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Hurst’s Young Enterprise team, Plants with Purpose (PwP), had a challenging, yet successful start to the competition season in an online Dragons’ Dens event.

PwP were up against Davison High School for Girls, Worthing and Midhurst Rother College in the Dragons’ Den which took place via Microsoft Teams. Prior to the competition, PwP had to submit a business plan plus a filmed two-minute ‘elevator pitch’ about their product.

The dragons/judges were Steve Fowler, Vice President and General Manager, Limelight Networks; Jane de Vos, owner of Latchgate; and Ben Collier, co-founder of Ocasta. Their job was to review each business plan, watch the filmed pitches and then ask questions during the event. The results will not be revealed until the County Final in April, but PwP received a whole host of positive feedback from the judges. They said PwP had the best produced video, a stand-out logo, impressive website, good market research, cohesive brand identity/ packaging/channel marketing as well as a professional business plan and presentation. They also commented on their product being perfectly timed with people looking for more things to do away from screens.

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. Our team launched its first collection – which sold out – in time for Christmas and team members are now planning to launch their next collection in time for Easter. They are also preparing entries for the following competitions: County Business Plan, Regional Website, National Sustainability and the Overall Company of the Year.