Crawford International Ruimsig held their annual Grade 7 Entrepreneurial Event, the ‘Crawford Dragons’.
Foregoing a traditional market day, the students had to identify a need in the community that they could address through entrepreneurial initiatives. After inspirational talks by successful businesswoman Lizzy Kilani and social entrepreneur Saihil Rewachanda, the Grade 7s developed their own business proposals complete with full branding, business and financial planners, to pitch to a panel of experts at the Crawford Dragons event.
Some businesses were aimed at reducing waste in the environment through utilising plastic waste to create anything from affordable spectacle frames to houses built from ecobricks. Other businesses tackled issues children face, such as learning difficulties and a lack of access to education. Fuel and electricity alternatives, unemployment, security, and inaccessibility were among the needs identified and addressed through the business plans pitched at the event.
After much deliberation, the Crawford Dragons (Saihil Rewachanda, businesswoman Sophia Kaladelfos and College Head of Economics at Crawford International Ruimsig, Shereen Whitcombe) each selected the business they would be most likely to invest in, seeing the future potential of these businesses.
Choose Me – an NGO established to tackle unemployment through using an app to connect service providers with clients; Re-Track – a device and app to assist dementia patients and their families with keeping track of valuable and everyday items; and Math Centric – a tutoring company focused on assisting younger students to learn maths in an easily accessible and interactive way were the winning businesses that were honoured at a special assembly held on September 5 to celebrate the students’ hard work and incredible effort.
Honourable mentions were made of I-Wear – a company combining specialised lenses with a sound device to convert text to audio for students with reading difficulties and dyslexia; and FLOW – a company established to address period poverty.
The Dragons identified many businesses that have the potential to make a lasting difference in the community, and provided valuable feedback to the students on how they could take their ideas and initiatives even further.
After such a strong display of creativity and business skills, the students of Crawford International Ruimsig are well-positioned to make a lasting difference to communities both locally and globally.
