Great Things, Small Packages

The Other Hundred Entrepreneurs is a photojournalistic love letter to the adroit owners of small businesses throughout the world, writes Leanne Mirandilla

rom the forbes impact list to the Fortune Most Powerful Women in Business list, there’s a tradition among the world’s media of recognising entrepreneurial spirit and business acumen. But when Chandran Nair, founder and CEO of Hong Kong think tank the Global Institute for Tomorrow, conceived the photojournalistic project The Other Hundred Entrepreneurs, he didn’t have venture capitalists or CEOS of multinationals in mind. “The majority of businesses in the world are small, with two to five employees, a group of around 20, or merely the founder,” he says. “The book isn’t anti-rich, pro-poor, or against lists such as those by Forbes or Fortune, but we wanted give people the opportunity to look beyond that.”

The result is a book filled with 100 photographic stories spanning 95 countries, featuring urban rooftop farmers and traders of traditional Indonesian cloth to violin makers and fashion stylists. “Not everyone aspires to become a millionaire,” says Nair. “In fact, it’s impossible for everyone to be a millionaire. For many, their businesses are about the struggle to make a living and the search for happiness.” Rather than framing the poverty of certain featured cities and countries in a pitiful light, Nair goes on to explain that he preferred to focus on the positive, and on the creative and innovative ideas that the regions’ inhabitants have to offer. The book also features eight thoughtful essays penned by such writers as David Goldblatt and Yasmine El Rashidi.

The book is the second in a series, following the inaugural publication The Other Hundred, which served as a counterpoint to lists such as the Forbes 100 and the Bloomberg Billionaires Index by exploring cultures, societies and individuals often overlooked by the mainstream media. The book earned Nair interviews on news networks, including the BBC, CNN and Al Jazeera—and, perhaps ironically, magazines such as Forbes as well. Plans are in the works for a third edition, with Nair and his team of editors debating topics such as educators and performing artists. The second edition hit the shelves in December and Amazon.com in February, with a special launch and exhibition at Hong Kong’s Pacific Place in March.