On Friday 10th July at Brighton Racecourse, Brighton's local business community and the regions loyal Young Start-up Talent (YST) sponsors came together to celebrate and mark the launch of the entrepreneurial initiative’s fourth year in Brighton & Hove.
The event heard from long term sponsors as well as new ones with Gary Chown of NatWest speaking from experience and saying "I find the whole experience of working with these talented youngsters, extremely rewarding."
Melanie Martinez from Fastsigns and dedicated sponsor of the initiative commented "The whole process is so enjoyable, you meet some great people. You can put as much or as little in as you want - but you really want to do more." She went on to say "As a company we will not hesitate to encourage anyone to sponsor or enter and get involved in YST."
Some of the Brighton YST finalists from earlier in the year came to the launch to share their experience of the initiative and the success they've seen since. We caught up with Bettina Nemeth who entered the initiative with her business 'NEM Clothing', a Brighton based eco-friendly clothing line. Bettina makes redesigned and rethought textiles and clothes from recycled materials making each item one-of-a-kind. The young entrepreneur commented that her experience with YST "helped her really evolve her business plan and gave her great opportunities to network." Bettina currently has a pop-up shop in the North Lanes.
This years’ Brighton YST winner, Jodie Deakin, who won with her high-end luxury leather pet accessory company - Hounds and Hides. Jodie has been using the many connections via YST to grow her business and expressed her appreciation for the continuous support from the YST team and sponsors of the initiative in helping her to develop and grow the business.
The occasion also posed as an introduction to Brighton's newest sponsor and judge - Hewlett-Packard, the multinational information technology company. Vice president, Martin Hess, told the room "I'm very proud to be from Sussex and if I can do something to create a stronger, more vibrant business environment then I'd love to do all I can. This initiative gives our company the opportunity to do just that." New sponsors announced for 2015/16 - PSD Ice, thebestofBrighton&Hove, Platinum Business, FaceMedia and Pivotal Moment.
The team of sponsors are set to mentor and work alongside a wealth of new young entrepreneurs aged 16-25 in the Brighton & Hove area. The aim is to help aspiring young talent to start their own business by being involved with not only with the finalists but by engaging with schools, workshops and universities across Brighton and Hove to spread the word of the initiative.
This years’ Brighton judges will be Lorraine Nugent - Media Word Waves, Dan Simpson - Hartley Fowler LLP, Matt Turner- Creative Pod, Gary Chown - NatWest, Stephen Mason - Mason Consulting, Martin Hess – Hewlett Packard.
The team are looking forward to meeting some more young entrepreneurs this year.
The business sponsors for 2015/16 are as follows:
To find out more visit www.youngstartuptalent.co.uk
