An increasing number of young Britons would rather start–up their own company than work for someone else, according to new research.
A poll of 1,000 people aged between 16 and 25 showed that half are planning to go it alone instead of pursuing a more traditional career by working for a boss.
Young men are the likeliest to take the plunge into self-employment, with 63 per cent saying they want to start their own company, compared to just 44 per cent of women.
The study, commissioned by qualification body City & Guilds, reveals that those wanting to become a freelancer or entrepreneur have started associating with their self- employed role models to get ahead of the competition.
It found that 48 per cent of respondents know someone under 30 who already owns their own business, prompting a further 70 per cent to admit they had “very ambitious” plans as a self-employed person.
This was mirrored in the poll by the 500 or so youngsters admitting they want to become millionaires, just like their preferred business icons Sir Richard Branson, Jamie Oliver and Bill Gates.
“It’s reassuring to see that many young people today are extremely ambitious and possess real entrepreneurial spirit,” said Chris Humphries, director-general of City & Guilds.
“It’s vital that, as a society, we encourage our young people to fulfil their vision by giving them as much support, guidance and skills as possible, as this will ultimately benefit them and the British economy.”
But, he said, it was vital for young aspiring entrepreneurs to develop a business plan or a blueprint for their enterprise before they embarked on turning their ideas into a commercial success.
“Starting up a business is challenging and rewarding. However, we would advise anybody taking this route to think about it carefully and make sure that they’ve got as much advice and information as possible. With the right training, planning and drive it’s more than possible to achieve your goal in life.”
The news comes just one month after the Junior Achievement Young Enterprise scheme held its first awards ceremony to celebrate outstanding records of achievement among 500 young entrepreneurs from 20 different countries.
At the event heralded to commend “entrepreneurial spirit,” a panel of business judges assessed each student company or entrepreneur on innovation, originality and presentation of products and services.
Reward for the best company went to ‘The Sticks’ – a group of students from Norway who have designed their own colourful and custom-made walking sticks for young people.
Phillip Borresen set up the company in September 2004 with his two classmates Christian Furuland and Andre Bang Hamza, as part of a scheme developed by the JAYE initiative.
“This is fun to do,” said Borresen. “The sticks are specially designed by us. We hope that this will become a popular item for young people.”
The three entrepreneurs, who are in full time education studying to become carpenters, also won the prize for best business plan - market analysis and innovative product.
Elsewhere at the ceremony, Innovation Footwear won best stand for developing innovative shoes for children that can become one size bigger when the child’s foot grows.
Best marketing campaign was secured by Team Time imoresa JA - which has developed a car key ring with a built-in reminder system that can also be used for other reminders like cooking and appointments.
Meanwhile, best product at the show went to the Swedish firm - Ung Musik UF – which designs background music CDs for companies seeking an ambient mood in their place of business.
Mariann Fischer Boel of the Danish European Commissioner said: “I am very impressed with all the young people around, they seem to be very enthusiastic and motivated. I think JA-YE is doing a good job and I really support the idea of giving young people the possibility of getting entrepreneurship education.”
Observers say such schemes are welcome given the fact that entrepreneurial spirit remains fragile in the EU, with 45 % of Europeans saying they prefer self-employment to being employed.
This is compounded by the Commission’s Innovation Scoreboard, which shows that Europe lags behind the US in 10 out of 11 key innovation tests.
Apr 20, 2005
Email this article
Printer friendly page
Previous Page
