ENTREPRENEUR AWARDS
During the Druk Tshongrig Gatoen event, we celebrate our entrepreneurs with the prestigious Best Loden Entrepreneur Award. This recognition is a celebration of entrepreneurial excellence and a testament to the outstanding achievements of individuals in the business world. The award also serves as an encouragement to our Loden entrepreneurs to create a positive social impact while ensuring timely loan repayments, as the recuperated funds enable other aspiring entrepreneurs to pursue their hopes and dreams.
The recipient of the Best Loden Entrepreneur Award is honored not only with this prestigious title but also with a cash prize of BTN 200,000. Below is a list of the Best Loden Entrepreneurs over the years, each with their inspiring stories.
Tashi Dhendup Dorji, founder of Laykha Dairy Delights, pioneered Bhutan's flavored yogurt in spout pouches. Driven by inclusivity and excellence, he earned Entrepreneur of the Year (2020) and Best Trademark (2021). Committed to Bhutan's self-sufficiency, Tashi aims to empower entrepreneurs and expand local manufacturing while fostering social impact.
Laykha Diary Delights
Best Loden Entrepreneur Award 2023
Kuenzer Fabrication is specialized in the manufacturing of electric cookers to save trees. They manufacture bio-gas cookers that have a 100-liter capacity cooking pot for both rice and curry for more than 300 people at a time. The product will be using bio-gas or LPG instead of firewood for cooking purposes.
The project is supported through Loden-DHI Fund.
Kinga Yoezer
Best Loden Entrepreneur Award 2021
Gyeltshen Bakery provides birthday cakes, pizza, home-made biscuits, and pastries for its customers. The bakery is in a great position as it is one of the few established businesses catering to the large community of teachers and students in Taktse college. Additionally, there are no competitors in a nearby location and the demand is huge.
Nidup Gyeltshen
Best Loden Entrepreneur Award 2020
Bhutan Alternatives is a one-stop firm where people can purchase eco-friendly, high-quality, and affordable printer toner cartridges. What makes their business unique in the market is that they recycle used printer toner cartridges. This helps reduce e-waste and also makes the products affordable.
The project is supported through Loden-DHI Fund.
Leki Dawa
Best Loden Entrepreneur Award 2019
With an increasing demand for high-speed data transmission in Bhutan, “Nima Lotey Fibre Services” was created by Nima Lotey, a highly trained engineer, to offer installation and maintenance services of optical fiber cables to a wide range of home users, as well as small and medium-sized businesses. This successful venture only relies on high-quality fiber optic products and cable television equipment for its installations.
Nima Lotey
Best Loden Entrepreneur Award 2018
Bubu Bakery is the first bakery to offer elegant and tasty pastries to meet the growing demand in Lobesa. The leading bakery shop serves a wide range of finest quality cakes at affordable prices. Today, Ms Kinley Dema employs 3 skilled employees and a driver to provide door-to-door delivery service. In addition to their standard products, the bakery also crafts beautiful custom-made cakes for birthdays and other occasions.
Kinley Dema
Best Loden Entrepreneur Award 2017
In Bhutan, the media has emerged as a powerful instrument of social, political, and economic change and has substantially evolved in recent years. Yet, the majority of media employees in Bhutan today do not receive adequate training. Bhutan Media Institute plays a crucial role in training competent and independent result-oriented professionals in the fields of PR and Communication. BMI provides a wide range of effective training suited for both experienced professionals who wish to grow their skills and inexperienced individuals who plan on working in media.
Pushpa Chhetri
Best Loden Entrepreneur Award 2016
Pickles are very popular in Bhutan but remain a commodity that is largely imported. In 2010, Mrs. Tshewang Dem had the idea of producing homemade Bhutanese pickles combining a unique blend of local ingredients. Her “Tshejor Ayzey” (homemade pickles) quickly became very popular and were produced in greater quantity to meet a growing market demand. To target chilly lovers living abroad, Mrs. Tshewang also produced and packaged pickles in a way that made them easy to transport.. As a female entrepreneur, Mrs. Tshewang Dem is eager to inspire other women who strive to gain their financial independence. Mrs Tshewang Dem won the award of Loden Entrepreneur of the year 2015.
Tshewang Dem
Best Loden Entrepreneur Award 2015
Lama Sonam Jamtsho fulfilled his teacher Chatral Rinpochhe's wish by establishing a monastery in Beyul Langdrak and funding it through an incense factory using local ingredients. Awarded the "Loden Entrepreneur of the Year" in 2014, he created jobs and supported young monks' education, blending entrepreneurship with altruism. Lama Sonam disproves the cliche that religious people are not entrepreneurial. They can, in fact, be the, best players in an altruistic economy.
Lama Sonam Gyamtsho
Best Loden Entrepreneur Award 2014
Mr. Jigme Drukpa founded the Ayang music school, a private music school committed to developing the musical capacities of all Bhutanese people interested in music. Aayang music school recognized the changing nature of traditional Bhutanese music into contemporary genres, and soon became a leading music school providing high quality music training programs. It also renders professional music consultancy services and has collaborated with institutions like the Royal Academy of Performing Arts. Mr Jigme Drukpa, an outstanding traditional musician, has received the “Loden Entrepreneur of the year” award in 2013.
Jigme Drukpa
Best Loden Entrepreneur Award 2013
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11 of the Entrepreneur’s were being awarded for the Loden Entrepreneur award which was started in the year 2013 and is still ongoing every year.
BE PART OF OUR WORK TO CHANGE LIVES
SPECIAL AWARDS:
Introduce special awards or recognitions for unique achievements, such as innovation, social impact, or sustainability.
GRANTS:
Offer grants, or other forms of financial assistance to help awardees pursue further education, research, or business development.
chapter of change