Enterprise Hub Start Up Week | Wednesday 20th September | #EntHubStartUpWeek

#EntHubStartUpWeek

Start Up Week is a celebration of self-employment and entrepreneurship across the Liverpool City Region.

You are invited to join Enterprise Hub at a range of free events and seminars throughout the week.

Come and discover how to start and sustain a successful business, hear from the experts, and find out more about what support is available to you.

Wednesday 20th September

‘Marketing & Social Media With Wirral Chamber’ – 9am-12:30pm – Wirral Chamber of Commerce

At: Wirral Chamber of Commerce, 1 Pacific Road, Birkenhead, Wirral, CH41 1LJ

Whether it’s to develop your marketing strategy or just to get hints and tips on how to use social media to attract customers to your business, this interactive session will help you shape your businesses marketing strategy!

Register here!

‘The Women’s Organisation Enterprise Hub Drop-In’ – 9:30am-12:30pm – The Women’s Organisation

At: 54 St James Street Liverpool, L1 0AB

Drop into The Women’s Organisation to speak to an Enterprise Hub business adviser about your idea for a business and find out all about the support you can receive through the Enterprise Hub start-up programme!

No need to register! Just drop in! 

‘Start-Up Lite Workshop’ – 9:30am-12:30am – Alt Valley Community Trust

At: Alt Valley Community Trust, The Communiversity, Altcross Road, Liverpool, L11 0BS

The ‘Start-Up Lite’ workshop is here to help you find out the advantages of working for yourself, what type of company structure would be best for you, how to develop your business idea and looking at how to begin your business plan! And the ‘Start-Up Lite’ workshops run each Wednesday at The Communiversity too!

Call in advance to book your place! Ring Alt Valley Community Trust on 0151 546 5514 and email enquiries@altvalley.co.uk 

‘Legal Forms Of Business With SAFE Regeneration’ – 10am-1pm – SAFE Regeneration

At: SAFE Regeneration, St Mary’s Complex, Waverley Street, Bootle, L20 4AP

Join the Enterprise Hub team at this structured workshop, where you can look at the different legal forms of businesses, and find out which ones suits you and your idea best!

Call to book your place in advance on this informative and structured workshop – Ring now on 0151 933 1311

‘Ever Wanted To Be Your Own Boss’ – 5pm-7pm – Alt Valley Community Trust

At: Alt Valley Community Trust, The Communiversity, Altcross Road, Liverpool, L11 0BS

If you’ve ever had an idea for your own business or thought about becoming your own boss, the Enterprise Hub team at Alt Valley are here to help you with this workshop! Whether you are at the very early stages and just have a few ideas you want to discuss, or whether you’re nearer to starting – book onto this course, and get the ball rolling!

Register here!

'Be Your Own Boss' - 6pm-8pm - St Helens Chamber

At: St Helens Chamber, Salisbury Street, Off Chalon Way, St Helens, WA10 1FY

If you’ve ever had an idea for your own business or thought about becoming your own boss, the Enterprise Hub team at St Helens Chamber are here to help you with this workshop! Whether you are at the very early stages and just have a few ideas you want to discuss, or whether you’re nearer to starting – book onto this course, and get the ball rolling!

To book your place contact Connor Tutty - email him on connor.tutty@sthelenschamber.com or ring on 01744 742096

To return to our full programme of events click here!

Enterprise Hub Start Up Week | Thursday 21st September @ Liverpool Central Library

#EntHubStartUpWeek

Start Up Week is a celebration of self-employment and entrepreneurship across the Liverpool City Region.

You are invited to join Enterprise Hub at a range of free events and seminars throughout the week.

Come and discover how to start and sustain a successful business, hear from the experts, and find out more about what support is available to you.

Thursday 21st September

Liverpool Central Library Business & IP Centre Start Up Day

Liverpool Central Library’s Business & IP Centre exists to support entrepreneurs from all walks of life to start, protect and grow successful businesses. The centre is part of the British Library’s network of 11 Business & IP centres which offer services to aspiring entrepreneurs across the country!

Last year, the British Library delivered a national Start Up day to mark the tenth anniversary of the London Business & IP Centre and over 1,500 events took place across the country! 

