THEThe transformative power of female entrepreneurship runs through Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Bhutan and Pakistan: the new generation of innovators selected by Unlock Her Future Prize – South Asia Edition 2025the global award of The Bicester Collection dedicated to social entrepreneurs who put business at the service of the common good.
After the Middle East and North Africa (in 2023) and Latin America (in 2024), the third edition looks at South Asia with a clear objective: to support ideas capable of generating social, economic and cultural impactin line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The award, the crown jewel of the DO GOOD philanthropic programfunds idea- or early-stage projects, and offers mentoring, training, and access to its global network of partners and entrepreneurs.
And here are 6 bros the most innovative finalists of this edition were revealed in Londonafter presenting their projects to the public in the splendid setting of Bicester Village, the home of shopping located in Oxfordshire one hour from London and a cult address for The Bicester Collection: group that, in Italy, boasts the splendid shopping mall of Fidenza Village. A gala evening then proclaimed the six winners of this edition, who did so a scholarship of $50,000 each. But not only that: expert mentorship and leadership training, access to The Bicester Collection’s global network of partners, affiliates and industry leaders and visibility in dedicated media, as well as key academic support from Oxford University Saïd Business School, which will provide high-level training, tutoring and access to its entrepreneurial network.
The women entrepreneurs who are changing South Asia
The jury, made up of a pool of excellent women, selected six projects that tell of a South Asia in full swing, where technology, sustainability and inclusion become tools of emancipation.
In London, the 10 finalists of Unlock Her Future Prize 2025.
Mommykidz by Subaria Shuvo (Bangladesh), is a digital health and wellness platform that offers mothers psychological, medical and educational support without stigma, with a focus on women in rural areas.
H2O Technologies by Ranjana Bhattarai (Nepal), is a device that captures humidity in the air and transforms it into drinkable water, designed for isolated communities where access to safe water is still limited.
Cognitii by Ziyun Wang (Bhutan) is an AI-based education platform that democratizes access to quality learning content, overcoming geographical and linguistic barriers.
Stepping Stones Center of Safa Javed (Pakistan), is an initiative dedicated to children with autism and ADHD, which offers innovative educational and therapeutic programs to facilitate inclusion, early diagnosis and cognitive development in underserved areas.
Idea to Impact by Dipto Saha (Bangladesh) is a supply chain that transforms agricultural surpluses into nutritious purees for children, creating stable work for women farmers and reducing food waste.
LEAD+ by Shreya Banerjee (India) is an economic empowerment program that supports women’s micro-enterprises with training, mentoring, access to credit and market networks.
The winners of the Prize, in London.
We thus leave the floor to Desirée Bollier, Chair and Global Chief Merchant, The Bicester Collection, together with Chantal Khoueiry, Chief Culture Officer of the Group.
What is the difference between supporting a women’s business and the much broader idea of liberating women’s futures? We are talking about contexts in which a much deeper change is needed to advance.
Chantal Khoueiry Exactly. And above all there is a very strong social element. Supporting a women’s business is important; but freeing a future means creating the conditions for a woman to influence her own destiny, her family, her community. It’s not just economic help: it’s the construction of an ecosystem.
This year’s award focuses on South Asia. How does this choice fit into the overall vision of the program?
Desiree Bollier The award is global, but every year we choose a specific region because we believe in the importance of listening before acting. Challenges, priorities and cultural obstacles change. Working in MENA is not the same as working in Latin America or South Asia. It is a tailor-made, necessary approach. And then there is another key element: we also accept projects at the idea stage. Many finalists do not yet have a complete business plan. But they have a vision. And often that vision is so powerful that it already has an immediate potential impact.
A word that often appears in the program is “ripple effect”. What does it really mean?
DB Think of a stone thrown into the water: the first circle, then the second, then the third. A woman who creates a business generates successive waves: she changes her own life, then that of her children, then that of the village, then that of the region.
CK In many South Asian contexts we are not talking about “female futures” in an abstract sense, but about lives that can change in the space of a few weeks. And often challenging enormous taboos: on women’s bodies, on female work, on the use of technology, on access to health. And this is what makes the award a social movement, not a simple recognition.
Chantal Khoueiry (left) and Desiree Bollier (center) with Paroma Chatterjee (all photos by Sam Simpson/Dave Benett/Getty Images for The Bicester Collection)
Speaking of technology: artificial intelligence is thought to increase distances. Do you instead interpret it as a tool to bring people together?
DB Absolutely yes. If used well, AI doesn’t create distance, it reduces it. Everything that is repetitive (forms, bureaucracy and procedures) can be automated. This offers time for what matters: human contact, listening, caring, social responsibility. And then AI is a new industry: not yet defined, not saturated. It is a space where women can finally enter without the weight of a dominant male tradition. Exactly: there are those who use AI to bring medical diagnoses to remote areas, those who use it to democratize education, those who use it to transform agriculture. AI, in this context, is a facilitator of humanity.
Working in three very different regions of the world. Have you identified a common thread among all the female entrepreneurs you met?
CK The first theme is women’s health: physical, mental, reproductive, social. In every continent this theme emerges, albeit in different forms. Then there is education, financial inclusion, and sustainability: access to water, resource management, food waste, circular economy. If you invest in a woman, the community grows. It is an invisible but powerful law. It is not rhetoric: it is measurable, concrete, repeated everywhere in the world.
In the luxury sector we often talk about “going beyond traditional philanthropy”. What does it mean for you?
CK It means stopping considering philanthropy as a series of isolated, almost charitable gestures, and starting to see it as a systemic responsibility. Donating here and there can work, but it risks becoming self-congratulatory. Unlock Her Future it is a journey over time: each winner carries forward a witness, creates a network, transforms a context. And it also concerns us, as a company: our over 1500 employees want to be part of a story that makes sense, not just a brand.
A question perhaps simple, but never banal: what is luxury today?
DB Authenticity. It is true beauty, not ostentatious. It is an object created to be beautiful, not to impress: a sculpture, a gem, a handcrafted detail. The brand doesn’t matter, the essence matters. Places like Bicester or Fidenza work because they are oases: gardens, generous spaces, environments that make you feel good. We don’t want to sell “bling bling”: we want to create an experience where people relax, explore. True luxury is this: finding beauty in everyday life, without forcing it.