After 10 weeks of display of creative ingenuity, healthy rivalry in the Titan Boardroom and networking among 18 contestants in the Titan House, this year’s edition of The Next Titan came to an end in Lagos, with an overall winner.
Tagged ‘Game Changer’, the foremost Nigerian business reality TV show, now in Season 9, came to a close at Oriental Hotel Lagos on Sunday, with five finalists presenting their final business tasks in the last attempt to convince the judges why their respective business ideas need the N20 million grand prize award to scale up.
The grand finale saw Nkechi, Ola, Praise, Chioma and Eric, the finalists, at their best as well as outwitting each other for the prize money.
The show witnessed squeezing from the judges, cross-firing among the contestants and three live evictions.
Nkechi, whose tomatoes puree business did not make the final four, was the first to be evicted and Praise, whose confectionary business also did not make the final three, followed, while Ola, whose 24 hours supermarket and pharmacy couldn’t convince the judges for a place among the top two, emerged the third evictee that Sunday evening.
At the end, Eric and Chioma were left to battle for the grand prize money as Eric outwitted Chioma with a stronger business idea, proof of viability among other qualities to convince the judges and emerged the winner.
Eric went home with the N20 million grand prize, while Chioma, the first runner up, went home with N2.5 million. Praise and Ola, second and third runners up, went home with N1.5 million and N1 million respectively. Though Nkechi had no share of the Titan cake, Team SMB, which won its task, was rewarded at the grand final event by Tingo Mobile.
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The judges included: Kyari A. Bukar, founder/CEO, Trans-Sahara Investment Corporation; Tonye Cole, co-founder, Sahara Group; Chris Parkes, chairman/CEO, CPMS Africa and Lilian Olubi, CEO, EFG Hermes Nigeria.
Speaking on behalf of the judges, Bukar, the leader of the panel, noted that Eric Anthony had impressed them with his business tasks, clearing all doubts for viability, sustainability if given the N20 million grand prize money to scale up his business.
They see his business scaling up with the prize money, employing more people, creating wealth and impacting the society, which is top among the objectives of the business reality TV show.
Also speaking at the event Tonye Cole, one of the judges and the All Progressive Congress 2023 gubernatorial election candidate in Rivers State, described all the contestants as winners, noting that the panel had thorough in its assessments to ensure that viable business ideas are supported with lifeline to scale up and empower others.
He also called on them to improve on the quality of their offerings bearing in the mind the competitive market out there.
In his earlier remarks, Mide Akinlaja, executive producer, The Next Titan Nigeria, noted that the business reality show has impacted young Nigerian entrepreneurs in the last eight editions and will further impact more with the ninth edition, considering the huge entries for the show.
The appreciated the sponsors for identifying with the show, which he described as a platform aimed at engineering entrepreneurs among Nigerian youths through identifying the best business minds and supporting their entrepreneurial acumen through logistical assistance, formal training, knowledge and other requisites services needed to propel them into successful personalities.
Having made it the Bootcamp, further to the Titan House and making the five finalists, he urged all the contestants to take advantage of the training, knowledge sharing and networking to further grow their business as money with such training and right skills amount to nothing.
Also the sponsors were excited at the quality of the show and the thoroughness in the assessment of the contestants.
Luno, the headline sponsor, Heritage Bank Plc and Tingo Mobile, the platinum sponsors of the show, noted that they identify with the show because of its alignment with their corporate and empowerment visions, while SIFAX Group, silver sponsor of the show, noted that it has supported the show since inception and will continue because of the huge impact on youthful entrepreneurs, who in turn and empowering their folks across the country, depleting the unemployment ratio and creating wealth.
Other sponsors of the show include IPNX, Haven Homes, Lifemate Furniture, Arik Air, Nikky Taurus and May 27 Couture.
