Good job: Aranols (far left) presenting Team MMU with the NYIP Grand Prize for their outstanding pitch.
TEAMS from Multimedia University (MMU), Monash University and Universiti Malaya (UM) showcased their creativity and business acumen to win a spot on the podium at the grand finale of the Nestlé Youth Innovators Programme (NYIP) 2024 recently.
The team from MMU were crowned champion, winning the grand cash prize of RM15,000, with teams from Monash University and UM clinching first and second runner-up cash prizes of RM10,000 and RM7,000, respectively.
Adrian Tan, representing the team from MMU, said being crowned champion was a tremendous honour.
“The invaluable insights and mentorship from Nestlé helped us in refining our pitch leading up to the grand finale,” he said, crediting the team’s ability to dissect and address the problem statement for giving them an edge in the competition.
“We’re ecstatic about our triumphant win,” he gushed in a press release dated Nov 20.
To empower young Malaysians with opportunities to succeed, Nescafé launched an innovation challenge that saw university students from across the nation reimagining the future of coffee in July.
To mark the conclusion of the challenge, the grand finale was held at the company’s headquarters in Petaling Jaya.
The programme builds upon the success of the Nescafé Youth Entrepreneurship Programme (NYEP) established in 2016, which started with providing practical day-to-day cafe management operations and experience for students.
This year, the challenge was taken up a notch in the form of a business case challenge with 10 partnering universities, fostering creativity, collaboration and problem-solving skills.
Describing NYIP as more than just a competition, Nestlé Malaysia and Singapore chief executive officer Juan Aranols said the programme is a catalyst for innovation and youth empowerment – fostering entrepreneurial thinking and challenging bright young minds to reimagine the future of coffee.
The NYIP challenge, which attracted 450 entries nationwide, invited students to develop innovative strategies to reach out to more youths.
Following a rigorous assessment process, 22 teams were shortlisted to pitch their solutions. The journey culminated in the NYIP grand finale, where eight finalist teams competed for cash prizes worth a total of RM32,000.
To foster participants’ growth throughout their journey, all finalists were given mentorship opportunities with Nestlé Malaysia’s marketing experts across various business divisions.
The mentorship experience provided students with invaluable insights into business strategy, innovation and market analysis, helping them refine their proposals and develop practical business acumen.
Using their fresh perspectives and understanding of youth culture, innovative solutions ranging from new product concepts to digital engagement strategies were presented.
At the grand finale, the finalist teams’ proposals underwent thorough evaluation for feasibility, veracity and potential impact of their idea pitches based on the business case put forth.
Nestlé business executive officer of coffee Raef Labaki expressed appreciation for the teams’ enthusiasm and commitment to the five-month-long challenge.
“We were thrilled to witness the teams’ passion for the challenge.
“Their next-gen coffee con- cepts demonstrated not only creativity but also provided fresh insights into the coffee industry from a youthful lens. It was inspiring to see such innovative ideas and the enthusiasm with which they were presented,” he said.
