For almost thirty years, L’Oréal Brandstorm has grown into one of the most prestigious college-level business competitions in the world. Since its introduction in the Philippines just a decade ago, it has set the careers of numerous winners.
Brandstorm has enabled L’Oréal to discover new, homegrown talent by putting students through real-life situations to reveal skills that are daring, tenacious, innovative, and entrepreneurial in spirit. Each winner is given a chance to learn L’Oréal’s company culture as a globally-loved brand while exploring its various areas of expertise.
And with the Brandstorm National Finals coming up, let’s take a moment to catch up past winners and find out how the competition changed their lives.
Joan Hwang – 2013 Champion (University of the Philippines – Diliman)
Having made it as far as the Brandstorm semi-finals in her junior year of college, Joan Hwang returned the following year as part of Team Istas. Each competing team was tasked to develop an innovative breakthrough plan for L’Oréal Paris haircare in Southeast Asia. After noticing the over-saturation of haircare products that catered to women, Hwang and her teammates created a line for L’Oréal Men Expert. The final product, Ultra Chrome, was a full haircare line that boasted three variants to address the most common concerns among men.
“The world finals was awe-inspiring because L’Oréal never does things on a small scale,” recalls Hwang. “The competition showed me that even though the Philippines is a small country, we do have the capability to compete on a worldwide platform and hold our own among so much cultural diversity.”
For Joan Hwang, Brandstorm was her door into L’Oréal. “I knew that I wanted to work for L’Oreal after my junior year internship for the brand Lancome. Because of this, I knew that I had to do everything in my power to be noticed by L’Oreal’s HR. Brandstorm was that opportunity for me. I’ve been working for L’Oreal for almost six years already.”
Joaquin Narciso – 2014 Champion (University of the Philippines – Diliman)
As a member of Team BMW, Joaquin Narciso and his teammates were no strangers to business and marketing competitions. The soon-to-be graduates of Business Administration joined Brandstorm as a final challenge during their last months in school. Inspired by the brand DNA and history of Kiehl’s Since 1851, Team BMW developed Full Command, a line of multi-benefit men’s care products. The team’s combination of brand history and innovation would see them represent the Philippine at the global finals in Paris, where they presented their plan to executives from Kiehl’s.
“It was one incredible and unforgettable experience and so much of it remains fresh in my mind today,” shares Joaquin Narciso. “After competing in Brandstorm, I was able to continue the experience with what has proven to be an exciting career at L’Oreal. I’m happy to say that my adventure has exceeded all my expectations. Brandstorm fueled that spark and desire to innovate and make that difference.”
Katrina Lim – 2016 Champion (Ateneo de Manila University)
As part of the Little Lion, Katrina Lim and her teammates proved themselves to be the ‘little team that could’ of the 2016 Brandstorm. Inspired by their experiences as millennials and the ever-evolving outlook on natural beauty, Little Lion wanted to empower consumers to bare it all with La Roche Posay.
“Winning Brandstorm here in the Philippines was a real treat as we got to go back to Europe, which was a big part of our college experience,” says Katrina Lim. “Having participated in Brandstorm gave me a better picture of what it’s like in the real marketing world, which helped me in choosing the job I wanted when it came to job hunting.”
This year, L’Oréal Brandstorm’s National Finals will be on on April 25. This year, teams were tasked to develop a disruptive innovation for skincare to attract and engage health-conscious consumers online and offline. The top eight teams include:
· BrandBabes (University of the Philippines – Diliman)
· Into Your Genes (University of the Philippines – Diliman)
· Brandhurricane (De La Salle University – Manila)
· Innovature (Enderun College / University of the Philippines – Diliman)
· Skin Queens (De La Salle University – Manila)
· RegSteffiJe (University of the Philippines – Diliman)
· Beauty Fixers (University of the Philippines – Visayas)
· Teamnovate (De La Salle University – Manila)
The winning team will fly to Paris, France. There, they will be mentored by L’Oréal experts at Station F, where they will demonstrate the feasibility of their concept to a collection of decision-makers for the chance to develop a prototype of their project as a brand under the L’Oréal Active Cosmetics Division.
For more updates and information on L’Oréal Brandstorm, follow them on Facebook (facebook.com/LorealTalentPhilippines).
