Yesterday was an exciting day, as it brought the opening of Sling Prints. The retail business, which was funded, developed and supported through the Our Space Your Place (OSYP) project. Sling Prints is a bespoke artistic printing company, which offers custom designs and printing. They aim not to simply sell products, but let people experience the art.
As winners of the OSYP Competition, Sling Prints received a free six-week lease at Crown Gate Shopping Centre, the busiest shopping centre in Worcester and £2000 startup funding supported by Barclays. In addition, the students received business mentoring from myself, Barclays Business Advisers, and retail experts provided by the Crown Estate.
The launch event was attended by some of the OSYP judging panel, those our supported Sling Prints and friends. It offered an excellent opportunity to see what had been achieved using the funding and as part of the project. It was great to see an empty unit in vibrant use, plus speak to the students to hear of their experiences and learning. I look forward to catching up with the students during the project and at the end to hear how the experience went, plus how it has developed their enterprise skills.
Robin Bell 