A year prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, PurelyB had launched just one product—which then became their bestseller and one that was sold out every month: Pegaga, a supplement made from traditional Asian superfoods. As well as nutritionists and wellness experts across the globe, PurelyB sought out traditional herbalists and healers. It also works with grassroots communities who the company employs to help harvest the ingredients for the products they sell as well as the co-creation and commercialisation of them.

“We want to create change together with the communities we’ve been fortunate enough to connect with,” Jesrina explains. “It isn’t just holistic wellness that we’re advocating, but the herbal knowledge and traditions of our local culture that have been lost to modern society and bring that to international attention. This helps educate the younger generations who have lost their touch with that.

“Natural, plant-based medicine has been around for centuries and is intrinsic when it comes to Southeast Asian culture. But compared to western medicine, it’s never been commercialised or brought to attention— particularly that of Malay and Javanese herbal remedies—which is why we’re working with traditional healers that live on the fringes of society, bringing their remedies to you, re-innovated, so that they fit the modern lifestyle and are further backed by science.”

See also: 6 Malaysian Brands Advocating Sustainable Lifestyle

Modern life has its perks. With greater connectivity, access and speed, life on the fast lane can be exhilarating. But such high-octane, constantly stimulating life can also be exhausting, stressful and overwhelming. When Joan Low, founder and CEO of ThoughtFull, started working with corporates on educating, improving and measuring their employees’ mental wellbeing, the digital health startup found that one in three employees experienced some form of severe or extremely severe levels of stress, anxiety and depression.

And these are “high-performing individuals, mind you, not patients”, says the former private banker who, during her six years with JP Morgan in Hong Kong, managed portfolios of over US$1.3 billion for ultra-high-net-worth clients across north Asia.

After working with thousands of employees, she and her team realised that people’s mental health needs are not being met. “When asked if they wanted support, most of them will say yes, but then they drop off because they can’t afford it, or they will not show up because of stigma,” says Low, referring to physical appointments with a mental health professional. “Or sometimes it’s also a practical reason—we’re just too busy.”

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While face-to-face sessions are quite common, Low realised that it’s not ideal for much of the population. To make them more accessible and affordable, the company started experimenting with a chat-based text and audio message approach, which are less intimidating and stigmatising.

“It’s just like chatting with a friend, right? Only this friend is very well-trained and objective,” she says. “So we tested this out and it did very well.”

In May 2020, they launched the ThoughtFullChat app, a one-stop, subscription-based mobile platform on which individuals can access end-to-end mental healthcare, predominantly through their corporate employee benefits. The app provides access to self-serve resources such as evidence-based lessons, progress tracking tools and clinical assessments for stress, anxiety and depression. Importantly, ThoughtFullChat’s proprietary algorithms can instantly match individuals to their best-fit certified mental health professional for daily, bite-sized text or audio coaching or even one-to-one video therapy.

Through ThoughtFullChat, users text or drop a voice message to their assigned professional at any time of the day, should they need a listening ear or counselling. “What we’re trying to solve here is all the wait times [for scheduling appointments], and figuring out who to go to—most people don’t know the difference between counsellors, psychologists and psychiatrists—so we try to do all the figuring out for them.”

Read more: How Can We Normalise Mental Health Discussions

The pandemic hit Iqbal Ameer hard; the company he founded, which is now called Livescape Group, thrived on events; prior to the pandemic, it had organised some of the country’s biggest music festivals, featuring some of the most renowned local and international names. You might have even seen the Gen.T honouree in the news last year, when Iqbal was staging a one-man protest: as pandemic restrictions eased, it allowed for things such as night markets and restaurants to open, but clubs, bars and other businesses that form part of the entertainment industry were among the last ones to be allowed to function—disrupting the livelihoods of many Malaysians.

If you’re a partygoer, you might have noticed yellow ducks appearing on your social media feed: targeted ads signalling that Livescape Group managed to pull through, and that one of its most famous events, It’s The Ship, is on course, albeit in a new iteration.

“This may not be what you’re expecting, but Livescape Group has now [transformed from] a Web2 to Web3 company,” Iqbal explains of the necessary pivot that was made to cope with the tough times. “One of the projects we’re focusing on right now is called All Access Anonymous, which is set to launch end of this year, where we’ve taken our Web2 experience and present a Web3 engagement instead.

“Over the course of the pandemic, there was obviously a lot of self-reflection going on; after all, we had the time,” he jokes before adding, “We realised two things: first, that we have strayed from our main goal—that is, to increase the quality of entertainment within the region. Second, tonnes of creatives, including promoters, were left hanging to dry; the business model as we knew it is archaic.”

See also: Post-Pandemic Recovery Is Not Just Going Back To Normal. Here's Why

Livescape Group burned through most of its financial reserves as it struggled to sustain as many employees as possible during the pandemic, when not only tourism was barred, but also events, bringing their income down to zero.

This is where All Access Anonymous comes in. Marketed as a Web3 solution for the live experience economy, it facilitates financial solutions to provide responsible promoters the capital they need to host their events, doing so by cutting out unnecessary intermediaries—which means no more handling or processing fees and, most importantly, no more ticket scalper.

All Access Anonymous also creates great value for true fans, giving them the power to have a say in the performers they want to watch and when, rewarding them for consistent support as well as providing transparency with respect to a promoter and an event.

Read the full story by picking up a copy of the October 2022 at newsstands or get the digital copy here.

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