Huddersfield's young business stars of the future are to get a helping hand.
The town has been chosen to take part in one of the country’s biggest regeneration projects.
It is one of 10 UK towns that will take part in TestTown 2015, to help create a new wave of responsible young entrepreneurs, lower unemployment and simultaneously boost local regeneration.
Each will host an enterprise challenge between July and November, with each tailored to local economic needs. Finalists from each town will then come together to compete in a national final with the winning business awarded the title of ‘UK Towns Entrepreneur of the Year’ and a £10,000 Investment.
Huddersfield plans a ‘Welcome to Huddersfield’ weekend on October 10 and 11, when new students and town centre shoppers can follow a guided trail around the town centre, showcasing independent businesses. Over the same weekend Alternative Market stallholders aged between 13 and 29 will be offered the opportunity use empty shops to maximise the impact of the town centre.
TestTown has become the UK and Ireland’s biggest accelerator programme for young entrepreneurs with fresh ideas for rejuvenating the country’s town centres. In the last two years, TestTown has helped inject £200,000 into start-ups, supported 150 entrepreneurs and helped get 45 new local businesses off the ground.
Jim Metcalfe, TestTown Programme Leader at the Carnegie UK Trust, said: “Conditions are still tough for town economies across the country, and youth unemployment is becoming a systemic challenge. TestTown is all about helping people to harness entrepreneurial flare at the local level. It also provides an opportunity to connect town centre entrepreneurs with the challenges facing the high street, making them real partners and contributors to improving local communities.
“We are looking forward to monitoring the results of this year’s programme and wish Huddersfield the very best of luck with their event. We hope that as well as helping local town centres think about innovative ways to boost local trading, we can also encourage our entrepreneurs of tomorrow to make that bold step towards becoming their own boss.”
Clr Peter McBride, Cabinet Member for Transportation, Jobs, Skills and Regional Affairs said “I am pleased to see that Huddersfield has been chosen to take part in the TestTown initiative. The project we have put forward is designed to showcase the town centre and our young entrepreneurs over the weekend to students and town centre shoppers.
“We have some really inspiring independent businesses in the town centre and we need to make sure people know they are there. Bringing in the Alternative Market stallholders to our vacant premises will really show what our town centre can offer to shoppers”.
