e27 has been dedicated to nurturing a supportive ecosystem for entrepreneurs since its inception. Our Contributor Programme offers a platform for sharing unique insights.

As part of our newly introduced ‘Contributor Spotlight’, we shine a weekly spotlight on an outstanding contributor and dive into the vastness of their knowledge and expertise.

In this episode, we showcase Yan Lim, the CEO of iOli Communications, a PR agency she established in 2015 with the mission to empower and inspire female PR practitioners to excel in their careers while balancing their personal goals as women, particularly working mothers.

An esteemed member of our community, Lim debuted in Q2 with an article that skillfully employs metaphorical analogies to highlight the significance of public relations for startups and corporations. She expressed her motivation for becoming an e27 contributor, citing her belief in the value of sharing knowledge and insights.

Lim shares her personal and professional journey in this episode of Contributor Spotlight.

The driving force

Lim stated that her motivation for becoming an e27 contributor stemmed from her belief in the power of sharing knowledge and insights.

“I have always been interested in knowledge-sharing initiatives, whether through speaking opportunities or visiting lectures and, of course, through written words. Contributing to e27 allows me to connect with a wider audience and contribute to the growth of the industry in Malaysia and beyond,” Lim expressed.

Also Read: Barbie-fy your business with the power of PR

Lim’s professional goal entails further expanding iOli Communications’s reach and influence in the industry, while her personal goal is personal growth and well-being.

“I’m a mother of four, and I have dedicated nearly two decades to the hustle and bustle of the PR world. Now, I believe it’s time to strike a balance that allows me to be more present in my children’s lives while continuing to grow iOli Communications to different heights,” added Lim.

How it all began

Lim expressed that she had a profound interest in communication and storytelling from a young age. Her journey into the PR field began nearly two decades ago when she started her career in the customer service department. This initial experience confirmed her passion for communication and set her on a trajectory to explore it further.

“Over the years, I had the privilege of working with several PR agencies, collaborating with some of the industry’s brightest and most innovative minds. This journey has been both challenging and inspiring,” Lim said candidly.

Trust and authenticity in communication

Lim’s area of expertise is strategic communication and reputation management, encompassing female thought leadership.

She commented that there are numerous noteworthy trends in her field. The trend she presently monitors is transparency and authenticity in communication approaches.

Lim stated that building trust remains a cornerstone of reputation management, and authentic communication from leaders, whether in times of crisis or during day-to-day interactions, is becoming increasingly important, and these are valued traits that can enhance reputation.

Also Read: PR’s unchanging essence: Human connections amidst AI and automation

“We’ve been emulating this in our approaches, especially with the female leaders profiling exercises,” she added.

Advice for budding thought leaders

Lim advises aspiring thought leaders and regular contributors seeking to enhance their skills as efficient communicators to prioritise authenticity, conciseness, and consistency in their communication.

“Focus on topics you are passionate about, and always strive for clarity in your writing. Injecting some personal experiences can also differentiate you from others.”

Juggling too many things?

“Balancing work, contributing, and personal life can be challenging, but I manage it by setting clear boundaries, prioritising tasks, and delegating when necessary. I prioritise tasks and focus on what truly matters,” stated Lim.

Her approach involves delegating tasks to free up time for critical decisions, maintaining productivity through establishing clear boundaries and finding equilibrium by engaging in rejuvenating activities, including quality time with family and friends.

Staying in the loop

Discussing her approach to staying informed, Lim shared, “I am an avid reader. I regularly read industry publications and LinkedIn articles. I also follow thought leaders on social media and attend relevant events and conferences. Networking with peers and engaging in discussions also helps me gain insights.”

Lim recommended websites such as PRWeek and PR Daily, along with books like “Trust Me, I’m Lying” by Ryan Holiday and “Contagious” by Jonah Berger.

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Are you ready to be a part of a vibrant community of entrepreneurs and industry experts? Do you have insights, experiences, and knowledge to share?

Join the e27 Contributor Programme and become a valuable voice in our ecosystem. 

The post Spotlighting Yan Lim: a PR maestro in SEA’s entrepreneurial ecosystem appeared first on e27.

Australian-based Digital Classifieds Group (DCG) has acquired online property marketplace Lamudi’s Indonesia and Philippine businesses from Dubizzle Group.

