Customized support and dedicated founders make it: WeShare in SIP100
A startup can reach its growth target with dedicated mentorship and global expansion opportunities through an incubation program.
In 100 days, FIIS provided WeShare with dedicated mentorship and opportunity to join an acceleration program in Korea. The customized support resulted in 10,000 new users and an increase of USD 100,000 transaction value.
WeShare was designated as a revolutionized donation platform through meaningful sharing and shopping. The "Shop&Share" approach makes them unique. Users just need to visit e-commerce platforms such as Shopee, Tiki, Lazada, etc., and make purchases. Then, a portion of the sales will automatically be allocated to support charitable organizations through the platform. The app enables fundraising groups to benefit from the cashback of online orders without incurring any additional costs, thereby facilitating effective support for charitable organizations.
With a desire to learn and grow, WeShare entered SIP100 Season 4 (2023) and went through 100 days of the incubation program offered by Foreign Trade University’s Innovation and Incubation Space (FIIS). This season, Swiss EP arranged EIR Eliot Shin to help FIIS design tailor-made support and expand business connections with Korean partners and investors.
By conducting 1-to-1 interviews with the founding team, surveys on users, and data analysis, FIIS gained insights to customize support for WeShare. Through mentoring and coaching sessions, FIIS enabled WeShare to define goals and expectations. The process ensured that mentors and experts from FIIS ecosystems were appropriately fitted to meet WeShare’s needs.
During the program, WeShare illustrated their professional punctuality and proactive participation. They also closely followed the guidance and companionship of mentors to conquer pre-defined goals and get benefits from adopting strategies adviced by FIIS experts.
“When I met Mr. Quy he was so socially minded and wanted to devote his company to Vietnamese rural area’s communities in need. I thought he could get fundraising from Korean impact investors and be linked to the K-Global Grand Challenge, which can provide support for Weshare in Korea. He actively joined the challenge and did an innovative service pivot also, for example, he adopted community-based donation service in his platform. We met several times in Korea and exchanged some ideas on how to evolve services to a more lucrative one. I enjoyed the journey with him and I were touched by his sincere efforts for the Weshare platform and his team. Hope that Weshare can devote itself to Vietnamese society with great influence on and on."
Mr. Eliot Dongwon Shin - CEO of Impact Pathway, Swiss EP’s EIR to FIIS
When SIP100 2023 was completed, WeShare had grown by an additional 10,000 new users, reaching a total of 30,000 users. They generated 40,000 new contributions out of 100,000 contributions, with a total transaction value increase of USD 100,000.
Mr. Le Ba Quy - Founder of WeShare – acknowledged that they have gained a lot from SIP 100. “SIP100 helped us connect with other startups, partners, and investors. We also received mentorship from dedicated and attentive mentors who helped us work through our problems and achieve our goals. In addition, we were introduced to the K-Startup Grand Challenge Accelerator Program. After being selected through a competitive process, WeShare had the opportunity to spend more than 3 months in Korea exploring the new market and connecting with potential partners and investors. We are grateful for the support we have received from SIP100 and we hope that the program will continue to support more social impact startups in the future.”