COMPETITION is fierce for young entrepreneurs. Not only must the 3,000 businesses operating as part of the Young Enterprise Company Programme compete with each other, they must also take on more established businesses to carve out their own niche in the market.
With such strong challenges, Young Enterprise companies need to respond quickly to demand and expand rapidly. Last year Cocktail, from North London Collegiate School, diversified with great success.
“Our first product, dandia sticks, were a huge success,” says Bhavani Patel, joint managing director. “They are used in traditional dances during the Hindu festival of Navratri.
“Our early success with the dandia sticks prompted us to look into other seasonal products and as the year progressed we developed a Cocktail Cuisine Cookbook just in time for Mother’s Day. It was a risky project to undertake, but we knew that was what enterprise was all about.”
Neon, from Berkhamsted Collegiate School, was another company that took the opportunity to diversify.
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Laura Carter, joint managing director, says: “The Doorplanner was our main product and remained the focus of our efforts, but we decided to develop additional products to generate another income stream and broaden our experience in sourcing suppliers and selling different products.
“In preparation for Valentine’s Day we carried out some research to find the most suitable place to buy roses. We found a local firm who would carry out a bulk order for us and developed a promotional campaign.
“We then distributed order forms and set up systems to fulfil the orders.
“We charged our customers £3 per rose, with the option to buy a heart-shaped cushion for 50p extra. Despite only making £1 profit per rose there was a huge demand for them and we ended up making £157.
“While this venture involved more work than some of our other products, it provided valuable experience and knowledge.”