Saving lives, protecting families, enabling companies in need: How home-grown SMEs are creating impact beyond profits

It is not easy to make someone think about donating blood on a regular afternoon.

Yet that was precisely the challenge when the Singapore Red Cross set out in 2021 to reintroduce Blood Buddy – its long-standing donation mascot – to a younger, digital audience.

To get the job done, the charity turned to home-grown marketing and AI consultancy AKIN by Techlyon (AKIN).

The agency rebuilt the mascot’s personality, visual identity and voice from scratch, rolling out the refreshed character across posters and social media.

The campaign struck a chord, and served as a reminder that small companies can help solve real needs and shape behaviours. AKIN is one of many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) quietly making a difference in daily life and powering Singapore’s economy at the same time.

SMEs account for 99 per cent of all enterprises, employ about 70 per cent of the workforce and contribute about half of the nation’s gross domestic product.

Recognising their importance, cloud accounting software company Xero launched a customer campaign last November celebrating SMEs that embody the values that have shaped Singapore’s growth story: openness, boldness, multiculturalism and resilience.

“SMEs often operate on thin margins and resource constraints, making them the businesses most vulnerable to economic shifts and uncertainties,” says Ms Koren Wines, Xero’s managing director for the Asia-Pacific.

“Yet, despite this pressure, they have consistently defied the odds to create an outsized, positive impact on the lives of their customers and communities.”

Delivering social impact with tech and data

Five years on from its work with the Singapore Red Cross, AKIN is today recognised for its work that blends cultural insights with data to help organisations drive growth and social impact.

Says founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Arvin Tang: “A big part of AKIN’s culture is to do good while doing well.”

Tracing this ethos back to his upbringing, he recalls how his mother would help others regardless of how busy she was. He adds: “I did ask her why (she did that), and she said: ‘Because we can, what?’”

AKIN by Techlyon founder Arvin Tang built the consultancy on a belief in doing good while doing well, using data and cultural insight to help organisations grow with purpose. Watch his story.

That sense of purpose shapes how AKIN operates – but purpose, Mr Tang quickly learnt, needs structure to scale. As the consultancy grew, staying close to the numbers became just as important as staying close to the work.

Mr Tang turned to Xero to bridge that gap.

“Xero has really helped me shorten the distance between work and numbers, so that I get real-time insights at my fingertips and make quick decisions,” he says.

With customised reports that display profit-and-loss statements alongside budgets, the firm can track spending down to individual cost categories.

Open banking integration also allows for easier reconciliation, reducing manual work that used to take hours.

That clarity has freed Mr Tang to gain a clearer view of the company’s finances – not weeks later, but as and when he needs to. It also allows him to think further ahead – including AKIN’s expansion into the region, where the same mission of doing good while doing well takes on a larger canvas.

“I’ll be checking which banks in the region are connected through Xero’s APIs as part of our expansion plans,” he says.

“The business and social impact work we do matters. Xero helps make sure the business behind that work stays healthy enough to keep doing it – wherever we go next.”

Building tech to protect lives

For tech start-up Tack One, technology is not just about efficiency but also safety.

Founded in 2020 by three friends in the tech industry, the company’s first product – Tack GPS, a location tracker for the elderly and children – was inspired by a personal experience, recalls co-founder and CEO Justin Zhang.

Tack One's Justin Zhang and his fellow co-founders are building technology that helps protect loved ones and support safer communities. Watch his story.

“My friend’s father, who had dementia, went missing,” he says. “We asked ourselves: Is there a way for us to use all our knowledge to help our loved ones?”

Today, Tack One has expanded into flood monitoring for communities and cities, and broader locational intelligence solutions, positioning itself as a global player in the space.

As its work helps keep people safe, operational hiccups, even a cash flow blind spot, could affect communities. As global sales increased, the team realised they needed a simple, mature system that could be easily integrated with the third-party systems they were already using.

With Xero, Tack One can now monitor cash flow and sales across multiple channels in real time, while historical data supports planning and decision-making.

Administrative tasks have also been reduced, with features such as direct bill uploads streamlining workflows.

“As we continue to grow, we’ll be adopting more features and partner integrations to be even more efficient,” says Mr Zhang. “With Xero’s support, we can focus on becoming an Asian powerhouse that uses tech to help people and support communities.”

Supporting sustainability without the spin

A mission closer to home, Ollie rethinks the everyday personal essentials people reach for without a second thought.

Founded by Rithika Gupta during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, the home and wellness brand began with hand sanitisers at a time when there were widespread shortages.

Rithika Gupta launched Ollie to rethink everyday essentials through plant-based products designed for more thoughtful living. Watch her story.

Today, Ollie’s broad range of offerings, from dish soap to body cleansers, is made from plants, free from harsh chemicals and packaged in 100 per cent recycled plastic.

In an industry often criticised for green washing, Ms Gupta insists on traceability and transparency.

“Sustainability is our baseline, not a marketing angle,” she says.

Holding that line takes discipline – and a clear view of the business behind it. As Ollie expanded, Ms Gupta switched from manual spreadsheets to Xero for bookkeeping and accounting to get a consolidated, bird’s-eye view of the company’s finances.

“It doesn’t matter if sales come from our website, consignment stores, or e-commerce platforms, I can see everything in one place,” she says.

The platform’s user-friendly interface made it accessible for someone like her who was new to accounting software, making it easy to reconcile bank feeds quickly. Xero’s mobile tools also allowed her to capture receipts on the go.

“The hard part is balancing purpose and growth,” says Ms Gupta. “That’s why Xero has been a game-changer for us to stay resilient and keep our finances in order.”

Fostering human creativity to tell better stories

Chances are you have already seen Oysterly Media’s work – you just did not know it came from a Singapore outfit.

The creative video agency counts Hilton Hotels, 3M and UPS among its growing roster of clients, producing authentic content that global brands increasingly rely on to connect with audiences.

Melissa Laurie grew Oysterly Media from a creative experiment into a Singapore agency producing authentic short-form content for global brands. Watch her story.

Says founder Melissa Laurie: “Any company can post a video, but we add the magic touches to videos with the art and science that we bring into every short-form video content piece that we create.”

The work is creative, but running it is not. In the early stages of the business, Ms Laurie used plain Word documents to invoice clients. As the business grew, tracking the health of the company became difficult.

Turning to Xero and bringing on a bookkeeper helped her centralise all of Oysterly Media’s financial systems in one place.

Automation of incoming and outgoing transactions freed up time to focus on creative work, while integrated reporting tools improved cash flow management.

“Xero allowed me to automate a lot of the parts of my business and take the business to the next level, creating amazing short-form video content for our clients,” says Ms Laurie.

Meet the everyday entrepreneurs powering Singapore’s economy.