This year, Thursday 21^st September marks ‘Start Up Day’ and there is a whole lot of exciting things happening in Liverpool Central Library (and across the country) to celebrate this!

At the ‘Start Up Day’ you can attend free seminars, workshops and talks on a range of topics including: protecting your intellectual property, using the internet effectively for your business, how to write a social media policy and how to understand your customers.

The day will also feature talks from local entrepreneurs, sharing their business models, hints and tips and the stories behind their success. As well as this, you can learn all about the library resources that are available to give business start-up the best possible chance of success, as well as networking opportunities to make important connections!

All of these events will be taking place at Liverpool Central Library, William Brown Street, Liverpool, L3 8EW

So what can you get involved with on the day...

‘Enterprise Hub Start Up Conference’ – 10am-1pm

At the ‘Enterprise Hub Start Up Conference’ we are inviting you to join us to find out all about the Enterprise Hub programme of support available to you, and discover if setting up a business is right for you! Joining the Enterprise Hub team at the event will be Councillor Gary Millar, Nicola Wass of So-Mo and Google’s Digital Garage. You’ll also be given the opportunity to find out about the practicalities involved in self-employment and hear other business owner’s journeys to success!

Find our further information and register here!

‘How To Build A Social Media Strategy With Google’ – 11am-12pm

Discover exactly where your small business needs to be seen and heard on the web in this short talk designed for aspiring social media marketers. You’ll get a rundown of the best social media platforms to use in 2017, plus Google will explain how to create a social media strategy that delivers the right goals for your business!

Find out further information and register here!

‘Start Up Day With Nicola Wass Of So-Mo’ – 12pm-1pm

Nicola is the CEO and founder of So-Mo, a social innovation and engagement company that helps government, public, private and 3rd sector organisations to engage, innovate and problem solve. Constantly curious, Nicola is always looking to bring new thinking and ways of working into So-Mo’s approach. Please join us to hear Nicola's inspiring and informative start-up story.

Find out further information and register here!

‘Start Up Day With Barrington Powell’ – 1pm-2pm & 3pm-4pm

Barrington is a full-time magician whose work has taken him all over the world. He is also in demand as a guest speaker, helping both individuals and large companies, get the most out of their business whether it is as a start up, sole trader or as an established name. He will be joining us on Start Up Day to tell his own story and to offer some expert advice to anybody who would like to start their own career as a performer. Sure, to be not only an informative highlight of Start Up Day but a particularly entertaining one, too!

Find out further information and register here for 1pm-2pm OR 3pm-4pm

‘Understand Your Customer With Google’ – 2pm-3pm

In this session, Google's digital experts give you the inside track on how you can use data, such as Google Analytics, to uncover trends about your customers, including how people use your website or interact with your business online. Take the guesswork out of digital marketing by learning how Google Analytics can empower you to make data-driven decisions for your business…

Find out further information and register here!

‘Start Up Day With Garth Dallas - 5 Steps For Start Up Success’ – 3pm-4pm

Garth Dallas is a Jamaican-born British entrepreneur and lawyer, who is highly regarded for his work in promoting social inclusion and equality of opportunities in the UK, for over 20 years. He is also a Liverpool Business & IP Centre Ambassador!

Garth has received accolades and recognition as a high profile and respected voice on workplace diversity and inclusion, corporate social responsibility, commercial law, and employment law. He is the founder of the Diverse Magazine Group and also owner of Dallas Legal Ltd. Join us, then, as he guides you through ‘Five Steps For Start Up Success’!

Find out further information and register here!

‘Start Up Day With Jo Harrop of PLACED’ – 4pm-5pm

Jo Harrop will be talking about setting up her award-winning social enterprise PLACED. Jo founded PLACED because of her desire to develop young people’s understanding of the towns and cities in which they live and how the quality of design impacts on the lives of all residents. She believes that through bringing local people and the decision makers together to share a conversation and explore ideas we can create better places. Join Jo to hear her business journey story!

Find out more and register here!