The deal follows DCG’s acquisition of the leading Bangladeshi portal, Bproperty, in January 2023.

The consolidated group now operates real estate portals in five high-growth Asian markets, Indonesia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Cambodia, and Papua New Guinea and will see its global workforce grow to more than 900 staff.

Also Read: Merchants selling via TikTok could be harming Indonesian economy: AC Ventures

Lamudi was founded in 2013, initially focusing on building dominant property classifieds in frontier markets. Over recent years, Lamudi has shifted from advertising to transaction-based business models to accelerate revenue and growth.

DCG Group CEO Mathew Care said: “Lamudi, under the stewardship of the dubizzle Group and the management team, has created dominant classifieds and transactional property marketplaces in two of Asia’s most exciting markets: Indonesia and the Philippines. Our vision is to build a market-leading classifieds group in Southeast Asia, a region of incredible opportunities, and this acquisition is a catalyst for delivering this vision.”

Also Read: The evolution and regulation of social commerce in Indonesia: The TikTok Shop ban

Southeast Asia is expected to grow strongly in the next five to ten years to become a leading region globally.

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The post Aussie group DCG acquires Lamudi’s Indonesia, Philippine businesses appeared first on e27.

According to Sascha Jochum, Director of Web3 and AMP Labs at Ampverse, there are three notable characteristics in the Southeast Asian (SEA) gaming industry today.

Unlike other markets such as Europe, 80 per cent of gamers in the region are accessing content through mobile devices due to the affordability and accessibility aspects of it. But like in many regions, the industry is moving towards favouring cross-platform and cloud-based gaming.

“Some people want to play with each other on different platforms around the globe. So, it has to be easily accessible. They don’t want to download a game; they don’t want to buy a game first,” explains Jochum in a call with e27.

“Another trend I observed recently is localisation [aspect of content creation]. The big game publishers realised that if they adjust the game slightly for different markets, or even create games for different markets where they consider cultural backgrounds, they tend to get picked up way easier and faster.”

With regards to how the rise of Web3 is going to affect the gaming industry in the region, Jochum highlights some of the challenges gaming companies face, which include the problem of integrating Web3 elements into existing titles.

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“When integrating Web3 elements, your developers need to be able to code in Solidity, for example. If you don’t have that in your team yet, it’s not easy to just hire them and start developing things. So, that will take time,” he says.

“Hiring the right people is just one step. It’s also about deciding what’s the best blockchain for them. There’s a lot of work to do to make it more user-friendly and seamless. Education and user-friendliness go hand-in-hand.”

When asked about the future of Web3 in gaming, Jochum believes in the possibility of all games having Web3 integration, but it will be a while until this vision is realised.

“The audiences are very keen on being part of the game; they want to participate. They want to vote on the next thing to happen, but they also want to earn. You saw the hype about play-to-earn (P2E) in the Philippines and other countries around the globe. That didn’t work out because the tokenomics have not been planned out in a good, sustainable way. But I guess in the next market cycle … I mean, everyone is learning.”

Building in a community

Starting out as a talent management agency, Ampverse has gone through many milestones to become the tech-enabled IP and gaming ecosystem it is today.

Recently, the company announced the acquisition of the technology and IP assets of Championfy, a Singapore-based gaming tech startup. Championfy will bring its cutting-edge technology and invaluable intellectual property assets to Ampverse’s offerings, including its gamification platform, reward system and tournament platform.

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Apart from the acquisition, Ampverse is currently working on its new product called Amp Creds, a game credit distribution platform. The company started building the product a couple of months ago and is currently in the final stage of internal testing.

Once the testing stage is done, Ampverse plans to start campaigning for the product in the Philippines.

“It’s quite exciting times for us because it’s such a great product for our whole ecosystem. Because most people know us first as an awareness campaign company, we’re doing awareness campaigns for all game publishers in the region. But now, with Amp Creds, we can… also sell game credits directly in one campaign. It’s a very powerful tool; all the game publishers working with us are quite excited about that,” Jochum says.

“It’s just a matter of a couple of days or weeks before we can start in the Philippines. We’re working daily with the marketing team down there.”

Jochum also explains why this product will be launched first in the Philippines: The market is very receptive towards new trends in gaming and new products.

“We want to test the market, see how the people respond, how high the sales are, then improve on a daily or weekly basis,” Jochum says when asked about the company’s target with the launch.

