Sarawakian emerges runner-up of Shell LiveWIRE 2022 biz innovation category
KUCHING: Heineken Laluan from Sarawak has made the nation proud after emerging runner-up for the Business Innovation Category in the 2022 Shell LiveWIRE global Top Ten Innovators Award, an entrepreneurial competition which rewards entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence in innovation.
Heineken is the founder and chief executive officer of Syarikat Timogah, an ecommerce platform which enables small-scale and rural farmers to market and distribute their produce through online marketing.
Heineken’s win comprises cash money of US$10,000 and a year of global business mentoring and coaching to further upscale and develop his business.
“I am truly grateful to be chosen as runner-up for the business innovation category as this has further strengthened my belief on the benefit of my innovative business to the farming community.
“With this achievement, I am determined to continue empowering local communities to build agricultural businesses by exploring the untapped market potential of local natural produce in Borneo,” he said.
Heineken, who hails from Kuching, thanked Shell for this amazing entrepreneurship programme which has propelled him to develop his business further.
This year, 195 entrepreneurs from 17 participating countries around the world took part in this competition and the finals took place in Mexico City.
Shell Malaysia chairman and Upstream Malaysia Senior Vice President Dato Ivan said it is very inspiring to see passionate entrepreneurs from the nation being recognised globally for taking on innovative businesses that grow and empower not just themselves but also the community in which they live.
“My heartiest congratulations to Heineken and all the winners,” he said.
Established in 2017, Timogah, which means ‘famous’ in the local Bidayuh dialect is an eCommerce platform that promotes natural fresh produce and food products that are unique from Borneo.
It also helps local businesses and the farming community reach out to more customers through its digital platform and tools.
As of today, Timogah has vendors comprising small farm owners and rural communities who are serving more than 3,000 households in Kuching.
Aside from Heineken, Sabahan entrepreneur Irene Mositol, founder of DumoWongi, which helps women generate their own income by teaching them sustainable farming and further supporting them in aggregating their products for larger sales, was awarded winner for the Social Impact category.
She won US$20,000 and a year of global business mentoring and coaching.
Meanwhile, Satu Creative chief executive officer Azuar Zainuddin was named the runner-up in the Implementing Partner category. Satu Creative is the delivery partner that works with Shell in running the Shell LiveWIRE programme in Malaysia.
Top Ten Innovators is a worldwide competition open to the alumni of the Shell LiveWIRE programme.
In Malaysia, this programme, which was introduced in 2015 is held annually in Sabah and Sarawak and for the first time this year, is brought to Peninsular Malaysia.
In Sarawak, Shell has been partnering with Tabung Ekonomi Gagasan Anak Sarawak (TEGAS) for Sarawak Shell LiveWIRE since 2017, to benefit the Sarawakian entrepreneurs.
For more information on Shell LiveWIRE Malaysia, log on to https://livewire.shell.com.my/.