Chivas Regal’s The Venture competition looks for SA’s top social entrepreneur

Chivas Regal’s global pitching platform, The Venture, enters its third year. Launching on 15 September 2016, the competition aims to find the best social entrepreneur to represent SA.

The campaign — titled “Win The Right Way” — will see social entrepreneurs compete for a prize of US$1-million in financial investment as well as global exposure and mentorship.

The pitching competition will take place in the form of a 10-part televised series which airs globally. Selected participants will have 60-seconds to pitch their innovative idea to a panel of judges who will whittle down the competition to five finalists. These final contenders will then go on to be mentored by top SA businessmen and women.

Once the finalists have polished their pitches, they will present them to another panel of judges consisting of business experts and celebrities. The judges will decide the winner of The Venture 2017 to represent SA in The Venture 3 in the US.

“The essence of Chivas Regal’s global campaign of Win The Right Way aligns the values of Chivas Regal with the human value of aspiring to use enterprise as a force for good through social entrepreneurship,” said marketing manager of Scotch Whiskey’s, Shelley Reevesm in a press release to Ventureburn.

“This innovative form of business creates renewed focus on key aspects of social development, such as long-term sustainability and efficiency, by blending traditional business objectives with the South African philosophy of Ubuntu.”

The Venture platform has already garnered two successful SA businesses.

“Over the last two years, we have shown our belief in and commitment to this philosophy by awarding US$2-million to start-ups that ‘do well by doing good,’ because we believe purpose and profit can coexist,” concludes Reeves.

The Venture has already seen much success since its inception, with over 2500 applicants applying for The Venture 2 with only 27 applicants making it through to the final.

Previous winners who went on to represent SA include CrashDetech, an app which detects whether you’ve been in a motor vehicle accident, and Lumkani, a fire detection system used in informal settlements.

Those wanting to enter the competition, or require more information, can visit The Venture’s website.