Nelson and Colne College is thrilled to announce that A Level student Ameena Bibi has received a national award from Dragons’ Den star Peter Jones CBE! This recognises her outstanding achievement in sustainability in the nationwide enterprise competition Tycoon in Schools.
Ameena, whose company “Occasions by Ameena” makes and sells bespoke candles and other products, wowed the entrepreneur with her savvy business skills, generating fantastic profits from her original loan of seed funding.
The enterprising student fought off stiff competition from more than 112 teams to win a Tycoon in Schools special award. Students taking part in the completion wrote a funding application to apply for a loan from the Peter Jones Foundation and those who were successful were given four weeks to trade and make as much profit as they could. As well as her significant return on the original seed funding, judges were impressed by Occasions by Ameena’s unique products, which were decorated with henna designs and were a clear hit with customers. Ameena sold her products in College during her lunch breaks and at Open Events, in addition to markets and fetes across Pendle.
Peter Jones CBE commented: “This business has huge potential not only locally but within other retailers and market fairs where these types of products are in great demand. I’ve no doubt that this business will continue to be successful and make money.
“I am thrilled that so many of the teams plan to continue trading their business, as it shows that this campaign has real legacy. As a country we need to do more to encourage enterprise and through this competition I believe we can help nurture entrepreneurial talent from the earliest opportunity in schools.”
Ameena Bibi, founder of Occassions by Ammena, said, “I am so pleased to be a winner. Tycoon in Schools has given me a platform with which to continue my business – I am doing something I love and making money out of it.” 17 year old Ameena Bibi is currently completing A Levels in Accounting, Business Studies and Sociology, as well as completing AS Level Mathematics. She hopes to go to university in Manchester to study a Business Management related degree. She went on to say, “Taking part in the competition has been a fantastic opportunity– it has strengthened skills I have gained whilst studying Business and will hopefully look great on my university application!”
Justine Thatcher, Curriculum Leader, Business at Nelson and Colne College said “All the hard work and long hours have paid off. Dedication and an ambitious character have been secret to her success! I am immensely proud of Ameena; this has been a fantastic opportunity, which has set her off on the right path to becoming a successful entrepreneur. The entire College has supported Ameena and we couldn’t be more pleased for her”.
The winning teams will be presented with their trophies and certificates at a special ceremony in the New Year by His Royal Highness the Duke of York, KG, Patron, Peter Jones Foundation.
The Business studies department at Nelson and Colne College Sixth Form is dedicated to instilling an ethos of enterprise and entrepreneurship in its students and was therefore thrilled to learn of Ameena’s achievement. The College already has an enviable reputation for competition success in the area of Business and it is clear that students of the College are well-placed to become the next generation of business leaders in East Lancashire, the UK and even internationally!
