A few months ago, a group of South Londoners walked into the Dock Shed in SE16 with little more than an idea and a bit of nerve. At the end of June, they walked out as the latest people to finish our Start Your Own Enterprise course, and we couldn’t be prouder of them.
Six founders completed the course this time round, all women, building businesses across film and music, hairdressing, childcare and handmade accessories. Different trades, same drive: turning something they’re good at into something that pays.
If you’ve not come across it before, Start Your Own Enterprise is our free, in-person course, run over several weeks, with every session covering real and practical issues around getting a business off the ground. That’s everything from shaping a rough idea into a clear offer, to understanding the money side without the fear that usually comes with it.
Our experienced advisors sit alongside the group the whole way through, so nobody’s left guessing.
What gets us every time is the shift in the people, more than the business plans, good as those are. Someone arrives convinced their idea is probably daft, and a few weeks later they’re talking about pricing and customers like it’s the most natural thing in the world. That change in confidence is the bit you can’t teach from a textbook, and it’s the bit that tends to last. The team watched this cohort come together over the weeks and were genuinely struck by them. There was a real sense that this group were onto something and would do well.
Graduation isn’t really an ending, either. Most of the people who finish go on to keep working with us in one way or another, whether that’s booking a mentoring session when they hit a tricky decision, trading at Thrive Market to test what sells, or simply staying in touch with the people they met in the room.
That last part matters more than people expect. You start the course for the practical know-how, and you leave with a small group of people who understand exactly what you’re trying to do, because they’re trying to do it too. Building a business can be lonely. Doing it alongside others makes it a good deal less so.
So this is a proper well done to everyone who finished. Showing up week after week, while juggling jobs, families and everything else, takes real commitment, and you’ve earned every bit of what comes next.
If you’ve been sitting on an idea of your own, the good news is this cohort won’t be the last. We run the course again, and getting your name on the interest list early means you’ll be the first to hear when new dates are confirmed.
To register your interest in the next Start Your Own Enterprise course, email April at april@treeshepherd.org.uk and we’ll be in touch as soon as we have dates.
