Today, Memebox is the Birchbox of South Korea; the beauty sample subscription and e-commerce service is leading in terms of marketshare, gaining thousands of fans and pulling in over S$1-million in annual revenue. But that wasn't always the case. Hyungseok Dino Ha, CEO and founder of Memebox Korea, recently shared his startup's story at a Tech in Asia meetup in Singapore, providing insightful (and honest) answers to questions about how his company grew. Humble beginnings At the beginning, the three co-founders raised ...

At first glance you might not think there is much in common between the film industry and tech startups. I'm here to tell you differently. Both industries have their own set of challenges, whether you're starting out, or refining your craft/company down the line. I'm not here to tell you that one is tougher than the other, but rather that startups can learn from the parallels between them. Each member must know their 'craft' In the film industry you have ...

Grovest Venture Capital introduces a new asset class today. Investors are encouraged through incentives like tax relief as well as the growing attractiveness of the VC industry in South Africa. Although this asset class is the first operational venture capital fund introduced in South Africa, it has proven to be very successful in the UK. By having attractive incentives, Grovest aims to encourage investments which will further help grow the venture capital industry in South Africa. In order to boost ...

In bid to foster Nigeria's growing entrepreneurial landscape, a new innovation hub has launched. Its aim, it says, is to "help Nigerian entrepreneurs create successful businesses". The new hub, called Information Technology Developers Entrepreneurship Accelerator (iDEA) launched in 2013 and is a not-for-profit organisation aiming to accelerate the development of the technology industry in Nigeria. The aptly named Lagos-based hub launched with four developers sessions facilitated by tech industry bigwigs: Google, BlackBerry, Microsoft and Nokia. The companies, as part of ...

Is there a shortage of VC and angel funding in Africa? Pose the question to entrepreneurs and the answer is bound to be yes. Omidyar's latest report on African entrepreneurship found that 71% of respondents surveyed in South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, Ethiopia, Nigeria and Tanzania believe that there is a shortage of equity capital to start new firms. African financiers disagree, simply saying that many projects are not fundable. Whatever the case may be, the International Finance Corporation estimates that ...

In March this year we reported that a group of SA tech entrepreneurs from small-town South Africa, were set to take a trip to the UK with the hope of signing deals with international investors. The organisation behind the programme, MEDO (Micro Enterprise Development organisation) reports that five of the 11 small businesses represented on its current programme signed deals or partnerships with stakeholders in the UK and Europe. MEDO says that the remaining six created networks with potential partners, with ...

From 6 to 8 May, the massive global innovation event, re:pulica will feature both AfriLabs and GIZ (German agency for International Cooperation) collaborating in order to host The Global Innovation Lounge in Berlin. The Global Innovation Lounge focuses on showcasing technology innovation hubs in Africa, Latin America and Asia that have been booming as well as their inspirational success stories. re:publica is an extremely popular event taking place in Berlin every year. As its motto stands “In/Side/Out”, the event focuses ...

Pitches are nerve-wracking. The perfect pitch would probably have the ability to “plant ideas” like Leonardo DiCaprio does in Inception. Sadly we don’t live in a Christopher Nolan directed reality. We do however live in a world where we can learn from other people’s success. Having a good concept is one thing. Having to present that concept another. Especially if you’re seeking funding. The elevator pitch is all about getting your startup’s concept to your audience as simple and coherent ...

beLAUNCH, South Korea’s Biggest startup and technology conference has revealed this year’s 20 top startups from Korea and abroad which will be presenting at the event. The two day conference which aims to support startups to grow and scale will attract leading startups, investors, developers and representatives from technology companies in Korea and abroad. James Jung, Founder and CEO of beSUCCESS says that more than 2000 attendees are expected for this year's event. The top 20 also include the winner of ...

Silicon Valley-based BootstrapLabs, and Malaysia-based MAD Incubator have partnered to create BootstrapAccelerator Asia, a Southeast Asia-focused tech startup accelerator with a Silicon Valley fast track for its most promising candidates. A partnership of this type is a first in the region. As Southeast Asia is experiencing steady growth, more investors are turning to the region which plays host to a population of one billion. “What is developing in Southeast Asia is thrilling. MAD Incubator has been doing a fantastic job locally, educating, ...