SeyBooking.com wins pitching competition |10 March 2023

Nouvobanq chief executive Christophe Edmond, Salim Mathieu and Daria Nitishevski of winners ‘SeyBooking.com’ hold the cheque for R100,000 in the presence of other contestants and judges (Photo: Joena Meme)

‘SeyBooking.com’, an online travel agency co-founded by Salim Mathieu and Daria Nitishevski, is the grand winner of the business pitching competition, organised jointly by the United Nations International Trade Centre based in Geneva, and the division of science, technology and innovation.

The business beat 10 other tech start-ups who pitched their ideas to a panel of five judges, to claim the grand prize of R100,000 sponsored by Nouvobanq.

Judges included Nouvobanq chief executive Christophe Edmond, division of science, technology and innovation’s (DSTI) director general Xavier Estico, Manfred Laporte from the DSTI, and United Nations International Trade Centre’s (ITC) representatives Patricia Russ and Cathy Sall.

The competition was held at the Savoy Resort & Spa on Wednesday evening, and marked the end of a business internationalisation training workshop, which started earlier this week, with the aim of promoting entrepreneurship and building the capacity of entrepreneurs in various business techniques, including pitching.

 “Firstly, we would like to thank ITC and DSTI for organising this training and giving us this great opportunity to learn how we can grow our business. We also thank Nouvobanq for the prize and the support shown towards the entrepreneurs,” said Mr Mathieu. 

He said the prize money will go towards their already set objectives, which could not be materialised due to lack of funds.

“We are thinking that it is time to grow, and this grant will really push us towards our bigger goal,” he added.

Other tech starts-ups in the pitching competition included ‘Compliopro-x’ which is a platform that uses technology to make training fun through gaming, presented by Malika Jivan,  ‘Moses’ presented by Steve Payet, which is a device to help fishermen who experience distress while at sea, and ‘Bluefire Lady’ developed by Juliette Dine, which offers manufacturers eco-friendly and sustainable bags.

The contestants formed part of a first cohort to be trained in business internationalisation, which is how a company takes steps to increase its footprint or capture greater market share outside its country by branching out into international markets.

The programme was being funded by United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in partnership with DSTI and Nouvobanq.

Diane Larame