AFFI to hold EntrepOlympics© for youth empowerment


The Association of Filipino Franchisers, Inc. (AFFI), the prime trade organization committed to promoting responsible and home-grown micro, small and medium enterprises through franchising, will launch an activity focused on the youth called EntrepOlympics.©  

The EntrepOlympics© 2018-2019 Food Edition is a competition with the aim of sparking an entrepreneurial mindset among them.  It is open to senior college students taking up any business- or food-related course with food business concepts that they may want to franchise in the future.  

To join EntrepOlympics©, schools are encouraged to choose their participants, whether individual or groups with maximum of five (5) members per group, with up to three (3) contestants per school. The students should be registered in the participating school, and startup capitalization for the business concept should not exceed Php 500,000. Using technology, contestants can submit their concept papers and pitch their business ideas online to the AFFI Panel of Judges. There should also be a Letter of Endorsement from the School President, plus personal profiles of each participant.  

From all entries submitted online, Twenty (20) semi-finalists will be chosen, who will then participate in a 3-day Entrepreneurial Boot Camp. Fifteen (15) finalists will then be chosen to move on to the next level of competition, where each finalist will be assigned their respective AFFI coaches who will help them see their business ideas come to life and prepare them for the “testing” stage of their concepts.  

After this, the finalists will then be given the opportunity to test their business ideas through actual selling of their products at various food selling hubs such as Mercato Centrale, Legaspi Sunday Market, and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) trade fairs.  

For the competition’s last stage, the 15 finalists will pitch their ideas to the AFFI Panel during the 3-day “AFFI Franchise and Business Expo” in February 2019 and showcase their products with their own booths.  

Criteria for selecting the winning business concept includes feasibility, franchisability, concept uniqueness, optimization of the startup capital, financial viability, and presentation impact.  

Five (5) grand finalists will be chosen among the Top 15. The 4th to 1st placers will receive plaques and medals, AFFI membership certificate, eligibility to participate in AFFI learning events, free 4-square meter booth at the 18th AFFI Franchise Expo in 2020, consolation cash prize, free 1 ticket each to the 2nd AFFInity Summit and a dedicated Mentor-in-Charge. The Grand Winner, meanwhile, will receive a Seed Capital of Php 250,000, free 5 tickets to the 2ndAFFInity Summit, free 6-square meter raw booth space at the 18th AFFI Franchise Expo in 2020 and a dedicated AFFI mentor, aside from the AFFI membership and entry to AFFI learning events.  

“The EntrepOlympics© is our own way of discovering young talent to go into entrepreneurship already, and what better way to start than going to the schools. This activity definitely fulfills part of our AFFI slogan ‘Para kay God, Para sa Bayan, Para sa AFFI,’ where everything we think and do are for God’s glory, our countrymen and of course, members of AFFI,” affirms AFFI President Marie Joyce Co Yu, who is also President and CEO of Trueblends Tea & Coffee.  

To register for the EntrepOlympics©, visit https://tinyurl.com/EntrepOlympicsYr1 or call Ruel Miclat, Jr. (RJ), AFFI Assistant Event and Project Coordinator, at (02) 745-3237, 0917-5199837 or email info@affi.com.ph.  

For more about the Association of Filipino Franchisers, Inc., visit http://affi.com.ph or follow them on Facebook, www.facebook.com/affiempoweringentrepreneurs, or Twitter (@AEntreps). AFFI is headquartered at the AFFI Center, Unit 406, A.N.Y. Building, #38 Timog Avenue, Brgy. Laging Handa, Quezon City. Call AFFI at (02) 746-3237, (02) 957-8486 and (02) 504-3693, or through 0949-8890758, 0917-5182334 or 0917-5199837. You can also email AFFI at info@affi.com.ph or membership@affi.com.ph.