The Peter Jones Foundation names winners of nationwide enterprise competition for students
Sambar Jewellery came out on top as the 2022 overall winners of the Tycoon Enterprise Competition and have been awarded £1,000 to invest in the future of their business.
Last Friday, at the Peter Jones Foundation’s Tycoon Final and Awards Ceremony, the all-female led students from Kimbolton School were presented with their award by Levi Roots, successful entrepreneur and founder of Reggae Reggae Sauce.
The Sambar Jewellery team designs and makes handmade rings, necklaces, and bracelets with spinning beads. The beads help alleviate symptoms of anxiety and Attention Deficit Disorder within young people. Coming in a range of designs and styles, the team tracked fashion trends to inspire their latest collection. Since the beginning of trading, they have made a profit of £829, with proceeds going towards the DEC Ukraine Humanitarian aid appeal.
The Tycoon Enterprise Competition is supported by the Sage Foundation and this year helped launch 383 businesses, made up of 1507 students from 109 schools by offering a total of £56,686 in good will loans for teams to set up and run their first businesses.
Speaking about their journey, Sambar Jewellery commented:
“Winning has been a very rewarding experience as we have worked incredibly hard on our business. It’s so important to go for your dreams and support each other. We have a purpose behind our brand and a mission to help people which is what, we believe, steps us apart.”
Sara Reed, Director of Global Strategic Partnerships, Sage Foundation stated:
“We’ve had a long and strong partnership with the Peter Jones Foundation. We know young people getting those business skills early is vital to powering a strong global economy of entrepreneurs. We support the Foundation to instil those qualities and build resilience.”
This year marks 10 years of Tycoon. Since its launch in 2012, the Tycoon Enterprise Competition has:
Supported over 16,000 young entrepreneurs
Provided over ¾ million pounds in start-up funding
Launched over 3,000 student businesses
Donated £100,000 from profitable student businesses to good causes
Over 80% of business have been profitable
Over 50% of beneficiaries have been young women
Over 95% of beneficiaries indicate the programme has made them more employable
The Foundation sees enterprise education as a cornerstone in ensuring that students leave school job-ready and, as such, Tycoon has had a tangible impact on the lives of young people.
Winners Tycoon 2021/22
Tycoon 750 Winners: Wilbury’s Wellbeing Heroes (Wilbury Primary School)
11 students organised and ran well-being days for fellow students, which involved activities such as den-building, crafts, and bouncy castles, to encourage their peers to get outside and away from screens. A percentage of profits will be split between a mental health charity and charities supporting refugees from Ukraine and Afghanistan. Wilbury Primary were last year’s Overall Tycoon Winner.
Tycoon 1K, KS3-4 Winners: Beazles (Badminton School)
Taking advantage of the demand for eco-friendly, plastic-free products, Beazles created reusable beeswax wraps, a sustainable alternative to cling film. Their website has a blog documenting their business journey, including videos from sales events.
Tycoon 3K Winners: Perfect Pony Products (East Durham College)
This Durham based equine accessories brand is run by Katie, an avid horse-rider who has turned her passion into a business. She used her network to find brand ambassadors and made a huge profit in the process. Katie was a finalist at last year’s National Entrepreneur of the Year for another horse-related enterprise.
Tycoon Business for Good Award: Just New Friends (AKS Lytham)
A social enterprise, Just New Friends hosted inclusive games nights at their school, and used the profits to fund events at a local care home, with the hope of alleviating loneliness amongst the elderly community. Profits were invested and they have already hosted multiple games day with local elderly residents.
Tycoon Innovative Business Award: Zync (St Helen and St Katherine School)
Created to tackle waste pollution, this team created sustainable, plantable gift cards made of recycled paper and wildflower seeds. They used social media to promote the business, whilst demonstrating how the cards worked. They are splitting their profits between the Ukraine Red Cross and the Sepsis Trust.
People’s Choice Award: Kids Camp (Pool Hayes Primary School)
Kids Camp that ran afterschool events both indoor and outdoor for their school peers, aimed at teaching new skills and enabling children to be more active. Healthy snacks were provided during the events, including some chocolate eggs for Easter events. The team has raised money for Cancer Research as the illness has impacted the team members personally. During this year’s Tycoon Marketplace, the team set our business guests challenges to choose from, either mental or physical, and awarding prizes of healthy drinks and snacks to those who participated. The team were eloquent when describing their business, and won our first People’s Choice Award by a landslide!
For more information about Tycoon visit: www.tycoon.com
For more information about the Peter Jones Foundation visit: www.peterjonesfoundation.org
For more information about the Sage Foundation visit: www.sage.com/en-gb/company/sage-foundation/