Read below an account from our Head of Careers, Mrs Cuthbert, along with some reflections from Kanav (UM).
We started with a talk by John Morse Brown who talked about the growing success of his folded stationery ‘Pigeon‘. Pigeon champions letter writing and slow communication in our fast tech world. His award-winning product was inspired by an interest in origami. What started off being a playful invention on his kitchen table is now a beautiful product being sold in several continents, with notable collaborations with artists and others, such as the RSPB.
Students then went on to take part in a Dragon’s Den enterprise challenge of their own, led by James Merry from Time 2 Act. In mixed teams, students had to quickly get to know each other and share their ideas for a new or improved product or service. The rest of the day involved thinking through the USP, marketing, logos and finances for their products. They were then tasked with pitching to the Dragons. A team of sixth form business mentors were on hand to support them through the various stages of product.
There were all sorts of ideas explored, from underwater headphones, The Glamstack make-up pen, Safety bracelets and watches. The winning team designed a phone case that was also a power bank. What were the highlights? The students said they really enjoyed meeting and working with students from other schools and having time to be creative and develop their enterprise skills.
Mrs Cuthbert
Head of Careers
On Enterprise Day we gained knowledge which is rarely taught to children of our age. We started by gaining some very valuable life experiences from Pigeon’s CEO John Brown and then put that into practice in an enjoyable Dragons Den contest.
In the contest all the boys and girls from different schools were put into different teams. I learnt how to collaborate in a more appropriate style with boys and girls I did not know so well. Mixing the groups was a good way of finding out more about the other Foundation schools and also allowed us to concentrate on the task.
It was a great day out with plenty of new experiences such as the idea of pitching a product.
Kanav (UM)
