Enablis Entrepreneurial Network Members’ Exposé in Nairobi

PR Log (Press Release) – Nov 13, 2009 – Enablis Entrepreneurial Network in Kenya hosted members of the Young Presidents’ Organisation (YPO) at a Members’ Exposé in Nairobi on Tuesday.

Nairobi, Kenya, November 10, 2009 – The Enablis Entrepreneurial Network in Nairobi hosted a delegation from the YPO at one of its networking events. These events give Enablis members the opportunity to “sell” their products to a large audience.

Seven entrepreneurs with seven minutes…

This unique format of exposing the Enablis entrepreneurs to an audience of their peers and thereby creating opportunities to sell has been a cornerstone of a successful model for Enablis. The Enablis Expose is an innovative event that combines networking and capacity building to create a marketing event for Enablis members. Each entrepreneur has a seven-minute window to “pitch” their product or service, thereby giving them a platform to sell these at the highest level. All the presenters are coached by Enablis prior to the event, to ensure that they are able to represent their offerings effectively.

On this occasion, the entrepreneurs faced a capacity audience of nearly 150 influential business people, Kenyan entrepreneurs and members of the YPO. The following seven entrepreneurs were selected to present, based on their active participation in the Enablis network:
•   Ruguru Gichuki of Dawn Treader Adventures, a team building and outdoor adventures group.
•   Dominic Kosen of Kula Korner, a restaurant franchise.
•   Agatha Verdadero of Can Do, an “e- magazine” on ‘the how to’ of doing business.
•   Mburu Ngugi of Car Med, an insurance brokerage.
•   Fran Munyi of Rotuba; Organic Fertilizer
•   James Mwaniki of Cornell Solutions, a corporate communication company specializing in email branding strategies.
•   Segeni Ng’ethe of Hapa TV, a DVD magazine, running features and educational content in public transport vehicles in Nairobi.

After the presentations were completed, time was allocated for all present to browse the product offerings that were on display. It also afforded them the opportunity to meet the various YPO members present and discuss their businesses.

The Keynote speaker for the event was Rod Reynolds* (a YPO member) and his address was centered on the current worldwide financial crisis and what he believed would be the effect on the Global economy going forward.

The event also gave Enablis the opportunity to accredit 25 new members to its steadily growing network of entrepreneurs. These new members will be able to create and expand their businesses through shared learning from peers across the Enablis network. This extends the network to almost 300 entrepreneurs in the East Africa region and almost 1,000 members in total in Africa. This effort has resulted in job creation statistics in excess of 5,000 jobs throughout the network of member entrepreneurs.

“The Enablis East Africa expansion illustrates the growing number of active entrepreneurs within Kenyan communities. We are thrilled to be extending our professional support network to these aspiring entrepreneurs and hope such growth will serve to forecast the positive contribution Enablis can make to wealth creation in East Africa by means of networking and capacity building of local entrepreneurs. We are delighted to welcome these 25 new entrepreneurs into our network,” commented Mr Moses Mwaura, Regional Director for East Africa.

ENDS

About Enablis Entrepreneurial Network Africa

Enablis Entrepreneurial Network is a member-based organisation existing throughout Africa. Enablis launched at the G8 meeting in 2002 and officially founded in 2003, as a Canadian-based organization, with its focus on driving measurable social and economic development by supporting entrepreneurs.

Founded by Accenture and Telesystem in collaboration with the Government of Canada, the Enablis Entrepreneurial Network is a non-government organisation (NGO), geared at leveraging and supporting entrepreneurial talent in developing economies.

Enablis is a professional, social network, where like-minded entrepreneur members, governed by a common frame of reference, shared integrity and a solid sense of social sharing and networking, interact with one another through the Enablis platform and are drawn together by their capacity for entrepreneurial success. Driven by social economic development, Enablis facilitates entrepreneurial skills development, access to finance, professional networking and mentoring to ensure economic stimulation and entrepreneurial sustainability.

Currently, Enablis has close to 1,000 Entrepreneur members in South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya and Ghana.