Two young sisters who turned to St Basils for help after being made homeless, this week took the first step on the Business ladder by launching their own trading company, Manning’s Supplies, which sells household essentials.
Sharmah and Sharelle have long dreamed about starting their own business. They are fans of BBC TV series The Apprentice and like Lord Sugar are starting off with their own market stall which opened for its first day of business on 20th September.
Sharmah said “We know it’ll be a long journey, it’s all about building up slowly and getting established, trying out different lines and seeing what sells. The dream is to have a shop one day with lots of stock… we just really want to make something of our lives”.
St Basils is the largest charity in the West Midlands working with young people aged 16-25 who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. As well as services aimed at preventing homelessness, it has 27 supported accommodation schemes to house young people but encourages those staying at its projects to think about the future and get involved in Life skills or Learning, Skills and Work programmes.
Sharmah and Sharelle have been working hard on their dream for the last year and a half. Sharmah attended Business mentoring Sessions organised by the Chamber of Commerce, they researched the local competition and put together a Business Plan. They applied for the finance to set up their business but in the current climate with many such schemes being inundated, they were turned down. Not to be deterred though they have spent the summer selling toys and whistles at Carnivals and have recently tapped into the New Enterprise Award allowance to give them the capital needed to pay for the rent of the stall, buying supplies, marketing and renting their own van to transport the items.
Sharmah said of her experience at St Basils; “Staying at St Basils gave me the stability I need to think about the future. We learnt a lot from the Life Skills programme such as how to manage our finances, spend wisely and how to budget. Used right, the services (at St Basils) provide the chance to turn your life around.”
Maria O’Mahoney who was Sharmah’s Support Worker said: “It’s been a long journey for them but it’s been very worthwhile. It’s been great to Sharmah grow in confidence and really start to believe in herself. She’s very determined and has always strived to be independent. I think they’re an inspiration to other young people”.
You can find Manning's Supplies in the Birmingham Rag Market on Tuesday's, Thursday's, Friday's and Saturday's.
