Tricks of the trade for future entrepreneurs

AN EDUCATIONAL talk on entrepreneurship, delivered by guest speakers from Young Entrepreneur Association of Brunei (YEAB), for National Diploma students at Laksamana College of Business (LCB) was held recently.

The talk was organised as part of the Hospitality Programme at LCB where students are given tasks to plan, set up and run their own hospitality business enterprises.

Hajah Noor Monasaliena @ Suzie binti Haji Mohd Salleh, Manager of businesses under Wira group of companies such as Bali Pitstop Restaurant and Wirarimba Restaurant and Catering; Yvonne Kuan Han, Special Adviser to YEAB; and Del Goh, franchise owner of The Chicken Rice Shop, Pancake House Brunei and Chewy Junior, addressed the gathering.

Hajah Noor Monasaliena shared her experiences managing businesses in the food and beverage industry and the hotel industry in Brunei and Indonesia.

She said, “An entrepreneur innovates and creates new products that are different from others and most importantly looks for opportunities to create new and successful business ideas.”

Hajah Noor Monasaliena @ Suzie binti Haji Mohd Salleh, Manager of businesses under Wira Group of Companies; Yvonne Kuan Han, Special Adviser to YEAB; and Del Goh, franchise owner of The Chicken Rice Shop, Pancake House Brunei and Chewy Junior, in a group photo with LCB lecturers and students

Del Goh’s vast experience in the franchising business got the students interested in the world of franchising as it is a great option for hospitality entrepreneurs in Brunei. Del Goh highlighted the importance of doing market research to find out what people want and need before opening up a business. He also mentioned the importance of delivering excellent customer service.

Yvonne encouraged the students to choose a strategic location to run their businesses, where big crowds of people meet and provide them with a unique product.

“The talk was very interesting and opened my eyes to think outside of the box and now I have a good proposal idea in mind which I never thought of before,” said LCB Hospitality student Wendy Wen.

Siti Huwaida binti Ahmad, another LCB student added, “The best part about the talk was when each of the speakers had shared their experience with us on how they have managed their businesses and how they have trained their employees in order to ensure that they deliver excellent customer service.”

Siti Nurafiqah binti Haji Omar Ali Ra’aie said, “As a final year student in National Diploma Hospitality, I felt really inspired by the talk. I learned that there’s no limitation on what we want to do in business as long as we are passionate about it.”

The YEAB’s mission is to ensure access to a network of entrepreneurial experiences and facilities to nurture an enterprising culture and encourage the spirit of entrepreneurship while moving towards achieving Brunei Vision 2035.