6th October, 2015
Daniels Ekugo
Chivas Regal recently announced that The Venture will be launching in Nigeria for the first time. This follows the global success of the first year of the competition, which saw over 1000 start-ups compete for a share of a $1 million fund.
The Venture is part of the luxury Whisky new campaign tagged ‘Win The Right Way’ a global initiative celebrating those social entrepreneurs who run their businesses in a way that benefits society, not just shareholders, and is the latest in the brand’s campaign which will be launching in Nigeria.
To herald its launch in Nigeria, Chivas Regal in partnership with Co-Creation Hub will reach out to social entrepreneurs across all fields, and identify exciting business ideas through three main stages of competition with a shortlist of 15 expected to make it to the Semifinal Boot-Camp after an open assessment process with clear criteria. A final cut down to 5 will make it to the Finals with a winner expected to emerge in December 2015.
Moderated by a panel of judges, chaired by Audu Maikori, a renowned and successful Social Entrepreneur and President of the Chocolate City Group, the winner of the Nigerian edition will proceed to the international stage of the competition, to engage with finalists from other parts of the world.
Marketing Director, Pernod Ricard Nigeria, Mr Sola Oke at a recent briefing said “We’re excited to announce the launch of The Venture and can’t wait to discover aspiring entrepreneurs across Nigeria. Whether your business focuses on technology, agriculture, healthcare, food or the environment, we want to hear about it.”
Launched in October 2014, the first year of The Venture saw 16 counties participate. This year’s competition will enable even more social entrepreneurs across the globe, welcoming entries from over 25 countries including Poland, Panama and Peru.
Only the most promising start-up from each country will be selected to become a global finalist and have a chance to win a share of $1m in funding.
All finalists will also take part in The Venture’s Accelerator Week where they will receive training and business advice, as well as mentoring from some of the biggest and most influential names in business. Each finalist will receive global exposure for their start-up.