kickstart Ventures of Ayala Corporation. On hand for the discussion was Pia Bernal, the Social Enterprise Investments Manager of Kickstart Ventures.  She says that Kickstart has an investment fund from Globe Telecom which assists startups with focus on technopreneurs and  their use of digital, web, and mobile applications.  As of late, Kickstart is helping around 15 startups and supporting them through various means like mentoring besides the financial grants. Pia has said that the original 10 startups chosen for the program are doing well through their partnerships with Kickstart along with their incubator accelator programs.

Next on the panel were guests from Zap, Angelique Uy, one of the founders, and Lia Ejercito, the account executive handling mall merchants or stalls.  Zap was one of the 10 startups that have been chosen by Kickstart and have been in operation since March this year.   They talked about their zap, their reward and loyalty card featuring a rebate/rewards system where customers earn rebates from an extensive network of participating establishments in Manila, Alabang, and Quezon City. Zap offers rebates of  5-20% and cash back at restaurants, retail stores,  Since starting March of this year, they now have 6500 members, with 150 participating establishments, and pretty soon they will have partnerships with malls and cinemas with even bigger rewards for their customers.  They said that they have been doing well so far with the help of Kickstart, as they have had mentoring sessions from their experts as well as workshops on pitching and how to go about improving their business operations.  Everyone is happy with the result of this partnership and it is hoped that this will be a great example towards improving the startup ecosystem in the country.

 

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