Beta Purchase from an Elevyn Shop

Prior to the recent private beta launch, we made an online purchase from our pilot seller Soning Craft just to test out the logistics of buying an item from an Elevyn shop.

We wanted to ensure that everything worked out smoothly – from browsing the items, adding to cart, checking out and payment. DS picked out an item that he liked, and promptly made a purchase for it. Upon confirmation of payment, there was nothing else that we could do but wait.

Being the first purchase, we set our expectations low and was expecting the worse. Would the seller get the purchase notification? Would she even have checked the email? Would the item go missing in transit? How long would it take?

The purchase was made on a Friday, and over the weekends we took our minds off it. Then lo and behold, as if by magic, a package arrived on Monday itself!

Sure enough, wrapped neatly in a tight little cardboard box, it was the exact pencil holder that we purchased. Hurray, mission accomplished!

All credit goes to Malina Soning for the quick shipping, and to PosLaju Malaysia for the prompt delivery. Our only feedback was to get Soning Craft to draft a personal reply to buyers confirming the purchase, and to advise on its estimated shipping / arrival date. That way, buyers don’t have to be surprised at having their items arrive magically!

YSEI Results Announcement

Back in May, we were one of 19 ventures shortlisted from applicants all over Asia to attend the Youth Social Entrepreneurship Initiative (YSEI) Fellowship in KL. The 5-day workshop paired entrepreneurs with mentors and industry experts who grilled the participants on their ideas and business plans.

Entrepreneurs then get to pitch their ideas for seed / start-up financing which offered up to USD 60,000 over 1.5 years, alongside other benefits such as mentorship, knowledge and networks.

Today, we received an e-mail from YSEI announcing the results. Ten ventures were chosen for the 1st round of seed financing which offered USD 5,000 plus 6 months of mentorship. Some of the ventures were from Thailand, Pakistan, India and Philippines.

How did Elevyn do? We’ll leave it to you to find out

A Developed World: Elevyn, “eBay” for the socially-conscious

A Developed World provides a platform for social entrepreneurs to tell their stories, and as a resource for entrepreneurs to seek and build synergies with other initiatives.

We were recently interviewed by Shu Ting in an article for A Developed World, where we discussed about how we got started, our inspiration, and how the whole thing works. Read it here.