Last Thursday, KAWO hosted ‘Rush’, an event which brought together Shanghai’s most promising startups, forward thinking brands and agencies under one roof.
Product Lead, Alex Duncan, kicked off the proceedings with a candid insight into KAWO’s evolution, and its rapid development from an agency tool to a startup in less than two years. By talking openly about the various obstacles that the team had to overcome in the early stages, Alex was able to highlight that the KAWO team are not afraid of failure. Indeed, it was a point that Steve touched upon later – failing fast and quickly beating competition.
Over 90 companies were represented on the night to hear marketing and technology expert, Steve Sammartino, deliver a powerful keynote address. Steve’s speech, entitled ‘Welcome To Startup Land – What Big Companies Must Learn From Startups’ combined elements of his own experiences as an entrepreneur with his expertise in emerging technology.
Given the pace of change within industries, Steve emphasised the importance of innovating quickly in order to beat competition‘You may not know it, but everyone is in startup, because you’re all living through a revolution’. – Whilst giving us a fascinating insight into this ‘technical revolution’, Steve also revealed ways in which startups are able to cost-effectively grow their businesses and disrupt major global players through the use of simple ‘technology hacks’.
Following the keynote, Mailman CEO Andrew Collins hosted an Expert Panel Q&A featuring influential figures in Shanghai’s agency and startup communities. The lineup included PHD China’s Lars Bjørge, Ali Kazmi of Ogilvy & Mather, KAWO’s Alex Duncan, Chinaccelerator’s William Bao Bean, and the aforementioned Steve Sammartino. Andrew lead an insightful discussion on the dynamics of startups, agencies and brands, and how they can work together in beneficial ways.
The evening concluded with food and drink giving our guests the chance to meet Steve. As an added bonus, all who attended were automatically entered into a draw with a chance to win a ticket to RISE, a new tech conference for leaders of enterprise to show how their businesses are changing the world. The KAWO team will be attending this event hosted in Hong Kong at the end of July.
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