Enterprise team marks success of its first year
AN initiative to boost entrepreneurship in the town has celebrated its first anniversary.
Enterprising Macclesfield, launched last November to offer a onestop-shop for free advice and support to anyone wanting to set up their own social or commercial enterprise.
An event at the Silk Heritage Centre - attended by the Mayor of Bollington, Allan Williams - heard about the venture’s successful first year and its plans for the future.
Since launching its pool of 29 ‘coaches’ have 70 helped local enterprises, half of which were startups, offered 168 days of help worth £100,000 in expertise.
Tim Shercliff, chairman of Enterprising Macclesfield, said the project had reached an exciting juncture.
He said: “We’ve proved there is demand for what we are doing. There’s nothing better than seeing business succeed and see business owners grow in confidence. It’s a great opportunity now to build on our local network. It’s really important that we keep the momentum going and galvanise the whole business community. It’s really important that we form strong part- nerships and get this network delivering to the benefit of the local economy and to the people who live and work around Macclesfield.”
The event heard from James Wood from Totally Wild UK, one of the initiative’s success stories.
James approached Enterprising Macclesfield with an idea of how he could create a business to buy his own woodland and create a ‘forest school’ for local schoolchildren. With advice he developed an alternative business model based on his foraging skills and is now focussed on recipes and cooking demonstrations using foraged food and selling preserves, chutneys, cordials and syrups to high-end restaurants.
James said: “The best part of the coaching was the personal side.”
Alex Heylings from Nova Commercial Finance started off approaching the team for help with marketing and is now offering his help as an advisor to other businesses. The project aims to simplify the often confus- ing world of business by offering would-be entrepreneurs free coaching from leading business professionals. Entrepreneurs will be signposted to existing pots of funding to help get their venture off the ground.
Visit enterprisingmacclesfield.co.uk