“There are a couple of players already in the market. We are not the first one to do a game distribution platform. But we are the first one to come in with our talent network, our experience, and our connection to game publishers, and we believe in combining awareness campaigns with selling game credits … This is super powerful.”

Ampverse might also explore something with Web3 elements next year, but according to Jochum, everything depends on the market situation.

“The game credit distribution platform is just the start; there is more in the pipeline,” Jochum closes.

“We know gamification is a huge trend. So we are working on different gamification tools for our endemic and non-endemic clients.”

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Image Credit: Ampverse

The post Ampverse Web3 lead: Web3 integration in gaming is inevitable, yet challenges persist appeared first on e27.

In the last decade, Asia Pacific has become a hub for innovation, fostering a diverse network of startups across its economies. With a rich talent pool and supportive government initiatives, the region has piqued the interest of global investors eager to nurture this growing ecosystem.

Singapore, for example, offers attractive tax benefits, strategic access to the rest of the region, and a business-friendly regulatory environment with inclusive immigration policies. The city-state made its maiden entry in the global top 10 list of best startup ecosystems last year, climbing to eighth place from 18th in the previous year, according to a report by insights firm Startup Genome.

Recently, however, the region has seen increased volatility. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain shocks, further exacerbated by heightened inflation and interest rates, caused many Asian economies to suffer an economic slowdown. This, in turn, caused a slowdown in deal flows, said Baring Private Equity Asia (BPEA) EQT partner and head of Southeast Asia Janice Leow.

Also read: Leading brands join forces as official sponsors at Flux Series

Based on data from Crunchbase, startup funding in Asia in 1H2023 dropped 50% from the previous year to US$36.3 billion ($49.7 billion) from US$73 billion in 1H2023. On the other hand, deal volume dropped 40% y-o-y to 3,237.

Despite the short-term volatility amid the market corrections, there are still a lot of long-term thematic trends that will continue to support the region’s startup ecosystem, especially in Southeast Asia, said Leow. This includes positive demographic trends, a growing middle class, and the region’s growing role as a supply chain re-risking hub.

She highlights that Southeast Asia has also leapfrogged many economies in terms of having a digitally savvy population. “Due to the rapid penetration of the Internet coupled with the adoption of new technologies, a large percentage of the population are digital-first, not needing to go through the hassle of traditional offline channels. This provides an effective landscape for high-growth, digital-focused companies to execute their vision,” said Leow.

Continued optimism

The strong fundamentals in the region over the years have translated to more quality deals — notably, there has been substantial advancement in corporate standards and professionalism, Leow shared. Enterprises in Southeast Asia are becoming more refined and are proactively investing in strategies that promote long-term sustainability, she explains.

Additionally, founders are increasingly willing to collaborate with their investors to tap into their expertise to create value. “I also feel that the region’s deal quality has accelerated over recent years due to the increase in local champions. It is encouraging to see many homegrown companies scale beyond a single market into becoming a regional leader, inspiring many others to replicate the success,” explained Leow.

As a private equity firm, EQT continues to be bullish on Southeast Asia and Asia as a whole as it seeks to deploy more capital in the region. The firm has a strong regional footprint, especially following its combination with BPEA, completed in October last year.

Before the transaction completion, BPEA closed the Baring Asia Private Equity Fund VIII at US$11.2 billion, making it one of the largest private equity funds ever raised in Asia. Thus far, the fund has been deployed to companies such as specialist backend services firm IGT Solutions, healthcare technology provider Sagility and business services firm Tricor.

Also read: How PriyoShop is revolutionising the B2B procurement process

“We have been quite successful and active in deploying capital despite the general market slowdown. We will continue to look for interesting deals in the region,” said Leow.

Being a thematic investor, Leow shared that the firm always looks for opportunities from a sectoral perspective instead of a geographical one, partly due to the diverse and fragmented nature of the economies within the Asia Pacific region. The four key sectors EQT’s Asian private equity teams focus on are services, software, healthcare and industrial technologies.

“These are sectors with good track records and where EQT has operational expertise. Therefore, when we engage with a company based in Vietnam, Indonesia or Singapore, we can leverage our track record and best practices developed over the years to work with them seamlessly. We can also help open doors for them in multiple geographies because of our strong global presence,” shared Leow.

