Master Class Unites Expertise to Help Local Social Enterprise

The B-Enterprising team have been delighted to offer Bangor students and graduates, a series of Business Start Up and Consultancy Skills ‘Master Classes’ led by Chris Walker, International Business Consultant and Start Up Mentor and Coach for the HEFCW funded Enterprise Support Programme.  Over the five week programme in February and March, participants have been working on a project in small teams to develop consultancy skills and a full range of business start-up tools and skills including e-commerce and website development for a real client. The emphasis is on experiential task-based learning and involves a real scenario provided through the client - Greenhouse Ltd.

Greenhouse is a local social enterprise established 30 years ago to raise awareness on green issues and climate change. See their website for more information:  http://www.tygwydr.com

The aim of the Master classes is to diversify its activities to include a website selling goods of genuine environmental integrity. The output from the class will be a business plan and application form for £70k funding. There is very real scope for job creation within the group – the open intention being that any job created out of the process would seek to either employ or subcontract to those already working on it.

Greenhouse has been described as ‘the first formal networking centre in Britain’ and as a non profit NGO has the trust, the brand and the DNA to run such a website. There are early discussions to collaborate with the University to develop the requisite quality standards and tests.

The master classes attracted over 50 students and graduates, largely from the international cohort.

Odoley Oddoye, who is studying for an MA in Business and Consumer Psychology said ‘very interesting session – great to be given the opportunity to work in an area outside of subject ‘expertise’, and Oluremi Oyinlola, an Education postgraduate said ‘the session is very practical and will enable participants to have a first-hand knowledge about consultancy and starting a business. I have particularly benefitted from today’s session by learning that we should not only hunt for new customers but firm the old ones’.

You don’t have to want to become self-employed to benefit from the services that B-Enterprising has to offer.  For further information on this or other enterprise provision please contact: Lowri Owen/ Ceri Jones b-enterprising@bangor.ac.uk    01248 388424

Publication date: 19 March 2013