This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on December 10, 2018

KUALA LUMPUR: Mandy Leong, the founder and owner of Chriszen Malaysia Sdn Bhd, was named the grand prize winner of BizSmart Challenge 2018 at the finale held in Eco Majestic on Saturday.

The challenge, which was the country’s first reality programme by a financial institution, was organised by Alliance Bank Malaysia Bhd in collaboration with Eco World Development Group Bhd (EcoWorld).

As a grand prize winner, Chriszen — a local beauty and skincare brand — won RM250,000 cash prize. It also won the Astro Media Award, which was a media coverage prize worth RM200,000.

The first and second runner-ups were Klezcar, a car rental service company, and OhMostWanted, a cosmeceutical brand. They won RM200,000 and RM150,000 in cash prizes respectively.

Meanwhile, Homegrown Farms Semenyih, a sustainable farming service provider, won the Manulife Sustainability Award, while IGL Coatings, which produces high-quality, eco-friendly cleaning and protection products for cars, households and industrial use, it took home the Visa Retail Award. Both brands won cash prizes of RM100,000 each.

Alliance Bank group chief executive officer (CEO) Joel Kornreich said he was impressed by the tenacity and practical ideas demonstrated by the finalists every week during the challenge. “Their passion for their brand, entrepreneurial spirit and strategic skills will serve them well,” he added.

EcoWorld chairman Tan Sri Liew Kee Sin commended the finalists’ great passion. “It is amazing to watch as it demonstrates strength, determination and purposefulness in the tactics used to grow their businesses.”

This year marks the fifth BizSmart Challenge, a flagship programme that helps small and medium enterprises (SMEs) take their businesses to the next level with business training, coaching, mentoring and networking. Since its launch in 2013, the bank has received over 1,300 submissions from SMEs nationwide.

In addition to the cash and media coverage prizes totalling RM1 million, the bank is extending up to RM5 million in collateral-free financing to the top 20 finalists of this year’s challenge.