Les finalistes des Women Entrepreneur Awards (WEA) de cette année ont été dévoilées lors d’une cérémonie organisée à Vatel Mauritius à Pierrefonds le samedi 7 septembre 2024.
Français
Le suspense a pris fin pour les candidates de cette 2ème edition avec l’annonce des six femmes entrepreneures qui participeront à la finale en direct qui se tiendra le 19 octobre prochain.
Les WEA est un concept créé pour encourager, soutenir et célébrer les femmes entrepreneures mauriciennes de différents secteurs, et pour mettre en valeur leur contribution à l’économie locale. L’issue de cette competition permettra de mettre en valeur les réalisations exceptionnelles de femmes entrepreneures qui ont eu un impact significatif sur leurs industries et leurs communautés.
Dans son discours de bienvenue, Samantha Seewoosurrun, coprésidente des WEA, a souligné que le concours de cette année s’aligne sur le thème de l’ONU “Invest in women: accelerate progress”. Elle a egalement rappelé que plusieurs ateliers sponsorisés par Bank One, Emtel, blink by Emtel et Ennoia avaient été organisés au cours des dernières semaines abordant des thèmes spécifiques comme la bonne gestion financière, le marketing digitale ou encore le bien-être physique et mental.
Jean-Luc Manneback, fondateur et directeur d’Impact Production Group, en tant que l’un des sponsors de l’événement, a encouragé les femmes entrepreneures à raconter leur histoire avec passion et à célébrer leurs réussites, tout en restant humbles et en utilisant la visibilité pour inspirer la prochaine génération. Il a félicité toutes les femmes entrepreneurs sélectionnées pour participer au concours de cette année, où 11 ont été pre-selectionnées parmi toutes les candidats, en disant : « vous êtes la star de votre propre show ».
Sendy Thoplan, responsable des services bancaires aux PME et aux entreprises chez Bank One, a déclaré que la banque était fière d’être un sponsor du WEA 2024, soulignant que les banques et autres institutions financières devraient adopter une approche centrée sur les femmes entrepreneures pour parvenir à un changement significatif en soutenant la croissance. d’entreprises dirigées par des femmes. Son message aux participants était le suivant:
“your journey is a testament to your resilience creativity and passion. Each step you take not only gets you closer to your own dreams, but also paves the way to the future generation of women leaders. Your achievement is a source of inspiration for others, proving that with determination and vision there is no limit to what you can accomplish. Keep shining and making your mark. Your impact is changing the world, one day at a time.”
Know your stuff, be flexible and be ready
Les finalistes présenteront individuellement leur entreprise devant le jury lors de la finale en direct et ont été particulierement attentives à l’intervention de Corinne Robert, l’une des ambassadrices des WEA 2024 et consultante en communication chez Akheza Consulting. Elle a partagé les secrets du pitch parfait commencant son intervention par explorer le concept de « personal branding » ou « l’art de construire son story-telling » qui permet d’utiliser des techniques pour identifier les compétences à améliorer en matière de prise de parole notamment à travers une meilleure mise en valeur de sa narration, de son body language ou encore de son image. Le but du jeu n’est pas de créer un personnage mais de rester authentique.. Selon elle, il y a tout à gagner en suivant ces 3 principes : « know your stuff » en vous informant sur ce qui se passe dans votre secteur d’activités, « be flexible » pour s’adapter aux différentes opportunités de communication avec les autres et enfin « be ready » en faisant preuve de discipline et de consistance. « There is only one you and that’s your superpower » a-t-elle affirmé en guise de conclusion.
Le jury a été présenté lors de l’événement, composé de professionnels hautement expérimentés et possédant une expérience significative dans le domaine entrepreneurial :
• Renaud Azema, PDG – Vatel Maurice
• Johanne Hague – Avocate
• Julien Guillot Sestier – Facilitateur IA générative & Stratège de marque
• Ingrid Bell – Directrice générale d’Aestetika Studio
• Éric Grenouilleau – Fondateur, Bluefrog Holding Co Ltd
• Léa Verbizier – Directrice Générale, OME Maurice
Les membres du jury ont partagé leurs points de vue sur ce qu’ils attendaient des finalistes du concours. Renaud Azema a notamment souligné que les finalistes avaient beaucoup de talent et qu’il recherchera de la passion et une vision pour l’avenir. Johanne Hague a souligné l’importance de la résilience et souhaitera savoir comment les finalistes avaient appris de l’adversité et comment leurs entreprises en avaient tiré profit. Julien Guillot Sestier espére voir celles qui pourronnt inspirer la prochaine génération, tandis qu’Ingrid Bell attend des entrepreneures esprit d’innovantion, capable de transformer les défis en idées disruptives et d’écrire des histoires de marque uniques et convaincantes. Enfin, Eric Grenouilleau a expliqué qu’il sera plus particulierement attentif à l’innovation, la créativité et la passion des pitcheurs de la finale.
Les candidates suivantes ont été annoncées comme finalistes (par ordre alphabétique de prénoms) :
Astrid Arlove – OBOĒ Ltd
Azeeza Ruhomuth – RAFS Design
Khandini Rajmun-Goraya – The Minimalist Style Coach
Lili Ip Kwok Sheung – Keliks Ltd
Srishti Dixit – ONS FinServ Ltd (in absentia)
Zaahirah Muthy – ZeeArts Ltd
Les finalistes participeront à la phase finale du concours qui se tiendra le 19 octobre prochain, où elles présenteront leur entreprise sur scene et face au jury, qui récompensera ensuite les gagnantes dans diverses catégories.
