Enterprising Acorns

The long awaited Enterprising Acorns scheme was officially launched by Matthew Hancock MP, at New Croft, home to the Haverhill Rovers on Friday 16th September 2011. Details of this fantastic scheme were revealed by founders Jan Cavelle of The Jan Cavelle Furniture Company and Theresa Foddering of Arevolution both based in Haverhill. Jan said “We can work together, we can help each other and in doing so we can build a bonfire under enterprise in Haverhill.” Matthew Hancock was full of praise for the scheme citing many aspects but Particularly praising the founders for launching a scheme that was ready to deliver real help from day one.

Enterprising Acorns will offer mentoring and advice, both general business and specialist to all levels of business, from start ups to large businesses. The only requirement of anyone who wishes to apply is that the person applying is willing to pledge back an equal amount of time so that they can help someone else. This can be to a smaller business, or on that person’s specialist subject. For someone starting out, it is accepted that they can pledge the time further down the line when they have had experience.

In order to launch this, the scheme needs hours already pledged and the two founders have brought together 30 entrepreneurs from all over East Anglia who between them have pledged around 150 hours to the town. These range from international business coaches, Queens Enterprise Awards winners and serial entrepreneurs to one man bands and in a wide variety of backgrounds to ensure the best likelihood of there being the right person available for all applicants. They also include an venture capitalist on the look out to back new businesses or new ideas. Full details and application forms to the mentoring scheme can be found on the web site www.enterprisingacorns.com

Another arm of the scheme is the web site itself. The founders explained that the aim is for the web site to serve as a free centre for all enterprise in the town from the smallest one man band, to the very largest and bring everyone together under one umbrella. There is a free advertising space for everything related,property, sales, jobs, machinery and so forth to which Nick Rumsey of Carrisbrooke gave his immediate support on the night promising to link to the site. There is also a forum for businesses to chat to each other or for people to ask for advice, how to guides for those starting off and what is hoped will be a continually growing number of useful links to useful contacts and information to people in business.

Enterprising Acorns has already agreed with both Castle Manor School and Samuel Ward Academy that it will give support in avariety of ways to encourage entrepreneurship at an early level. “It is essential for the future of the town that we encourage and nurture entrepreneurial inclinations from an early age” said Theresa who was educated in the town and went on to form her own successful business. “It is important to both give young people the confidence to believe that they can do this and that it can be hugely rewarding doing so. Both us and our other mentors can help do this because we have done it ourselves”.

Another aim of the scheme is to encourage pride in the town’s businesses and to this end, the web site will be featuring hidden oaks - highly entrepreneurial companies that do well on an often national scale and are a real example for others.