Curtin Malaysia students win Nescafé Youth Entrepreneurship Programme 2022 University Challenge

Miri – 10 March 2023 – Eight students of the Faculty of Business at Curtin University Malaysia (Curtin Malaysia) who operated the Nescafé Hub kiosk at Curtin Malaysia in May 2022 have won the Nescafé Youth Entrepreneurship Programme 2022 University Challenge in the ‘Upholding SOP’ category.

The students comprising Shirley Ling, Chou Joon Rong, Marian Davincy David, Ivan Tong, Yeh Chia Yin, Lim Kai Sin and Gan Jing Wen competed against students from 15 other universities in the challenge and walked away with a RM1,500 cash prize.

The ‘Upholding SOP’ award recognises student operators who go above and beyond in their efforts to ensure adherence to standard operating procedures (SOPs) in all aspects of business operations.

Dean of the Faculty of Business, Professor Andreas Zins, commended the students for their exemplary commitment to following SOPs, regardless of the task or situation. He said this served as a model and inspiration for their peers and the university community as a whole.

“Winning the ‘Upholding SOP’ award is also a testament to Curtin Malaysia’s commitment to upholding the highest standards of conduct and performance amongst its students and staff,” said Prof. Zins.

The Faculty of Business has been collaborating with Nestlé Malaysia on the Nescafé Youth Entrepreneurship Programme (NYEP) since May 2022. By empowering and grooming university students to be competent in business operations, the NYEP promotes decent employment and diversity through experiential learning for students to run a Nescafé pop-up store, also known as Nescafé Hubs, as a stand-alone business.

As part of the NYEP, students have the opportunity to operate fully-equipped pop-up stores on their campuses with start-up capital provided by Nescafé Malaysia. Students participating in the NYEP gain hands-on experience in areas such as marketing, supply chain management, and customer service.

The Nescafé Hub at Curtin Malaysia has proven very popular with students, staff and visitors at the campus, providing an affordable and convenient alternative to the other food and beverage outlets on campus.

Different student groups take turns to operate the Nescafé Hub each semester and any students, regardless of course discipline, are invited to participate in the programme. It is all about inculcating business knowledge and entrepreneurship and empowering students to be competent business people.

“Running a pop-up store like the Nescafé Hub can be challenging but offers the students a valuable opportunity to gain practical experience, develop important entrepreneurship skills and build confidence in their abilities, which may not be available in a traditional classroom setting. We are really proud of this group of students for their outstanding achievement,” said the Faculty of Business’ Associate Dean of Learning and Teaching, Dr. Fayrene Chieng.

For more information on Curtin Malaysia, visit curtin.edu.my, or look for Curtin Malaysia on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn or Tik-Tok.

Dean of Faculty of Business Prof Andreas Zins with student operators at the Nescafé Hub

Prof Zins and faculty staff pose for group phot with the winning team