Singapore, 8 November 2017 (Wednesday) – A digital network of buyers and sellers: that’s what SMU Entrepreneurs Alumni Group or SMUpreneurs hopes to create with BizHub, a one-stop e-procurement portal launched today (http://bizhub.smupreneurs.com). With BizHub, organisations seeking a quotation for a product or service can easily reach out to more than 250 SMU-alumni-owned businesses registered with SMUpreneurs.

With the launch of BizHub, SMUpreneurs has the distinction of being the first university alumni group in Singapore to create an e-procurement portal to showcase its members. In fact, in its first month of operation, the portal will help SMU alumni-run businesses land more than S$350,000 worth of contracts. Noting the significant value of these contracts, Mr Ivan Chang, President of SMUpreneurs, said: “We have developed a win-win solution for buyers and vendors. With BizHub, buyers/clients can reach out to multiple businesses to secure a favourable price. Similarly, vendors are aware of potential leads and can build networks in their field of business.”

Currently, buyers can source for vendors in two fields: IT Services and Food & Beverages. These two sectors account for 65 per cent of SMU alumni-run businesses. There are plans to roll out the service in other industries in the coming months, including travel and finance. “We hope that BizHub will promote entrepreneurship by encouraging SMU and its community of alumni and corporate partners to ‘buy and support SMU’,” added Mr Chang.

Associate Professor Low Aik Meng, Director of Office of Alumni Relations, remarked, “Entrepreneurship is alive and well at SMU! The launch of BizHub, the first e-procurement portal created by a university alumni group in Singapore, demonstrates that innovation and entrepreneurship values which SMU inculcates among our students continue to thrive long after they graduate. BizHub will enable the SMU community and beyond to obtain value from the products and services delivered by our alumni-owned and operated businesses. It is an initiative which the university is proud of.”

Key features of BizHub include:

1)     Free to use: Unlike competitor portals, BizHub is a free service.

2)     Enhanced communication: An in-built messaging feature ensures that clients and vendors are able to communicate conveniently in a secure setting.

3)     Targeted solutions: BizHub promotes effective and relevant partnerships. Registered businesses are required to specify the nature of their business, so that BizHub users are given only the most relevant results to their request.

BizHub is the latest effort by SMUpreneurs to support the entrepreneurial ventures of SMU alumni.  Earlier initiatives by SMUpreneurs included a directory of SMU alumni businesses and quarterly networking events.