A stitch in time saves nine – the story of Imagtor in early day

Imagtor was founded in March 2016 by Nguyen Thao Van and like-minded peers who believed in the potential of people with disabilities. Before Imagtor, The Will To Live had been highly regarded as one of the flagship centers in job training and recommendation for the handicapped. After 12 years of operating under sponsorships from private and corporate benefactors, the center had educated more than 1000 people with disabilities and special needs students. However, since the center's operation depended mostly on external financing, it faced numerous difficulties.

The desire to build a sustainable model to assist people with disabilities and change society's perception of these people was the driving motivation for Van to found Imagtor. Based on the idea that the company would provide what the center was teaching for their students, Imagtor first provided professional photoshopping for real estate, then expanded its services to video editing and 2D, 3D designing to meet the market's needs. 

During the early stages, Imagtor stumbled upon numerous difficulties regarding financing, personnel, location, logistics, management...To find a viable source of financing as well as new opportunities for the company, Van worked ceaselessly for solutions to this problem. One of her solutions was to join various startup competitions to find sponsorships for her fledgling company. 

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SDG Challenge 2017, organized by UNDP and HATCH Ventures, was one of the first competitions Van entered. Through her perseverance, Imagtor was eventually recognized as one of four startups awarded in this competition. By participating in SDG Challenge 2017, not only did Van gain financial support, but also widespread publicity to the general masses for the company, as well as the chance for trainings, conferences and interaction with investors. 

This helped Van better realize the startup's orientation. The competition also helped motivate Van, that her decision to set up the company was correct. SDG Challenge 2017 was a prime opportunity and undoubtedly contributed to Imagtor's rise from hardship and stabilization and development. 

Imagtor is now 3 years old, with a staff of nearly 70 people, 50% of which are people with disabilities, and has witnessed substantial growth in the past year. The company started generating profit after four months of operation with 100% customers from oversea, and a 30% revenue increase in 2019 compared to the previous year.