David’s micro business story.

David was keen to work and had some ideas about selling food and liked the idea of being self-employed. He worked with miEnterprise. David is a member of the Jobs First programme in Herefordshire.
We had some person centred business planning meetings. We found out what might work for David and what wouldn’t.
We came up with some ideas for a small business. This business would use some opportunities in David’s community. It would also be a business that we thought people would want.
miEnterprise helped David set up his business properly.
He is now running a small market at his local church’s coffee morning once a week. He is following family tradition as his grandfather was a grocer. miEnterprise helps him find some good local food products to sell. David then chooses what he wants to sell. We worked together to get the prices right. We support him to keep his accounts, get insured and all the other things a good business needs to think about and do.
David collects his products once a week from miEnterprise’s base and labels and bags products himself with support. Some people thought he would need support to use public transport to make this journey. David thought that if we met him a few times he could do this on his own. He now does this.
On his first week of trading David sold out in an hour and he is now expanding his product range. He enjoys dealing with his customers and was relaxed running his stall. As he is quite shy, and decided not to speak for a period of some years in the past this was a real achievement. People who know him well comment on how surprised and impressed they are with how well David makes decisions now.
David’s family really support him. It is very good that everyone works together.
He now has some ideas to expand his business by operating a delivery service in his community. This would include customers who find it difficult to shop independently. He has also had some training in baking his own bread and is now exploring that as a new business and he has been asked if he would be interested in running another market in Hereford.
David’s parent’s say: “After all these years it is a great joy to us to see David with the confidence to start making his own decisions and smiling and so relaxed running his business in the local community. You could say it has been a life changing experience for all of us, family friends and community”.