Cambodian Startup Opportunities
A few months ago I was invited to help mentor Startup Weekend Cambodia. Startup Weekend is a great event where participates get an opportunity to form teams and develop an actual start up. Then they get to pitch those ideas to a panel of judges and potential investors. As part of the build up to Startup Weekend I had the opportunity to speak to 80 young Cambodians interested in creating their own startup. I was asked by the Startup Weekend team to speak at this mini-event because of my background in starting businesses at a young age. I started my first business when I was 15 and the team thought it would be good to hear from someone who started his first company while in high school. I shared a little bit about my journey, things I've learned along the way, and the opportunities I see for the Cambodian marketplace.
The Opportunities
Real Estate Listings - The real estate market in Phnom Penh favors the landlord and the agent. The commission for the real estate agent is paid by the landlord (typically the first month's rent). This puts the agent and the landlord in a situation where they can attempt to take advantage of the renter. Also, there is no centralized database for real estate listings, so it is next to impossible to discover listings, you literally have to drive around the city looking at signs. There are a lot of opportunities to disrupt the way real estate is handled. Lodging and Travel - Agoda is the main player in hotel booking in Cambodia, but if someone can develop a niche app (Eco-Friendly hotels, short local fights, last minute stay-cations deals?) there is potential to capture part of the lodging/travel market. Communication Apps - The middle class in Cambodia is growing. Young Khmers are going crazy over high-end coffee and smart phones. Find a way to help them to better communicate in their native language. News and Media - The standard media outlets in Cambodia are typically one-sided. A few sites have popped up that have gained massive popularity due to their balanced news reporting. The market is still very fresh and ready for media outlets to start publishing online. Banking/Finance and Payment Systems - There is still no universal way to pay online in Cambodia. As more Cambodians get credit and debit cards, this will need to change. Software providers who can figure out how to get business owners to bring their goods online will win big here. IT Infrastructure - Having worked with a number of NGOs in Cambodia, I can say that the IT training in Cambodia is significantly behind. I recently did an audit on a server that was put into place in 2004 and last updated in 2006 with no backups or redundancy built-in. If someone can provide modern IT support, it will push forward the industry in Cambodia. Database Design and Development - While this falls into our market at Glean. There is a ton of opportunity for startups to help make it easier for businesses, NGOs, and the government to create and manage their database systems. Hosting and Servers - While hosting has taken off all over SE Asia, Cambodia still is behind when it comes to hosting and servers. Recently we priced a VPS at a telecom and it was well over 200% more than a mid-level provider anywhere else. Customer Support and Service - Customer service is nonexistent in Cambodia. Any business that provides real customer service will win big in their industry. IT and Data Security - The security industry in Cambodia is very far behind. Recent attacks and leaks from government websites have proven this. If you can provide data security, I am sure there a lot of customers waiting for you.
Startup Weekend Cambodia
If you have a great idea for the next great startup, come out to Startup Weekend Cambodia on November 22nd. You can register here and the cost is $15.