‘Start Up Day With Homebaked’ – 5pm-6pm

Homebaked is a community land trust and co-operative bakery situated on the boundary between the neighbourhoods of Everton and Anfield, just opposite the Liverpool Football Club. The project is co-owned and co-produced by people who live and work in the area.  Join us to hear the Homebaked story (and have a free Homebaked pie!)

Find out more and register here!

‘Meet The Advisors at Liverpool Central Library’ – 11am-5pm

All day at Liverpool Central Library, members of the Enterprise Hub team will be on hand, so you can speak to them about your new business ideas and find out about the support available to you.

No need to register, just drop in!

To return to our full programme of events click here!

Enterprise Hub Start Up Week | Thursday 21st and Friday 22nd September | #EntHubStartUpWeek

#EntHubStartUpWeek

Start Up Week is a celebration of self-employment and entrepreneurship across the Liverpool City Region.

You are invited to join Enterprise Hub at a range of free events and seminars throughout the week.

Come and discover how to start and sustain a successful business, hear from the experts, and find out more about what support is available to you.

Thursday 21st September

As well as ALL of the events happening over at Liverpool Central Library Business & IP Centre's Start Up Day (which you can find out about HERE) - there are also plenty of events for Start Up week happening across Liverpool City Region on this day too! 

‘Blogging for Business’ – 10am-1pm – The Women’s Organisation      

     

At: 54 St James Street, Liverpool, L1 0AB

This course provides an introduction to Blogging. It covers different blogging tools that are available as well as advice on how to build great content and a following. This course will help you to firmly establish your brand online and by the end of the day you will have been shown tools to create an online presence at no cost. 

Find out more and register here! (Please note, both men and women are welcome to this course, and it is priced at £25)

‘Lunch Time Shout Out’ – 12pm-2pm – Wirral Chamber of Commerce

At: Wirral Chamber of Commerce, The Sheds, 1 Pacific Road, Wirral, CH41 1LJ

Come along for an informal networking session over some lunch! There will be the opportunity to meet local business owners and hear inspiring stories from some of our business start ups!

To register for your place, contact the Enterprise Hub team on 0151 541 0976 or email enterprisehub@wirralchamber.co.uk

‘Cash Flow Masterclass’ – 2pm-4pm – Wirral Chamber of Commerce

Wirral Chamber of Commerce are offering you support to create your own cash flow, an essential document that will help you keep on top of your finances and better understand your business performance.

To register for your place, contact the Enterprise Hub team on 0151 541 0976 or email enterprisehub@wirralchamber.co.uk

Friday 22nd September

‘Enterprise Hub at Kirkby Library’ – 10am-1pm – Alt Valley Community Trust

At: Kirkby Library, The Centre, Norwich way, Kirkby, Liverpool, L32 8XY

Drop into this informal session to speak to a business advisor about your new business idea and the support you can receive from Enterprise Hub.

No need to book! Just drop in! 

To return to our full programme of events click here!

Enterprise Hub Celebrates 500 Start-Ups And Invited Entrepreneurs To Quiz Media Experts

On July 13th over 100 entrepreneurs in Liverpool quizzed a panel of media experts on how to get the best exposure for their businesses.

The event, at Liverpool’s Central Library  was organised by, Enterprise Hub, to celebrate the creation of 500 new businesses over the past 18 months.

The latest entrepreneurs in the Liverpool City Region were invited to the ‘Meet the Media’ evening, chaired by The Women’s Organisation co-founder and chief executive, Maggie O’Carroll.

The event location - Liverpool's Central Library! 

Panelists, from the world of TV, radio, print and online news, featured Tony McDonough, of Liverpool-based business website YB News, TV and print journalist Brigid Benson, Copy Media, an agency created last September by former Liverpool ECHO journalists Dawn Collinson and Jane Tansley, and BBC Radio Merseyside reporter, producer and presenter, Jimmy McCracken.

Research and Partnership Development Officer and Co-Founder of the Women’s Equality Party Liverpool; Pamela Ball, chaired the discussion.

Pamela had also received support through Enterprise Hub to set up her own consultancy business and said: ‘Without Enterprise Hub and the advice and guidance I received through the programme, I would have been afraid to take the leap.

