As a fourth-generation heir to a mattress business with nearly 90 years of history, Nophol Techaphangam, our Founder & CEO, was invited to share his experience in leading his family business and inspire the successors of other family enterprises (“NextGens”) to forge ahead with their plans to take their businesses to the next level during the “Changing Your Parents' Mindset” session at The Cloud NextGen Conference on November 26 at Lhong 1919, Bangkok.

Organised by The Cloud, Thailand's biggest online magazine, the event aimed to help disseminate the learning from the earlier generations of business families and highlight how the successive generations had creatively developed the businesses.

Other speakers at the event were:

- Chataya Supanpong, second-generation leader of BBQ Plaza

- Thanat Witpirom, second-generation leader of MS Optic and founder of OCCURA

- Jiraroj Pojanavaraphan, third-generation leader of SC Grand

- Phakamon Somboonvejjakarn, second-generation leader of D'Oro

- Kamolpong Sanguantrakul, third-generation leader of Toyota Khonkaen

Read the event’s summaries on The Cloud and The Matter (in Thai only).

nornnorn, under Circularity Co., Ltd., is one of Thailand's 30 most innovative SMEs and startups selected to join the final round of Thailand Inno Biz Champion (Central Region) contest that will take place in January 2021.

The contest is organised by Thailand's National Innovation Agency in association with the BrandKU Centre, Business Management Faculty, Kasetsart University, under the direction of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation.

nornnorn has been highlighted as one of "the most inspirational ideas for better tourism [from] cities around the world" to be featured on 101 Ideas for Sustainable Tourism, an initiative by Göteborg&Co, the official tourism and destination marketing organisation of Gothenburg, Sweden's second largest city and European Capital of Smart Tourism 2020.

According to Göteborg&Co, the ideas chosen "relate to city life and urban tourism with a high degree of innovation and creativity. All the ideas have been categorised across one or more of the UN Sustainable Development Goals."

Click here to see other top creative and innovative initiatives from social entrepreneurs, innovative business founders and other players in the global tourism and hospitality industry.

As an entrepreneur who has developed new business opportunities based on sustainability practices, Nophol Techaphangam, our Founder & CEO, was invited to join the Sustainability - An Opportunity for Businesses panel on behalf of nornnorn at the launch of AIT Enterprises Alliance (AEA), a communication and knowledge exchange channel between the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) and enterprises, on November 11 at AIT. The other two panelists were Jamie Brennan, Director of Commerce, Loyalty and Lifestyle Product, True Digital Group, and Tim Feng, President, Deep Dive.

The AEA network aims to foster bilateral engagement between AIT and the private sector and provide opportunities for multilateral collaborations among network members.

Nophol Techaphangam, nornnorn Founder & CEO, tells Bancha Chumchaivate how his family's 88-year-old mattress and bedding business has led to nornnorn today.

Read more (in Thai only)

Nophol Techaphangam, nornnorn Founder & CEO, tells Bancha Chumchaivate how his family's 88-year-old mattress and bedding business has led to nornnorn today.

Read more (in Thai only)

As one of the drivers of the Circular Economy movement in the tourism space, Nophol Techaphangam, our Founder & CEO, shared nornnorn's business model during the “Impact of COVID-19 on Tourism: Consumption and production patterns in the future: A case study from experts” session at the “SWITCH-Asia Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) in Tourism: Opportunities and Challenges” webinar on October 8. 

Organised by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) in association with the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), the webinar focused on the key impacts of COVID-19 on tourism, SCP opportunities that would enable the tourism sector to rebuild stronger and with greater resilience, and the need for circular models in tourism-related production and consumption of food and plastics. 

Nophol was joined at the session by Tomohiro Hamakawa, a co-founder of Mana Earthly Paradise, an eco-resort in Bali, Indonesia, that is at the forefront of sustainable hospitality and a client of nornnorn.

Founded in 2008, SWITCH-Asia is the largest EU-funded programme promoting SCP in Asia.

Based on his contribution towards the Circular Economy movement, Nophol Techaphangam, our Founder & CEO, has been named as one of the 400 young leaders under the age of 40 from across the Far East and Southeast Asia to be included in the Tatler Asia Leaders of Tomorrow (Generation T) 2020 listing. 

"Through a rigorous vetting process, you have been chosen on the strength of your accomplishments and initiatives over the past 18 months, a record that has distinguished you as someone who is shaping Thailand and the Asian society," says Tamara Lamunière, Chief Marketing Officer & Head of Generation T Asia.

Individuals included in the listing were selected by Tatler Asia's team of editors, with their placement on the list validated by an expert panel of established industry leaders. 

Launched by Tatler Asia, Asia's leading luxury media group, in 2016, Generation T is an events and media platform that connects, inspires and recognises young leaders from Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Mainland China, Taiwan, Indonesia and Thailand.

Tatler Asia Generation T 2020 will be launched virtually on October 15.

Based on his contribution towards the Circular Economy movement, Nophol Techaphangam, our Founder & CEO, has been chosen as one of the 100 individuals featured on the inaugural The Future List by Tatler Thailand, the country's leading high society magazine. 

"We would like to [...] recognise 100 of the brightest minds exclusive to Thailand — people [whom] we think are destined to change the country for the better in the future.

“There are no arbitrary age limits for inclusion; no need to be recognised as a society figure; wealth is not a factor; and a famous family heritage is not necessary.

“Simply put, we want to shine the light on those Thais [whom] we believe are doing things that will result in benefits for many in the years to come," says MR Usnisa Sukhsvasti, The Future List 2020 Project Manager.

Find out who else are on the list here.

