TECHNOPRENEURSHIP is essentially defined as
solving challenges in life by using technology and then creating a business out
of it.
King
Seh Horng, the man behind Iplussoft Technologies and IT startup Cubebox
Solutions, aspires to become one of Brunei's successful entrepreneurs with this
approach.
Under
his latest startup, Horng developed BruStores, an online shopping portal
dedicated to the growing number of local Facebook merchants looking to set up a
no-frills online retail front in Brunei.
Social
networking sites have proven to be a goldmine for online sellers and traders in
recent years, and Horng said he took advantage of this by creating a platform
to help merchants provide their customers with a conducive online shopping
experience without the complexity of a conventional online business directory
or e-commerce portals.
The
firm also recently developed an iPad point-of-sales (POS) system app for use in
restaurants, which Horng hopes to introduce to Brunei's restaurants soon
following its launch earlier this year.
The POS
system combines cloud computing, wireless technologies and the touchscreen
interface of a tablet to simplify food ordering processes in restaurants.
Horng
said he has been in the industry for "quite some time", earning a
living well before his graduation from developing and distributing software
from his own room.
"I
was already independent at a very young age. As most of the things I've been
doing has been mainly web-based and open source, I've always had this curiosity
to learn the crafts to come up with ideas on enhancing user experience on the
web," said Horng, who graduated in Computer Systems Engineering from
Curtin University of Technology.
At the
age of 18 in 2004, Horng founded Iplussoft Technologies, during which he
focused on developing various web solutions and services; from contact
importing tools, web translators for webmasters, web hosting, information
portal to mobile applications; targetting primarily the international market.
Some of
his notable works include Brusearch.com, as well as a few Brunei-centric mobile
apps for the iOS and Android operating system such as Brunei Guidebook, Brunei
Showtimes, Traffics and GPSTracker, among others.
"There
can't be a bigger motivation than seeing users benefiting from using the
product you invented, and seeing them use it extensively and regularly,"
he added.
It was
not until 2009 that Horng decided to take his talents more seriously. Along
with his brother, he took part in the iCentre's Think Big Business Plan
Competition and won first place for his E-Commerce Directory Site project. The
project finally evolved into BruStores during his incubation at the iCentre the
following year.
Horng
said that he joined the iCentre in hopes of acquiring knowledge in running a
proper business to improve on aspects such as marketing, getting VC funding,
and networking.
"After
a string of hits and misses in the past, I realised that knowing only the
technical side of it won't get me far," he said.
Often,
many self-proclaimed technopreneurs are known to start off facing challenges
like resource crunch and fund shortage, but Horng sees the light at the end of
the tunnel.
There
is never a better time to be a technopreneur in Brunei than now, he said, as
many initiatives and support schemes have been put in place by the government
to help groom startups in the high-tech, high-growth industry.
"It's
very encouraging now. There is an avenue for training, incubation, seed and
Venture capital funding for every startups, if they really put their heart into
it," he said.
"In
the past, you've hardly ever heard of geeks wanting to become startups. Most of
them pursued a career in engineering," he added.
But
getting business on the right track remains one of the greatest challenges of
being in the software sector, according to Horng.
"You
can easily have great ideas, but the same can't be said in implementing those
ideas and make a profit out of them, or at least sustain them," he said.
"It
also takes a lot of time and effort, and we need to accept that there will be
losses. These losses will lead to gains as we learn and experience what the
public and market demands.
"Perseverance
is important."
AL-HAADI
ABU BAKAR
The
Brunei Times
Business & Investment Opportunities
YourVietnamExpert is a division of Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd, Incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Strategy, Investment and Management, focusing Healthcare and Life Science with expertise in ASEAN. We also propose Higher Education, as a bridge between educational structures and industries, by supporting international programmes. Many thanks for visiting www.yourvietnamexpert.com and/or contacting us at contact@yourvietnamexpert.com
Dear
Reader,
May I
invite you to visit our new blog: IIMS-Asean http://iims-asean.blogspot.com/
News
and activities of the International Institute of Medicine and Science Asean
Chapter of IIMS, Inc. California, USA - Health care, Life Science, Education,
Research, Philanthropy. Asean is the economic organisation of ten countries
located in South East Asia: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR,
Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. IIMS is a
non-profit organization.
No comments:
Post a Comment