In a virtual media event, Globe’s corporate venture builder 917Ventures presented how it ideates, launched and build some of the existing digital business ideas that have helped us during this pandemic
Some of 917Ventures’ digital innovations company portfolio includes like GCash, KonsultaMD, HealthNow, RUSH, AdSpark, and PureGo have become the new lifelines for Filipinos this challenging times.
917Ventures has likewise helped startups maximize Globe’s ‘Unfair Advantage’ by leveraging the rich asset base of Globe. Aside from capital and funding firepower, Globe has a customer base of over 80 million, one million distribution points, 150,000 enterprise partners as well as massive networks and affiliates which the startups can tap. Being a venture builder, the company is constantly on the lookout for new ideas to launch and accelerate, to further improve the lives of Filipinos.
(Top) Event Host, Rase Eustaquio Head of People, 917Ventures; Natasha Bautista, Head of Marketing Communications, 917Ventures; (Bottom) Mikey Garrovillo Head of Product, Technology and Data, 917Ventures; Glenn Estrella Head of Porfolio Growth; and Francis Simisim Head of Ideation and Acceleration, 917Ventures.
During the virtual event 917Ventures presented and showed us a 360-degree virtual walkthrough of their office which is located at Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City. You can also view it thru this link: https://360.917ventures.com/
Gcash
GCash helps its 40 million users securely send money and pay for goods and services online, empowers many small businesses to survive and assist government to safely distribute its Social Amelioration Program financial assistance to Filipinos through cashless solutions.
Following its momentum in 2020, GCash continues to innovate and reinvent the Filipino way of life through easy access to financial services through the following features: GLife – access to mini-apps to shop, eat and play, and helps businesses save cost from building their own apps; GInvest – participate in high yielding investments for as low as P50 ; GInsure – life and health insurance for as low as P39; GSave – get the best savings rate in the country with no minimum balance required; and GCredit – the first digital credit model and mobile credit line in the Philippines, used as a payment option in Shopee, Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
KonsultaMD
As health and safety have been the driving force behind the digital shift, 917Ventures offers convenient and reliable healthtech platforms such as KonsultaMD and HealthNow. Consultations made through KonsultaMD skyrocketed by 461 percent in 2020 compared to the previous year. The HealthNow app, on the other hand, has been downloaded more than 240,000 times since its launch in August 2020.
HealthNow
HealthNow offers online prescriptions and delivery of medicines through partner pharmacies so that customers receive medical services from their own homes. The service is currently available in Metro Manila, and will soon include key cities in Visayas and Mindanao.
PureGO
Complementing the door-to-door delivery of medicines is Purego’s platform for quick and easy grocery shopping. The app launched on December 1, 2020, enabling customers easier access to essentials for the home. Armed with thousands of products from reputable and trusted brands, consumers can practically order anything using the app, from pantry essentials to household necessities all sourced directly from Puregold. Multiple payment options including GCash are available, and items are delivered within 24 hours.
AdSpark
AdSpark, through its access to consumer intelligence, enables businesses to grow throughout their digital transformation journey. ThoughtSparkers, AdSpark’s flagship whitepaper powered by AdSpark Intelligence, helps drive communication strategies by studying the Filipino psyche.
RUSH
RUSH offers digital innovations in the area of customer loyalty and retention, made accessible through easy-to-use programs to help businesses grow in the digital space. The company recently expanded its services to include an eCommerce platform to help digitize merchant stores. It continues to empower digital marketers to own customer relationships through RUSH Loyalty, as well as drive traffic to digital stores by embedding the RUSH eStore in GCash, tapping on millions of customers using GLife.
“We know how tough our battle against this pandemic is, and we are all at risk, especially those who need to be physically present in their jobs. So we continue to reinvent lifestyle and movement through different products and services in the areas of health, e-commerce, financial technology, and advertising technology that deliver indelible value to consumers and businesses,” said Vince Yamat, 917Ventures Managing Director.
917Ventures is also part of Globe’s 5G Hackathon, providing mentorship to participants of the nationwide competition welcoming students and professionals to innovate and pitch their solutions to help various aspects of the Philippine society. The competition will focus on the use of 5G technologies in various sectors of the Philippine economy such as education, health care, livelihood, and disaster risk management. Winners of the 5G Hackathon may join 917Ventures as a venture builder to further jumpstart their idea. The successful venture builder under 917Ventures will receive P 2.5 million in support.
To know more about 917Ventures, visit https://917ventures.com/.