Pour sa part, Kirti Sheonarain, fondatrice et co-présidente de WEA, a déclaré a la fin de l’évènement :
“I would like to congratulate all of the incredible women entrepreneurs who were selected for this year’s competition and those who have made it to the final. I would also like to thank all of those who participated in our workshops, generously hosted by our sponsors, to build their skills. We have seen the amazing diversity of talent among our women entrepreneurs once again this year, across a wide range of sectors. We can’t wait for the finals of the competition to celebrate the successes of our talented women entrepreneurs and their contribution to our vibrant Mauritian economy .”
Anglais
The finalists of this year’s Women Entrepreneur Awards (WEA) were revealed at a ceremony hosted at Vatel Mauritius in Pierrefonds on 7 September. It was announced that six women entrepreneurs will compete in the live finals to be held on 19 October.
WEA is a concept created to encourage, support and empower and celebrate Mauritian female entrepreneurs from different sectors, and to showcase their contribution in the Mauritian economy. The awards, which are in their second edition, will recognise the outstanding achievements of women entrepreneurs who have made a significant impact on their industries and communities.
In her welcome address, Samantha Seewoosurrun, Co-Chair of WEA, highlighted that this year’s competition is aligned with the UN’s theme of “Invest in women: accelerate progress”. She noted that WEA was focusing was on financial and digital literacy, as well as mental and physical wellness, where workshops had been held in August by Bank One, Emtel and blink by Emtel, while an energising body combat session had been hosted by the Ennoia sports and fitness club.
Jean-Luc Manneback, Chef d’Enterprise, Impact Production Group, as one of the sponsors of the event, urged the women entrepreneurs to tell their stories with passion and celebrate their successes, while remaining humble and using the visibility to inspire the next generation. He congratulated all of the women entrepreneurs who were selected as participants in this year’s competition, where 11 were chosen from all of the applicants, saying “you are the star of your own show”.
Sendy Thoplan, Head of SME and Business Banking at Bank One, said that the bank was proud to be a sponsor of WEA 2024, emphasising that banks and other financial institutions should adopt a women entrepreneur-centric approach to achieve meaningful change in supporting the growth of women-led businesses. His message to the participants was that
“your journey is a testament to your resilience creativity and passion. Each step you take not only gets you closer to your own dreams, but also paves the way to the future generation of women leaders. Your achievement is a source of inspiration for others, proving that with determination and vision there is no limit to what you can accomplish. Keep shining and making your mark. Your impact is changing the world, one day at a time.”
Know your stuff, be flexible and be ready
Corinne Robert, WEA Ambassador and Communications Consultant at Akheza Consulting, shared the secrets of the perfect pitch, noting that the finalists will individually pitch their businesses before the jury panel in the live finals. She explained the concept of personal branding, highlighting the importance of emotions and remaining authentic in storytelling. For those participating in the live finals, she urged them to ‘know your stuff’, be flexible and be ready. She reflected that
“there is only one you, and that is your superpower”.
Jury panel to focus on passion, resilience and creativity
The jury panel was presented at the event, composed of highly experienced professionals with significant experience in the entrepreneurial domain:
Renaud Azema, CEO – Vatel Mauritius
Johanne Hague – Barrister
Julien Guillot Sestier – Generative AI Facilitator & Brand Strategist
Ingrid Bell – Managing Director of Aestetika Studio
Eric Grenouilleau – Founder, Bluefrog Holding Co Ltd
Lea Verbizier – Managing Director, OME Mauritius
Members of the jury panel shared their perspectives on what they would be looking for from the finalists of the competition. Renaud Azema underlined that the finalists had a lot of talent and he would be looking to see passion and a vision for the future. Johanne Hague emphasised the importance of resilience, and was keen to learn how the finalists had learned from adversity, and how their businesses had grown from it. Julien Guillot Sestier was hoping to see those who could inspire the next generation, while Ingrid Bell was waiting to see trailblazing, innovative entrepreneurs who could convert challenges into disruptive ideas and write unique and compelling brand stories. Eric Grenouilleau explained that he would be looking out for innovation, creativity and passion from those pitching at the finals.
The following candidates were announced as finalists (in alphabetical order by first name):
Astrid Arlove – OBOĒ Ltd
Azeeza Ruhomuth – RAFS Design
Khandini Rajmun-Goraya – The Minimalist Style Coach
Lili Ip Kwok Sheung – Keliks Ltd
Srishti Dixit – ONS FinServ Ltd (in absentia)
Zaahirah Muthy – ZeeArts Ltd
The finalists will compete in the final round of the competition to be held on 19 October, where they will pitch their businesses directly to the judges, who will then be awarding the winners across a range of categories.
Commenting on the event, Kirti Sheonarain, Founder and Co-Chair of WEA, said:
“I would like to congratulate all of the incredible women entrepreneurs who were selected for this year’s competition and those who have made it to the final. I would also like to thank all of those who participated in our workshops, generously hosted by our sponsors, to build their skills. We have seen the amazing diversity of talent among our women entrepreneurs once again this year, across a wide range of sectors. We can’t wait for the finals of the competition to celebrate the successes of our talented women entrepreneurs and their contribution to our vibrant Mauritian economy .”
