CNBC & Alibaba Team for Business Entertainment Show

LONDON: CNBC has tied up with e-commerce website Alibaba.com and video agency Hub to create the new business entertainment series Pop Up Start Up.

Pop Up Start Up follows 12 aspiring manufacturing entrepreneurs as they are given seed money and challenged to mass produce and sell their merchandise in a pop-up shop while receiving advice from expert mentors. Whichever contestant earns the most profit each week wins a cash prize. The six-part show will premiere on CNBC International at 10 p.m. on December 16.

Sophie Wu, the president of wholesale marketplaces at Alibaba Group, said: “We really see Pop Up Start Up as a great illustration of how to do business in today’s dynamic environment. We look forward to showcasing the huge talent of the contestants and hope to provide inspiration to U.K. startups and small businesses around the world on how to join in the new digital economy.”

Martin Conroy, the executive producer at CNBC International, noted: “Pop Up Start Up speaks to the network’s entrepreneurial spirit and also fits well amongst our evening programming slate. We know our audience has a real appetite for business programming with personality and Pop Up Start Up delivers just that.”

David Hunstone, the managing director at Hub, added: “Business entertainment programming has been hugely popular over the past few decades. With Pop Up Start Up we wanted to show real-world stories in an authentic way, through a business accelerator format, whilst reflecting the organizational values of Alibaba.com. Working together with CNBC and Alibaba has been fantastic and we’re hopeful that the public will enjoy the programming as much as we have enjoyed creating it.”