The University of West London

Local business leaders attend Student Enterprise Showcase at the University of West London Business School

Wednesday 23 January 2013

University of West London Business School students had their business projects assessed by west London’s industry leaders at an enterprise showcase event on 10 January 2013 at the University’s Ealing campus.

Business leaders began the day with a breakfast reception at the University’s award-winning Pillars training restaurant, which was followed by a tour of the 38 different business projects devised by students for the exhibition.

The winning project was called Find My Pet, a piece of software which allows pet-owners to track down their animal using a collar. The project was praised by the judges for its confident pitch, targeted audience and detailed business model.

Business student Thomas Andrews, part of the ‘Find My Pet’ project, commented on his team’s win, ‘There were a lot of important people here today to assess our presentations and give us valuable feedback. Overall, this was a great day for the Business School at the University of West London.’

Runner-up Ahmad David Aziz, who alongside his team developed Clever Cash, a marketplace for second-hand academic textbooks, said, 'It was an eye-opening event and it has really helped build up my confidence. We learnt a lot from the judges and were lucky to receive a lot of advice. I found out about business ideas, how to present myself and how to work in a team, and I feel like all our hard work has paid off.’

Commenting on the day local entrepreneur and Managing Director of Babye Elizabeth Pilgrim said, ‘I am thrilled to be involved. The standard and quality of ideas that have been presented today was very high and it was great to see young people inspired and motivated to start their own businesses.”

Suzie Betlem, President of Brentford Chamber of Commerce, commented, ‘I think today was a great idea and we’d like to see it grow. Many of the students had excellent ideas and we have definitely seen some potential entrepreneurs. The students were very professional and it was a good experience for us and them as well.’

The business leaders included representatives from the Federation of Small Business, Brentford Chamber of Commerce, Ealing Business Improvement District, National Association of College and University Entrepreneurs, HRMIC, Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, NatWest, Start-up Loans Company, as well as many other small local employers.

The projects are part of a business undergraduate’s second year course, where students are required to work in team's to develop a successful business project. The exhibition then forms part of the assessment for the module and the projects are part of a long-term commitment from the University to promote enterprise and entrepreneurial activity in the West London area.

David Mackrory, Senior Lecturer at West London Business School, commented on the day, “The most important thing is to encourage them to think creatively and then see what needs to be done to implement their concept.’

Suresh Gamlath, Acting Head of the West London Business School, said, ‘The next showcase will be open to all of the University's schools, and would give students with bright business ideas the opportunity to build links with establishes businesses keen to help them take their ideas further. This is the first time the Inspiring Enterprise Showcase has taken place and the University of West London are looking forward to it becoming an annual event and watching it grow.’