There’s a great opportunity for young people in the community to get some business experience under their belt and even create their own enterprise, thanks to an initiative being spearheaded by Sapphire Daly under the Emerald Adventure Project or EAP.
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EAP aims to operate as a business centre focusing on teaching business and life skills, using the premises formerly operating as Spice and Cream Patisserie as its base. While the aim of the initiative is to equip young people with business skills and experience and then have them pitch their own business ideas to get funding, the first project starts off with the business idea already in action, to kickstart the process.
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It will take the form of an Italian restaurant run by the trainees, under the guidance of Ms Daly. They may start off in less skilled roles, depending on their experience, but with the opportunity to gain experience in all aspects of the business and build a well-rounded resume.
Ms Daly said she has participated in many business courses herself only to discover that she needed the most support once the course had concluded.
“I’ve had meltdowns in the store cupboard, trying to get to the ‘Emerald City’ and achieve financial freedom,” she said, hence the name of the project.
She aims to build a system where young people receive training over an eight-week course, and then develop ideas as to what enterprises they could develop in Tenterfield. Ideas that get the go-ahead will receive seed-funding from EAP, hopefully going on to generate funds to support more new enterprises to create a web of youth-driven small businesses in the district.
Ms Daly said course graduates will have to pitch their ideas to an EAP forum, much like on the television series Shark Tank. Should an idea show promise but need more development, the young person will be mentored to create a better business plan.
“It could be anything, as long as youth reaps the reward,” Ms Daly said.
“A paintball event, t-shirt business… Success doesn’t discriminate on age.”
She said the kids need to identify what they are passionate about, and couple this with what customers want, and then EAP will fund them.
The project is open to everyone, as long as they’re willing to listen and have a go.
“We’re not excluding adults, but focussing on youth,” Ms Daly said.
It costs $197 for the eight-week entrepreneurial training, which Ms Daly said takes participants from ‘zero to hero’ in understanding business. She doesn’t want to shut the door on those who may not be able to afford this, saying there may be opportunities for them to volunteer their time instead.
The group has weekly sessions that fit around school and extracurricular activities, with events or extra exercises on the weekend.
“It’s important that we get the kids that want to be there,” she said.
There are 13 participants going through the course at the moment, using the restaurant for practical training.
“We want to build up a community that helps them,” Ms Daly said.
“We want to make sure kids get heard. They are so undervalued.”
The youth-run restaurant La Tavola opens its doors at 5pm across from the Tenterfield Pool on Thursday, July 19. Ms Daly said she’ll be doing most of the legwork until the enterprise is running like clockwork, and then she’ll take a step back until the youngsters are filling every role.
“It’s a community thing, and we want to try to make an impact.”