Even though I had been previously employed at a senior level, taking control of every aspect of your own business is a different story, and Enterprise Hub gives you the skills and support to do so.’

Cllr Gary Millar & Pamela Ball

Maggie O’Carroll, Chief Executive of The Women’s Organisation said: ‘This evening’s Meet the Media event has been a fantastic success.

It’s has been a great opportunity for some of the individuals who have started their own businesses after accessing support through Enterprise Hub to gain expert and insider knowledge from a panel of our cities media professionals.

Enterprise Hub is celebrating having supported 500 businesses to start since our inception and we are now looking forward to the future of helping more individuals across Liverpool City Region through our extensive programme of enterprise advice and support.’

Principal of The City of Liverpool College Elaine Bowker said: “In the last 10 years, we have seen the entrepreneurial spirit in Liverpool transform the landscape and the mood of the city, which is thriving a in a new renaissance where opportunities are in abundance.

“As the college for business we have joined forces with the Women’s Organisation and the programme offers budding entrepreneurs practical tools and training to help realise their career ambitions.

An amazing turnout! 

“Our partnership was made to boost the prospects of men and women in Liverpool and inspire students to develop their ideas into businesses.

“There are now 500 business owners who are in control of their own destiny and who have laid the foundations of their own businesses to thanks to the Women’s Organisation with the college’s support and that is fantastic.

“I would like to thank the journalists from the various media for attending the event and giving the entrepreneurs crucial advice in exposing their businesses and the great work the Women’s Organisation do.”

Enterprise Hub is backed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and aims to help entrepreneurs through Liverpool City Region and aims to help entrepreneurs throughout the region realise their business ambitions by providing expert advice and support.’

Our fantastic panel!

This includes helping people, both men and women, understand the process of starting a business, research their business idea, create a sustainable business plan or marketing plan, create financial forecasts to understand the cost of running a business, and identify sources of finance to get started.

To qualify for Enterprise Hub you have to live in Knowsley, Sefton, Wirral, Liverpool, St Helens or Halton, and not yet registered as self-employed.

The City of Liverpool College is the accountable body for Enterprise Hub, but, The Women’s Organisation, which is celebrating its 21^st birthday and has helped more than 50,000 women in that time, takes the lead on delivering the programme, as the managing agent.

Enterprise Hub which was launched in December 2015 and aims to support 6,000 people from the region to get their business ideas off the ground as part of the three-year programme.

Wirral Chamber of Commerce Helps Hypa Spa Make A Splash To Celebrate Opening Showroom

With many years’ experience in the Spa business and an ambition to be his own boss, it wasn’t long before Wirral based Danny Griffiths set up on his own.

Hypa Spa is the result of countless hours of hard work from Danny, turning a business idea into a reality in just a few months. Working alongside the Wirral Chamber’s Enterprise Hub team, Hypa Spa is ready to start trading officially as it looks to make a splash in the Wirral market.

Danny’s business has grown from strength to strength which has seen him celebrate the opening of his own showroom in Bromborough and a second showroom at a well-known water garden centre in Burton. 

Speaking about the programme, Danny said; 

“I feel Wirral Enterprise Hub has helped me a great deal in giving me the confidence to go forward.  They have supported me in every aspect. I was lacking a lot of fundamental knowledge of business, but the programme has provided the help and training I needed to improve”.

To find out more about what Hypa Spa’s range of hot tub, sauna and home spa solutions can improve your health and transform your home visit https://www.hypaspa.com/

Enterprise Hub is funded by the European Regional Development Fund. For more information about the support available email us on enterprisehub@thewo.org.uk or ring us on 0151 706 8113

Wirral Entrepreneurs 'Raising The Resolution' With New Business, 'Drone Factor'

Launched in April this year by Amy and Sam, Drone Factor started to take shape in September 2016 and following storm Doris in the early part of this year, the pair decided that the time was right to get trained, commercially licenced and fully insured to fly UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) commercially. Since then they have started working for blue chip providers...And that's before they start printing stunning aerial photography.

