Students are being encouraged to develop seedling business ideas in a bid to boost entrepreneurial thinking in Scotland’s future workforce, drive business innovation and growth.
Enterprising Scottish students came together to develop their business ideas on Saturday (16 February) at Scottish Institute for Enterprise’s (SIE) Fresh Ideas Exploration Day, building key entrepreneurial and business skills in the process.
The event, the second stage of SIE’s Fresh Ideas competition, brought together its monthly prize winners and highly commended projects, with the intention of exploring ideas further through collaboration with other young innovators and entrepreneurs.
Attendees were invited to network with other young entrepreneurs, as well as work in groups to discuss their ideas and develop business models and audience targeting. The day ended with each individual delivering a 20-second business pitch to all attendees.
The day also included talks by Mel Sherwood, pitching and public speaking expert, and Martina Zupan, 2018 winner of the Fresh Ideas competition and founder of Alterwaste, developers of a fully compostable material made from eggshells, designed to replace plastic.
Students now have the opportunity to re-submit their ideas based on what they’ve learned at the event, with finalists being shortlisted and invited to pitch their ideas to a panel of judges on 9 March. Winners will be announced at an awards dinner attended by industry leaders, entrepreneurs and former winners on 28 March.
SIE is funded by the Scottish Funding Council to inspire entrepreneurial ventures in students and to build on enterprise skills for their working lives.
Jonathan Tait, senior business innovation advisor at SIE, said: “Too often we see young people believing their ideas aren’t good enough, or they don’t have the skills to develop a legitimate business.
“This couldn’t be further from the truth, as many of us already have the entrepreneurial skills needed to succeed, such as a can-do attitude, problem solving skills and the will to keep learning.
“We’re trying to show young people that with a little bit of confidence and a solid support network, ideas can really take off. SIE has already helped some of Scotland’s most promising businesses, including fully compostable material developer Alterwaste, and MindMate, a brain training app specifically developed for those with dementia or Alzheimer’s. Their success should be a reminder to young innovators that every business starts from a great idea.
“Even if some of these ideas don’t develop into fully formed businesses, we hope students will take what they’ve learned into their next project or career move. Entrepreneurialism is the key to keeping Scotland’s business ecosystem buoyant and one step ahead of the curve.”
Martina Zupan, founder of Alterwaste, said: “The Fresh Ideas competition helped me build valuable skills and a solid network of contacts. It’s very helpful to chat through your ideas and issues with people at a similar stage to you in the entrepreneurial process, and if you’re open to constructive criticism, you and your business idea are more likely to flourish.
“I’m very grateful to SIE for helping me develop Alterwaste from a seedling idea to the business it is becoming.”
