Otumoetai College student Louise Bremner was the only Bay of Plenty student to be selected for the trip. Photo / George Novak
Otumoetai College student Louise Bremner was the only Bay of Plenty student to be selected for the trip. Photo / George Novak
One lucky Otumoetai College student will be heading to Vietnam this month for a business trip of a lifetime.
Tauranga student Louise Bremner was chosen to take part in a week-long business challenge opportunity with 11 other students from around the country.
The trip, put on by the Young Enterprise Scheme and Southeast Asia Centre of Asia-Pacific Excellence, aimed to give the students a rewarding lesson on business and culture in Southeast Asia.
Louise said she was "absolutely stoked" to be given the opportunity at such a young age, and thought it was great being the only Bay of Plenty teenager chosen.
The Year 13 student said she was most looking forward to seeing how business overseas worked and meeting a bunch of like-minded people - as well as dabbling in all the delicious market food Vietnam had to offer.
Louise has loved business from a young age and this opportunity was not her first success in the world of business.
Last year Louise and a school mate won the regional Young Enterprise Scheme competition for their salted-caramel coconut spread business.
The team was then flown to Wellington for the national competition and although they did not place, the learning experience would benefit Louise on her trip ahead.
Last year Louise Bremner and a school mate won the regional Young Enterprise Scheme competition for their salted-caramel coconut spread business. Photo / George Novak
Louise was excited to work with other students to do something similar to this in just three days on the trip.
Louise's mother Brenda Bremner said the trip was an incredible opportunity for her business-minded daughter and she was fortunate to have been selected.
She said the experience would be extremely rewarding and place her in good stead for a future in the field.
Louise said she aimed to head to Massey University in Auckland next year to study business or project management.
The Southeast Asia Centre of Asia-Pacific Excellence partnered with Young Enterprise to set up the trip to expose the students to overseas business opportunities and encourage business connections in Southeast Asia.
The students will visit both established and emerging companies to expand their global trade and business knowledge and meet local entrepreneurs and key players in New Zealand trade.
They will work with local students to take the challenge of pitching a business idea to a panel of local business leaders.
Young Enterprise New Zealand head of impact Dr Colin Kennedy said the idea of the trip was to encourage students to see business in a new context and become global entrepreneurs.
Kennedy, who had been on several trips with the scheme, said it was incredible to see how well students engaged with locals and the friendships formed.
He said the opportunities were endless on the trips.
Education New Zealand chief executive Grant McPherson said a trip like this was highly beneficial for students.
He said an international education experience contributed significantly to the development of intercultural skills increasingly valued by 21st-century employers.
Deputy secretary early learning and support at the Ministry of Education, Ellen MacGregor-Reid, said there could be positive education outcomes from young New Zealanders experiencing life in other cultures.
