Damai Studio and Cafe certified yoga instructor and contemporary artist Sean Ching Cheang delivering a talk entitled ‘Prioritising mental health in entrepre-neurship’ at the summit. — YAP CHEE HONG/The Star
Summit gives tips on entrepreneurship, wellness and financial literacy
MORE than 80 aspiring women entrepreneurs gathered to share in the spirit of community and empowerment at a summit in conjunction with this year’s International Women’s Day.
The 2024 International Women’s Day Entrepreneurship and Wellness Summit with the theme “Inspire Inclusion” was hosted by Moms Village Asia Sdn Bhd (MVA), in collaboration with the Homepreneurs Empowerment Network (HEN), Heart Healers Network (HHN) and the Women For Equality Association (WEA).
MVA co-founder and director Roselin Das said the main purpose of the event was to celebrate women, especially women entrepreneurs.
“We want to ensure that women entrepreneurs are not alone in their journey, so the idea of this event is to celebrate and acknowledge their contributions, especially “homepreneurs” as they are the least celebrated,” she said.
MVA founder and chief executive officer Vatsala Nair Manoharan said the summit was also aimed at creating a safe and supportive environment for women’s economic empowerment and personal growth.
“We want to provide a platform for women entrepreneurs to network and build their confidence in entrepreneurship.
“We hope that participants could benefit from the knowledge they gained from the talks and feel empowered by the panel discussions. “From this experience, they could inspire another woman, coach another woman to inspire, or just identify another woman who would benefit and bring her into the community, creating an impactful ripple effect,” Vatsala added.
WEA president Rozella Razali Wong, who is also the founder of HHN, said the summit highlighted the importance of wellness too in the entrepreneurial journey.
“Many women entrepreneurs tend to not prioritise their wellness as they are busy growing their businesses.
“However, wellness is key to building and improving their businesses because one should take care of their physical and mental well-being first before they can grow their business to be successful.
“So we hope they could gain insights from certified experts on ways to achieve a balance between work and wellness,” said Wong.
The one-day summit featured talks focusing on key areas such as diversity in business, mental health, digital strategies, financial literacy, and work-life balance, besides panel discussions providing practical advice, inspirational stories, and actionable strategies.
Et Naturelle Enterprise founder Evelyn Gan Teng Ping, 56, who was one of the attendees, said the event provided her with a great opportunity to network with other women entrepreneurs.
“It is a great platform because I can get inspiration from other entrepreneurs’ ideas and innovations as well as arrange for future collaborations.
“It feels amazing to be able to join the community,” she added.
Another attendee, Vimmy Matrimonials Services founder Vimala Kanagaratnam, 53, said the summit motivated her to persevere in her entrepreneurial journey.
“This event not only touches on the business side, but also other topics like wellness, spirituality and healing, so it is an awakening for me.
“Understanding and improving ourselves would help us improve and grow our business, so this event is truly beneficial and should be continued,” she told StarMetro.
The event ended with the announcement of the Homepreneurs Empowerment Network 2024 Award. The awards will be presented at a gala dinner scheduled for April 6.