She adds that the firm can also help upgrade the companies’ operations, especially in digital transformation and environmental, social and governance initiatives. “This is as we tend to partner with companies over the long term, with a typical horizon of five to 10 years,” said Leow.

Providing more support

Against the current challenging business backdrop, Leow pointed out that many startups may face difficulty in securing capital. The challenges could be further amplified among purpose-driven small enterprises, as they tend to have less of a track record and may need more time for proof of concept.

As these companies are typically still in the early-stage phases, they may need more help in terms of business operations and management, said Leow. This is especially true as they are responsible for including impact and sustainability in their key performance indicators (KPIs).

Leow said the newly unveiled EQT Impact Challenge seeks to address this gap. Organised in partnership with The Edge Singapore and Asia’s largest tech media platform E27, the EQT Impact Challenge aims to provide an avenue for early-stage startups within the areas of planet and humanity to showcase their breakthrough solutions or innovation. Aside from clinching investment from EQT Foundation, the challenge winner will also enjoy access to EQT’s knowledge, operational assistance, and strategic planning and business development consultation from a professional services firm.

Also read: 5 common challenges marketing professionals face today

Leow believes many founders in the region are determined to make a positive impact with their innovative ideas and eager to find the right resources to catalyse their entrepreneurial journey. This is particularly true as the region is home to enthusiastic young entrepreneurs who aspire to replicate the successes observed in other parts of the world.

“I think it is important to support these companies and provide them with better chances to prove their value. Hopefully, we can attract more resources into this space — once a few unicorns are built to become successful examples, more players and investors will be keen on the space. I believe it is a positive cycle that needs some initial push,” added Leow.

For more information on the EQT Impact Challenge, visit https://e27.co/eqt-impact-challenge/

Application period: Sept 12 to Oct 22

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The article was produced by and first published on The Edge Singapore

We can share your story at e27, too. Engage the Southeast Asian tech ecosystem by bringing your story to the world. Visit us at e27.co/advertise to get started.

The post Growth tailwinds poised to unlock the region’s startup potential appeared first on e27.

Stilt Studios, a manufacturer of sustainable, modular homes based in Bali, Indonesia, has announced the closing of its US$10 million financing (debt and equity) round from investors, including Christian Hymer, the former owner of Hymer, Germany’s market leader in motor homes.

The startup will use the capital for international expansion, investing in the platform, AI, and smart home capabilities, and developing its first full-scale residential project.

Also Read: Some lessons on how to fulfil the climate tech promise

The Australia expansion is underway, with a first build starting late this year. Various other projects abroad are also in advanced planning.

The firm said most of Stilt Studio’s nearly 1,000 ongoing inquiries come from Europe, Australia, and the US, besides Indonesia.

Founded in 2019 by German serial entrepreneur Florian Holm, Stilt Studios makes it possible to configure a variety of cabins, studios, and multi-storey family homes out of standard components; it’s comparable to stacking Lego bricks. High-quality teak and bengkirai wood are used as the main building material.

The system reduces installation time to one to two months per house instead of a year or longer for conventional buildings.

The houses have an embedded carbon footprint (total carbon emissions from materials and the building process) — at least 50 per cent smaller than a comparable conventional building. Due to the elevated design, ground sealing is reduced by at least 90 per cent.

Also Read: Long-duration energy storage: Key driver for region’s net zero goals

It also significantly reduces the noise disturbance. “Only the foundation is the noisy part of our building process,” said Holm.

The homes are ideal for resort developers or residential building developers. Other types of applications are also possible, for example, commercial spaces.

To date, the startup has built over 50 houses, 80 per cent of which were completed in the past 12 months. Its largest project is the Family Village Canggu, a residential development spanning 25 family villas.

The company has been profitable since 2022.

Its next goal is to upgrade its customer-facing platform, which includes embedding AI into the customer experience.

Also Read: How the right ecosystem energises greentech startups

“AI-generated walk-throughs, which let you configure and virtually explore your dream home or resort are a realistic scenario in the near future. And we have the scalable platform behind it to build these designs,” shared Holm. “Bringing AI into the design process and combining it with efficient, modular production will make high-quality homes much more affordable. I truly believe that some decades from now, we will look back at today’s building market like we do today at the car industry at the start of the 20th century.”

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Image Credit: Stilt Studio.

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