Working for yourself

Now he is living his dream after attending a Croydon Enterprise workshop tailored for people just like him.

James graduated with a graphic design degree from Warwick University and has been looking for a career ever since.

By his own admission he was stuck in a rut and could see no way of moving forward in his proposed field. But when he went to the job centre six weeks ago he saw a leaflet advertising a Start your own business' Croydon Enterprise workshop to be held in Crystal Palace.

James had always wanted his own business but had always seen it as an impossibility with the high cost of set up fees. But he could not resist the temptation to see what the workshop was all about.

He said: "Just when I was starting to think things could only get worse, the Croydon Enterprise workshop came along and removed the barriers that were in the way of me starting my own business.

"In just six weeks I have gone from being unemployed with little prospects, to having a registered company and trading within Croydon."

James is now keen to expand his business, Gambler 132 Media, which produces media design websites. He is specifically targeting advertising agencies and offering a one-to-one service for the clients he already has on his books.

After the success of his trip to the first workshop James now intends to attend further sessions offered by the service, including ways to grow a business.

He added: "I didn't have a clue how to get started with my business idea and the workshop definitely helped me with this and gave me a lot of valuable information."

Croydon Enterprise was developed after consultation with local people and businesses which highlighted barriers including a lack of suitable finance and premises, the poor reputation of deprived areas and lack of ethnic minority role models. It is part of the LEGI scheme.

For information on the workshops call 020 8680 6161 or view the Croydon Enterprise website on croydonenterprise.com.