Exciting times beckon for Macclesfield entrepreneur Charlotte Walsh who has graduated and launched her clothing brand in the space of a month.
Charlotte, who has achieved a first in her BA(Hons) Entrepreneurship for the Creative and Cultural Industries, established her business Versity Clothing with help from the Staffordshire University’s Business Start-Up Scheme.
And having made her debut on the catwalk at the Student’s Union Diversity fashion show, Charlotte is putting her skills into practice and going all out to market her exciting range of ethically-produced clothing.
She said: “I wanted to get a full honours degree and get the skills that would help me go in to business. The University was absolutely brilliant in giving me the creative skills and helping me practically with setting up the business.
“I’ve outsourced production but all garments are manufactured from organic bamboo cotton to wrap (worldwide responsible accredited production) standards and are hand-finished. It’s an alternative to disposable fashion.”
She added: “For the moment I’m concentrating my efforts on making a success of the on-line business, but I’m also planning to get the word out by having a stall at a few local festivals. I’ll hopefully open a shop in a few years time and I’m also working to get the brand into the high street.”
Charlotte is promoting her brand using a range of promotional photography and video on her website, www.versityclothing.com, and by engaging in social media facebook and twitter.
As the casual clothing range is largely aimed at students and young professionals, Charlotte has already negotiated her return to University when she intends to market her Versity Clothing brand during Welcome Week.
Meanwhile Staffordshire University’s Business School is inviting applications from graduates for its next six month Business Start-Up scheme. Budding entrepreneurs are being offered the opportunity to start their business with full support including training, mentoring, business premises, financial assistance and networking opportunities.
Clair Hameed, Programme Manager for Enterprise and Entrepreneurship, said: “The University has helped to launch over 270 businesses in the last nine years – from designer makers to film production companies and web designers to wedding planners”.
“In many cases, this has acted as a springboard for business growth and success in the Staffordshire area and we are pleased to be able to extend our offer to other graduates with great business ideas.”
Charlotte added:"The EFS scheme has been a massive help in getting my business to where it’s at, from building my business skills to financial support. I would recommend the scheme to anyone looking to start their own business as it’s a great start for entrepreneurs and graduates" Deadline for applications is August 19th 2011 and graduates who are interested in applying should visit www.beinspiredatstaffs.ac.uk or call 01785 353809 for more information.
