Space For Ingenious: the Philippines' Most Ingenious Startups Part II
7/19/2018 | By Kyle Edriel Tomagan
Perseverance, Ingenuity, And Progress
Dedication and ingenuity are instrumental for the success of any startup, but the latter is often inherent and not everyone has it. Startup owners with innovative minds and the will to persevere are those who have the potential to disrupt their respective industries, and aiding these individuals to scale up is our contribution to the startup community and to the country’s progress.
Today, we’re providing another inside look at two more ingenious startups to understand why they felt the need for incubation inside quality coworking spaces and business mentorship through Space for Ingenious program.
Prioritizing First Aid And Overall Health: Patient First
The CEO and Founder of PatientFirst, Alejandro White, cites the difficulty of communication between patients and doctors. He cites the time-consuming nature of booking hospital appointments on-site, saying that “the issue is you are sick and you don’t want to wait.”
White sought to solve this problem through PatientFirst, an in-development mobile platform that directly connects sick people to doctors through a mobile appointment-booking system, which allows seamless communication and instant exchanges between patients and healthcare professionals.
White came across SFI after a friend from Korea told him about the bustling network of prospective entrepreneurs in the Philippines that can help with both the development of his mobile application and his entrepreneurial skills.
White believes that innovation is often misunderstood, saying how most people think of innovation as “creating something new or something that wasn’t there before.” He instead states that innovation is about “seeing a [persistent] problem and creating a solution that fits it.”
He adds that his objective after the six-month incubation period is to simply release the mobile app and bring about permanent change to healthcare in the country. “I had this idea, and [building off of it] that’s how I wanted to start, but I think after these six months, I’ll be able to have my platform operating in the Philippines.”
Girl Power For Body And Mind: Empowered Clubhouse
Amy Berezowski is the CEO, Founder, and Head Coach of Empowered Clubhouse — a strictly women’s-only training facility offering boxing, functional training, health & wellness seminars, and workshops. As of the moment, Empowered Clubhouse is run solely by Berezowski.
Berezowski’s reason for joining SFI was to receive mentorship and guidance, saying that while she had investors and sponsors, she had “no real mentor.” By the end of the program, she expects to have a clearer direction for the company, with a more precise target market, along with the company’s products and services.
Amy also cited the positive effect of working out of a quality workspace. She says large, epic workspaces, such as Cyber Sigma, are vital in helping startups prosper because of the flexible work environment.
She sees innovation as a “collaboration of change,” believing that to innovate means having a high level of interaction and teamwork among team members.
Our commitment to giving back to startups extends beyond the ongoing program, as we are already looking for applicants for the second batch of SFI recipients. If you're a startup that has the potential to disrupt your respective industry, please visit our Space for Ingenious page.