As an entrepreneur with practical experience in starting and running a circular business in Southeast Asia, Nophol Techaphangam, our Founder & CEO, was invited to share nornnorn's business model with around 40 officials from Laos's Ministry of Planning and Investment at the “Workshop on Circular Economy: Exploring opportunities for Lao 9th National Socio-Economic Development Plan (2021-2025)” in Luang Prabang, Laos, on August 25. 

The workshop was chaired by Kalouna Nathanvongduangsy, deputy director general, Department of Planning, Lao Ministry of Planning and Investment, and organised by the Hanns Seidel Foundation.

Due to international travel restrictions, Nophol gave the talk via Zoom from Bangkok.

From a small mattress shop in Little India in Bangkok 88 years ago to nornnorn today

[Translated from the original Thai article by The Cloud Magazine]

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As a new initiative that has shown effort in creating a more sustainable future, nornnorn was invited on April 17 to become a participant and partner of Climate Neutral Now, a UN Climate Change initiative launched in 2015 that aims to encourage and support all levels of society to take action to achieve a climate neutral world by 2050. 

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), we may have only ten years left to limit global warming at a maximum, relatively safe level of 1.5C above pre-industrial levels and avoid the worst impacts of climate change. For this reason, a comprehensive collaboration starting from individuals to organisations and country representatives is now critical if civilisation as we know it is to be saved. 

By taking part in this initiative, nornnorn joins the rank of 300 of the world's most environmentally progressive organisations, including Microsoft, Sony, Infosys, SAP, BNP Paribas, Amadeus, Potato Head Bali, Bupa and Truefitt & Hill, in taking concrete actions against climate change. 

Climate Neutral Now has enabled us to easily calculate and economically offset our entire 2019 carbon footprint by purchasing carbon credits that are recognised under the UN Climate Change Convention through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), a framework that allows projects in developing countries that help reduce greenhouse gas emissions to earn certified emission reduction (CER) credits. Each CER credit is equivalent to one tonne of carbon dioxide emission. 

We have also examined ways in which we can reduce our carbon footprint going forward. 

Additionally, as a partner of the initiative, we are committed to assisting other organisations in the region in measuring, offsetting and reducing their carbon footprint. Contact us today to see how you can easily calculate and offset your carbon footprint and make a real difference to our planet. 

Alternatively, you can very simply calculate your own carbon footprint using the UN carbon footprint calculator. Your footprint can be offset today from as little as US$0.70/tonne. 

Out of 260 start-ups in the tourism space from 70 countries around the world, nornnorn is among the 12 selected to join the World Tourism Forum Lucerne (WTFL) Start-up Innovation Camp 2020 in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE, this autumn. 

The Start-up Innovation Camps are yearly flagship initiatives of the Switzerland-based WTFL, a leading interactive platform where CEOs, Ministers, Academia, Finance, Start-ups, NextGens and Young Talents join force to address the future challenges of the travel, tourism and hospitality industry and shape a more sustainable future. 

The Camps aim to boost the industry’s innovation ecosystem by connecting innovators with industry players and investors as well as helping scale and commercialise innovative solutions.

[Update on April 26, 2021: nornnorn will participate in the WTFL Start-up Innovation Camp 2021 in Andermatt, Switzerland, in November this year instead.]

As one of Thailand's pioneering circular economy ventures, nornnorn was invited to join the "Innovations for a Circular Economy: Unlocking Business Opportunities for Driving Towards a Circular Economy in Thailand" panel during the Thailand-Japan Environmental Solutions Week in Bangkok on January 16. The aim of the panel discussion was to bring together private sector partners and influencers to discuss how to support circular economy startups.

The event was hosted by Japan's Ministry of the Environment and Thailand's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and the panel organised by the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

nornnorn's effort to make our economy more circular was recognised by the British Council on January 11 when Nophol Techaphangam, our Founder & CEO, was selected as one of the four Finalists for the UK Alumni Entrepreneurial Award (Thailand) 2020. 

The award is given to UK alumni active in initiating or contributing to innovative or creative new ideas, solutions or business opportunities with potential for strong growth.

On November 30, Nophol Techaphangam, our Founder & CEO, was invited by UNICEF Thailand to share his experience in founding and driving nornnorn with a group of youth during the "Dare to Unlock" session at the "Dare to Dream Fest: Empowering Dreams and Changing the Future" event at Lido Connect, Bangkok.

The event aimed to raise awareness on the skills of the future among Thai youth and is a part of Dare to Dream, UNICEF Thailand's campaign that creates an open space for Thai youth across the country to express themselves and their opinions on the Thai education system and what is required to prepare them for the future.

On November 22, nornnorn was invited to present our business model at Asia Impact Nights 2019 on Jeju Island, South Korea. The event gathered more than 120 businesses and investors interested in deploying natural capital to address critical climate issues in the region.

The purpose of the event was to mobilise capital, entrepreneurship and technology to respond to the global climate crisis and raise awareness on different impact investment opportunities in the environmental and conservation space.

Asia Impact Nights 2019 was organised by TONIIC, a global-acting community of more than 400 high net worth individuals, family office, and foundation asset owners who are deepening their impact across the spectrum of capital and personal resources in more than 25 countries around the world, and D3 Jubilee Partners, an impact venture capital based in Seoul and Silicon Valley.

nornnorn has been cited as one of the 50+ global startups that are "transforming the Travel & Mobility Tech ecosystem towards a more sustainable future" by TNMT, "the industry deep dive for all who work at the forefront of digital innovation in the context of travel and mobility."

To see which other startups have made the list, click here.

nornnorn was selected to take part in 100 Innovations X Entrepreneurs 2019, Southeast Asia's first research-to-commercial event held by the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) on September 27-29 at C asean, Bangkok. Our booth attracted more than 100 leaders from the private sector.

Our CEO was also invited by AIT to give a talk on Circular Economy.

Circular Economy - This way is good for the world.

Read more (in Thai only)