“In 2020 I had hit rock bottom, I had lost my career, my home and my life as I knew it. As I began to rebuild my life from scratch, something told me that if I wanted to live the type of life I dreamed of, not only from a financial perspective but also from the standpoint of making a real positive impact on people’s lives and serving others in a way that felt right and ethical to me, I would have to start my own business. Using my own experiences of mental and emotional distress which had led me to gaining weight I created a programme called ‘Keep Me Curvy’ that would support women to transform their bodies and their lives through the power of fitness, nutrition, self-love and healing.
However, I had no idea how to go about establishing a business, what it would involve or how I would be able to structure and manage it. At the time, I believed the only way to learn was by going back to college and taking a course in business management. Luckily for me I came across The Prince’s Trust Enterprise Programme and successfully applied. I quickly realised that over the course of 4 days with The Prince’s Trust I had learned so much about the fundamentals of business that the 12-month course I had originally considered was no longer necessary.
From my cohort I met other young people each with amazing business ideas and lots of passion and spark. We created a WhatsApp group and kept in touch for a little while sharing ideas and free resources that would help us on our entrepreneurial journeys. Fortunately for me I got to work with an amazing Youth Development Lead called Tiwi who supported me all the way through the programme. Tiwi gave me solid advice and guidance and made sure my business plan was completed thoroughly and to a high standard. I learned so much during my time working with Tiwi however, she really went above and beyond to help me grasp finance and cashflow forecasts which I had really struggled with getting to grips with. Usually we would meet virtually however, as she knew I was really struggling to understand the concept of cashflow forecasting she offered to meet in person and supported me patiently until I understood how it all worked & how I could apply it to my business.
Prior to coming across the Enterprise Programme I felt completely isolated when it came to business, I had no real idea of what I was doing, and I also felt nervous about starting a business without a budget. The Prince’s Trust has given me a network of support in terms of my Youth Development Lead, Tiwi, who I hope to keep in contact with, my mentor, Sarah, who is fantastic, as well as other young people who I have met at Prince’s Trust events and from my cohort. The financial support from The Trust has been a true lifeline for my business and has enabled me to buy equipment to start a podcast, allowed me to secure my intellectual property through trademarking as well as given me the opportunity to establish a small marketing budget to accelerate my brand.
I feel truly grateful to have received all of this support and I am now much more knowledgeable about business than I ever would have been if I had not worked with The Prince’s Trust.”
