Riyadh woman wins Virgin Mobile’s recharge card design contest

A design by Arwa Zain Al-Abidin, a 29-year-old, of Riyadh, will feature on millions of Virgin Mobile prepaid recharge cards after she won a design competition for Saudi Arabia’s talented youth organized by the next generation mobile phone company.
Arwa’s distinctive design beat over 125 other submissions, with her card receiving 44 percent of all votes in a social media face-off of the final five.
Her swirled and colorful artwork will be featured on the highest-value recharge card. Arwa will now work with Virgin Mobile’s design team to develop variations of her winning entry for other value Virgin Mobile prepaid recharge cards. “I am a big believer in encouraging people to showcase their talents, and that is exactly what the Virgin Mobile recharge cards competition has allowed me to do,” said Arwa.
“It was an exciting process, which allowed participants to express themselves — to inspire and be inspired. I immediately noticed the immense level of online interaction, so I was inspired to submit a design which would please all tastes in a stylistically understated fashion,” Arwa added.
Over five million of Arwa’s cards will eventually be distributed throughout the Kingdom.
All entries were submitted through Virgin Mobile KSA Instagram account using the hashtag #inspiredbyyou, and thousands of Virgin Mobile social media followers took part in voting for their favourite designs.
Karim Benkirane, CEO at Virgin Mobile, said: “We are delighted by the quality of submissions we have received from talented participants throughout the Kingdom. Arwa’s design captures the creativity and originality that exists among Saudi’s youth, and she is playing an important role in helping us create the next generation of mobile service in the Kingdom.”
This scheme is the latest initiative from Virgin Mobile, as it builds an interactive community that celebrates originality and supports innovation among talented youth.