During the development of the business plan, which was 90 pages at one point, they realised that they were going to be able to go big with this business in a short period of time. The nature of drone technologies is such that there is always progress, so planning 6 to 12 months in advance is important to ensure Drone Factor have the best systems available. The initial investment training, hardware and setup costs were self-funded through a Sam’s contract teaching at Wirral Metropolitan College and Amy's job at Marks & Spencer.

With support from Enterprise Hub partner; Wirral Chamber, Drone Factor Ltd took shape rapidly. In the short time they have been operating, they have created promotional videos for Ness Botanical Gardens, created 3D maps of ancient meadows at Royden Park, and have begun developing their system integration with Merseyside Search & Rescue, along with creating a suite of beautiful images of Wirral and Cheshire.

Drone Factor plan to expand their aerial inventory to accommodate a wide range of emergency service assistance, including the RNLI, Police and Fire Service as well as thermal imaging surveys and long range inspection work.

Speaking about the programme, Sam said; 

“The help and support that we’ve received through Wirral Enterprise Hub has been brilliant. We have been introduced to some great contacts as well as being able to pop into the Enterprise Hub to run ideas by the team or use their space to work on the business”

In its first month of operating, Dronefactor provided footage for a Channel 4 documentary, and have recently set up CopterKids, a drone flight school and club aimed at 8-14 year olds. Also, to accommodate for weddings and other special events, a specially designed sub-brand named AirHeart, as a homage to the famous female aviator, Amelia Earhart.

Visit www.dronefactor.co.uk for more information on pricing and other benefits they can bring.

Enterprise Hub is funded by the European Regional Development Fund. For more information about the support available email us on enterprisehub@thewo.org.uk or ring us on 0151 706 8113

Alpha Swim Makes A Splash

After over 10 years in the leisure industry Mike Caffrey has launched his private swim school with the support of St Helens Chamber and Enterprise Hub.

Alpha Swim provides fun and effective aquatic training programmes for children and adults starting from 18 months. Mike’s classes are tailored to the needs of his swimmers, offering a personal approach with a commitment to quality.

Mike is putting his decade of industry knowledge and expertise to good use following five years in Dubai managing his own swimming programme. On his return to the UK Mike decided to set up his own business having identified a shortage of quality teaching programmes in the area.

Having been referred to St Helens Chamber through their Starting Point employment service, Mike was assigned a dedicated Business Coach, Steve Mather, who worked with him to create a solid business plan.

Mike also attended Be Your Own Boss events and Business Essentials workshops, both of which equipped him for self-employment.

Mike said: “It’s been a whirlwind since my first meeting with the Chamber’s Start-up Team.
“Every time I meet with my Business Coach I leave with fresh ideas and a renewed vigor for pushing forward with my business.

“I’ve got a lot of experience in the industry so I had a good idea about what works and what doesn’t, but the advice from the Chamber has helped me put this into a thorough plan. It’s given me structure and the confidence to know that I could take the leap to full time self-employment.”

Since starting his swimming school Mike is teaching four days a week, with over 50 regular clients, and hopes to expand into a new venue in the coming months.

Adrian Ellis, Business Start-up Manager at St Helens Chamber, said: “Mike came to us with a very strong idea of what he wanted his business to be. We’re delighted to have helped him formalise his ideas and launch his business full time and we’re excited to see how Alpha Swim continues to grow in the coming months.”

Mike added: “I would highly recommend the Chamber’s Business Start-up support. It’s quality advice from business experts and it’s been invaluable for me, especially the one-to-one time with my Business Coach.

“The Chamber’s support empowered me to come out of work and pursue self-employment and I don’t think the business would be as far ahead as it is right now without their support.”
St Helens Chamber is part of Enterprise Hub, the enterprise gateway for business start-up support in Merseyside. Offering expert advice and support to anyone thinking about starting a business including help to:

• Understand the process of starting a business
• Research a business idea
• Build a comprehensive business plan
• Develop a marketing plan
• Create financial forecasts to understand the costs of running your business and potential income
• Identify sources of finance to get started

Enterprise Hub is funded by the European Regional Development Fund. For more information about the support available email us on enterprisehub@thewo.org.uk or ring us on 0151 706 8113