Make Your Mark Blog

Wow, what an incredibly busy year it’s been. Amisha (my business partner) and I have been beavering away on producing a new ethical fashion magazine - nu. So far it’s gone so well we don’t quite believe it! We managed to launch the pilot issue at London Fashion Week last September, took the magazine to The Ethical Fashion Show in Paris (oh it’s a hard life), we’ve had extremely positive feedback from the ethical fashion industry and now the mainstream fashion industry is taking notice.

http://davidhorvitz.com/if/

This guy has had an amazing set of ideas for things he can sell to you. It’s so original I’m definitely going to buy one, and it’s a beautiful example of how ridiculously easy it can be to set up an enterprise.

I arrived on the early train from London to Leeds rather bleary eyed yesterday morning and was met with the energy and enthusiasm of the students at Parklane College taking part in the Ideas Igloo roadshow.

Groups of students approached us at the giant inflatable Make Your Mark Ideas Igloo with curiosity and loads of questions “What’s this all about?” What do we have to do?” “Can I really win £150 from my idea?”… The ideas wall was quickly covered in ideas..

I just had an int’l conference call and wanted to give everybody really quick update on some of the Global EW activities that are happening around the world. Please make sure your seats are in an upright position!

In France… They’ve already gathered about 40 organizations to help with their campaign. They mainly represent schools, non-profits, unions and business organizations. They’ve hired one person to work exclusively on Global EW and they are currently working on setting up some fundraising events. They also are interested in holding a big European event for Global EW inNovember with their president, Nicholas Sarkozy

YOU have the chance to help a social enterprise get started by voting in the Make Your Mark in 60 Seconds final. The four ideas below have been selected out of over 60 social enterprise ideas that were pitched on www.makeyourmarkchangelives.org, www.bebo.com/60seconds and the Make Your Mark in 60 Seconds Facebook group

The idea that gets the most votes will win up to £5,000 towards getting started - so get voting!

1. Creative Kids Africa!
Creative Kids Africa aims to run visual arts workshops for street children and orphans in Zambia and deprived young people in Bristol in the U.K. They aim to link the experiences of African children with children in the U.K through sharing cultural learning and celebrating diversity to have a lasting impact.

If you’re running, or about to launch, your own business, the British Library is offering a unique opportunity to pitch your idea to a panel of financial experts, including former “Dragon” Doug Richard.

Desperately Seeking Finance is a panel debate and discussion dedicated exclusively to the secrets of raising finance. As part of the evening, three aspiring entrepreneurs will take to the stage to present their business idea and plan. And who knows, someone may even secure funding!

To qualify for this potentially life-changing opportunity, please send a 200-word summary of your business idea, including key financial projections, to [email protected]

There are just 2 weeks to go to get your entries in to the Big Green Challenge. This is a fabulous opportunity to work with like minded people with your prize money to make a real difference on some of the issues that face the world today.

There is loads of great info on http://www.biggreenchallenge.org.uk/ There’s a webchat, blogs from the green angels and discussions on where good ideas come form.

There’s not long left so don’t miss your chance to win you part of £1m prize. Good luck to everyone who enters, I can’t wait to see what the winning ideas are.

LUYES is the Lancaster University Young Entrepreneurs Society and it’s run by three of our very own Connectors Steve Crossley, Matt Smith and Himanshu Kumar. They’re certainly an ambitious trio as next month, starting on Friday 7^th March they are hosting the UK’s very first university-based international entrepreneurial summit. The event, which is partnered with Lancaster Chamber of Commerce and sponsored by Lancaster House Hotel, Accenture, Furness Enterprise, IEED and LUMS-CEEC, will bring together students, business professionals, entrepreneurs and enterprise support organisations from across Europe to provide an exciting range of talks, workshops and networking opportunities. And…..there’s an exclusive invitation for all Make Your Mark Connectors to join them for the highlight of the weekend; an exquisite 3 course meal on Saturday 8^th March at the Lancaster House Hotel, with Allan Kenny as the after-dinner speaker.

Shirley Bassey, Madonna, Duran Duran, the bloke from Soundgarden…A fairly random group of musicians I’m sure you’ll agree, but they all have something in common and that is Bond…James Bond. You can’t beat a good Bond theme tune, and now you have the chance to write one!

Musicians and James Bond fans across Britain have the rare chance to be a part of 007’s iconic history as Penguin searches for the theme tune to Devil May Care, the new Bond novel written by Sebastian Faulks.

A new reality TV programme on Channel Five is apparently going track the progress of unknown food brands as they go through a pitch process to Tesco’s buyers. Supermarkets are notoriously difficult to get into although with consumer demand for more local products they will be looking for new products to meet this. Ambassador Fraser Doherty of SuperJam managed to get into Waitrose and Tesco last year - does anyone else have any experiences to share?

http://www.brandrepublic.com/News/783075/Tesco-back-Dragons-Den-style-show-reward-unknown-brands/

Mutya Buena (former Sugarbabe) attended Castleford Tigers first match of the season on Saturday 9th Feb to perform her debut single, Real Girl and to make her mark (well signature!) along with the rest of Cas Tigers players on a rugby ball which is now on eBay being auctioned to encourage entries to the Make Your Mark with a Ball competition, in aid of Sport Relief 2008.

This is a one off rugby ball and bidding has begun - this once in a lifetime opportunity is only around until 22nd Feb go to eBay and get involved….

Striding Out has just launched The Big Leap - which is looking for fresh, innovative, high-growth businesses, who are ready to ‘take the leap to turn their idea into reality’.

The competition is looking for ideas in the information technology, new media, creative industries, environmental solutions, and product innovation and manufacturing sectors, and will select two finalists per sector in the North and the South, to be entered for the grand prize.

http://www.startups.co.uk/6678842910557315235/competition-seeks-young-entrepreneurs.html

I read a great article by Seth Godin last week called Flipping the Funnel

He talks about how to create a fan club for your business or idea. He says that fans emerge when you:
- turn strangers into friends,
- turn friends into supporters
- turn supporters into fans.

In order to create a fan club, you need to:
1) give people a reason to really love you
2) give people a clear message to shout
3) give them a megaphone to shout with

This got me thinking – in the last two weeks I have become a BIG fan of two things.

If you need to be in Silicon Valley to progress your web company then this is the opportunity you’ve been waiting for!

Web Mission 2008 will see 20 UK Web 2.0 companies travel to San Francisco to explore new opportunities for growth with key people in Silicon Valley. This event will showcase innovative UK web talent, seek meaningful assistance for companies ready for expansion, and provide a platform for those involved to gain valuable media and business exposure.
http://www.webmission08.com/

http://uk.techcrunch.com/2008/02/08/web-mission-launched-to-showcase-uk-startups-in-silicon-valley/#comments

Fulston Manor Business and Enterprise College is based in Sittingbourne, Kent. As a school supported by the Co-operative, they have a handle on the ethics and values that they attach to enterprise.

The school’s definition of enterprise spirit is:

Self manager

Presentation Skills

Innovative thinker

Reflective Learner

Independent enquirer

Team player

The enterprise SPIRIT permeates everything that happens at Fulston Manor School: displays in every classroom make sure that both staff and students are aware of the qualities and skills it takes to be enterprising. Departments around the school work together to provide innovative and relevant enterprise learning experiences - for example, the RS department worked with the Science department to provide a focus day on ethical farming.