The Alleynian 702 2014

slightly higher print cost due to our improvements. Minerva was awarded the Best Company award in our borough, with Kids Cook It winning Best Product at the Young Enterprise Spitalfields trade fair. We continue to sell the books and fine-tune the product as we await the next round of the competition. The Young Enterprise experience has given us an insight into how much planning, dedication and co- operation is required to make a business successful. It’s been rewarding and good fun and I’d highly recommend it to anyone considering it in the future. REVIVE Anamay Viswanathan (Year 12) A company comprising six girls from Sydenham High and five boys from Dulwich College, the aim of Revive has been to promote eco-friendly practices within our local community. Our products initially were handmade soy wax candles and recycled wine bottle candle holders. We raised money to make our candles through two last-minute fundraising events and after some unforgiving but useful market research, we started the manufacturing process. It took the boys of the group nearly eight hours to make 13 bottle candle holders. Luckily, the girls proved more efficient and saved us by making nearly a 100 candles for our first fair at Dulwich. We sold out thanks to our aggressive marketing strategy (targeting teachers), enticingly decorated stall and competitive pricing. From here, we resumed our positions in the assembly line and battled to make another 100 candles for the Sydenham Christmas Fair. We sold out again. During the course of four fairs we’ve sold £1,425 worth of stock and have managed to triple our initial investment per person. From here, we looked to diversify into other product ranges in which, by making use of discarded goods and materials, we created various upcycled, artisan goods. Our whole company ethos is based around providing bespoke household goods that are not only eco-friendly, but ethically produced, too, in order to promote a greener community.

Our work has culminated in us winning the Best Presentation award at the Central South regional competition. We now look forward to representing the College in the semi-finals of the competition. The Young Enterprise experience has been one of ups and downs. But, the excitement of starting and running our own full-scale, tax-paying company has been unmatched. To see our business grow from nothing to what it is today is a transformation that fills us with an immense sense of achievement. We’ve often had to learn the hard way, but to have the opportunity and freedom to take on our very own project has been invaluable. As the company has grown, we’ve grown with it. We started the process as eleven starry-eyed teenagers. We leave the process as eleven entrepreneurs. So, for those of you who have a vision, a dream, an ideal, and want to do something about it, Young Enterprise can make it happen. Have the courage and dedication, and you’ll see your vision come to life.

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