Be Your Own Boss

Are you a young parent in Kent or Medway, aged between 18 and 25?

Do you want to run your own business but aren't sure where to start?

Or would you like to learn new business skills to support your career plans?

Then why not sign up for our Be Your Own Boss youth entrepreneurship programme?

Our team will help you learn the skills you'll need to achieve your goals.

A young woman standing with folded arms in a professional kitchen.

What is Be Your Own Boss?

Be Your Own Boss is our youth entrepreneurship programme. It aims to support young adults (aged 18 to 25) in exploring what it means to run their own business, in a supportive group of like-minded individuals.

Our team, alongside local charities and community interest companies, provide participants with sessions covering the essential aspects of entrepreneurship including:

Developing a low-cost business idea
Understanding your customers
Building your brand & marketing
Balancing revenue and costs
Planning a product launch event

Each session is structured around a group business project: developing a sustainable, plant-based product. This will help you understand how each session applies to the real-world and makes Be Your Own Boss feel more comfortable than a classroom environment.

A man and a young woman wearing aprons standing in a professional kitchen talking to another woman across the serving bar.

Who are our Partners?

These sessions are delivered with charities and community interest companies located in the hearts of their respective communities, providing a warm and welcoming environment.

Be Your Own Boss – Folkestone, designed specifically for young parents, is delivered in partnership with community hub, Sunflower House.

For Be Your Own Boss - Margate, we partnered with The Perfect Place to Grow, a café and training kitchen in Margate, designed to help young people in Thanet into full-time employment.

Be Your Own Boss - Medway, was delivered in partnership with The Sunlight Development Trust, a local charity who work closely with the community to improve wellbeing.

A young man smiling and holding his hands up in front of a brick building.

What Should I Expect?

Over eight-weeks, participants receive sessions covering a range of business skills, food product development and the chance to build a supportive community network.

You will get help to develop a new food and drink business idea, receive training on marketing, finance and product development, and hear from industry experts.

At the end of the eight-week programme, you will be invited to attend a celebration event with friends, family and the community to try the food that has been developed and hear from the people involved in the programme.

Three young women smiling and holding certificates in front of a garden hedge.

How do I get Involved?

Be Your Own Boss Folkestone runs from 6^th October to 27^th November and applications are now open. If you are a young parent aged 18 to 25 and interested in taking part, please contact us for an informal chat to find out more.

[email protected]

Sessions will run on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays and last between 30 minutes and two hours.

A young man and his female support worker preparing food in a professional kitchen.