The College’s Young Enterprise team, Plants with Purpose (PwP), has been selected to take part in a European competition as one of only five UK teams accepted.
JA (Junior Achievement) Europe, the European version of Young Enterprise, has teamed up with Euronext N.V. to organise the competition, which has a particular focus on sustainability. Euronext is a leading pan-European exchange, which connects local economies to global capital markets to accelerate innovation and sustainable growth.
Members of PwP are now being mentored by two Euronext employees: Chris Topple, CEO of Euronext London, Head of Global Sales and Managing Board member of Euronext N.V. and James Griffiths, Global Head of Professional Services for Euronext company Commcise. These mentors will work with PwP through a series of meetings in the run up to the competition in May to offer support with their competition entry and guidance on how to develop their company. Two meetings have already taken place which have provided the team with invaluable insight into best business practice, developing good presentation skills and innovation.
PwP’s product is a range of herb planting kits packaged in a reusable fabric bag – with a choice of Thyme, Lavender, Mint, Chamomile and Rosemary. The kits include a ready-grown plant in a ceramic pot, a bag of soil and a mini chalkboard with chalk to display a personal message.
“ We had no control over who the mentors would be - and I was somewhat surprised at how senior they were. Whatever the outcome, our team members are having a brilliant experience working with senior executives from a leading pan-European organisation ” Jan Leeper, Head of Careers