Faraday Wharf, Birmingham Science Park Aston, Holt St, B7 4BB

Format:

1.00pm       ARRIVAL & REGISTRATION

1.30pm        START  - Presentation & Discussion: Key factors for a successful idea, incl Q & A

 3.00pm       BREAK - Introductions to entrepreneurs & business advisers. Sign up to 1:1 guidance support

3.30pm        ONE to ONE's - Discuss your idea/business with a BSEEN mentor: an experienced    entrepreneur / expert in a particular field e.g. marketing, finance, manufacturing, and receive valuable feedback and suggestions.

                     EXHIBITORS - Speak to other professionals in the areas of Starting-Up, Accounting, Banking    and Law.    

4.30pm       NETWORKING  - Meet other graduates to share experiences and broaden your thinking. 

5.00pm        CLOSE

BSEEN Mentor Profiles (for one to ones) 

Denis Ramplin: A Marketing and Creative Consultant with over 30 years experience.  Dennis has started two marketing agencies: turnovers in excess of £2m. Also experience of taking a product from concept to market, sourcing from the far east, obtaining patents and entering the retail market.  Previously a director of three marketing businesses and joint MD of a design and marketing company. 

Clive Booth has spent the majority of his career in the computer industry running some of the biggest firms including Pegasus Software, ComputerLand and Revelation Software. A background in engineering, finance and sales & marketing prepared him well for general management roles. He sits as a non-executive director on the boards of a number of diverse companies.

Carolyn Holt: Experienced marketer with extensive experience in the Travel and Retail Industry from product development to sales promotion. Self-employed business in buy to let, and works freelance as a consultant to SME's.   

Suzanne Skeete: Over 20 years experience in sales and managing campaigns.  Currently supports fledgling start-ups and SME's, including marketing, sales, organisational set up and time management. Trained NLP practictioner.

Simon Jenner:  Co-Founder of Oxygen Accelerator, preparing technology startups for pitching to Angel investors, VCs and Private Equity groups for next stage funding. Co- founder of The Urban Coffee Company which has two retail emporiums located in Birmingham and employs 15 people. Runs Entrepreneurs for the Future (e4f) incubating innovative technology businesses.

Exhibitors:

• Tracey Bailey, Yorkshire Bank, Business Partner, significant experience of working with small businesses and graduates. Discuss business planning, funding proposals, financial planning
•  Stephen Clere, FCCA Clere's Limited, Chartered Certified Accountants , Business and Taxation Advisors. Obtain advice on type of business, your financial projections, record-keeping
• Iain Acton, Interiors and Lifestyle Futures Network - support for startups involved in the Interiors and Lifestyle industries
• Jamie Partington, Solicitor, Challinors - ask Jamie about the legal requirements around starting a business, partnership agreements, Intellectual Property

• Samantha Thodlana, YEP Media - talk to Samantha, MD of a boutique communications agency, who is a recent graduate who benefitted from the BSEEN scheme
  Entrepreneurs for the Future (e4f) - a support scheme for technology based startups, including hot desking and mentoring
• BSEEN - a support scheme for recent graduates, helping them to set up their own businesses

Why attend?

How do you know if your idea is worth pursuing? 

What do you need to know to help you make sure that you are onto a winner?

The aim of the Bootcamp is to enable you to question and critically evaluate your idea by talking to a number of expert entrepreneurs and professionals in Industry who can offer you valuable advice and guidance  - all in ½ day.  

Learn from the experts

Learn about what it takes to create the right idea and business model. Share your business idea with others and gain their valuable feedback.  Arm yourself with as much information as possible to make important decisions on the state, size and needs of your market as well as learning about the legal and financial aspects which are vital for growth and profitability.

Critically evaluate your idea

Use this workshop to critically evaluate your business idea. Review your target market, pricing, route to market; look at your value proposition, Intellectual Property, funding, competitor analysis, product distribution channels,  financial forecasts – find out EVERYTHING you need to know to ensure that you are on the right track to making your new venture a success.

By the end of the day, you will be fully equipped to:

Evaluate objectively your business idea

Understand and realise what further actions must be taken to proceed

Tackle the challenges ahead with more confidence and conviction.

Who is it aimed at?

This event is aimed at graduates living in the Greater Birmingham and Solihull area.

You must have graduated in the last four years i.e. 2007-2011.

Contact Alison Sharp for further info 0121 204 3086 a.sharp@aston.ac.uk

I

Faraday Wharf
Birmingham Science Park Aston
, B7 4BB

Thursday, June 23, 2011 from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM (PT)

BSEEN