Member Article

Baldwins backs North East expansion with opportunities for young entrepreneurs

North East upcoming entrepreneurs are being invited to take advantage of potential five figure investments, as applications for Baldwins Accountants’ KickStart Young Entrepreneur Awards have opened in the region for the first time.

The awards, which have ran for four years in the Midlands, encourage 18 to 25-year-olds to present ideas and business plans with the winner securing a £10,000 grant and £10,000 worth of mentoring and accountancy advice.

The two runners up will also be presented with £5,000 worth of mentoring and accountancy advice. Applications will be whittled down to ten semi-finalists who will be invited to present their business idea to Baldwins’ senior management.

From here, three lucky finalists will be invited to present their ideas in front of a live audience at a Gala dinner on 16 November 2017 at Edgbaston Cricket Ground in Birmingham. The eventual winner is voted for by the audience.

The expansion of the KickStart Young Entrepreneur Awards into the North East follows Baldwins’ recent arrival in the region after joining forces with accountancy firms Rowlands Accountants, Alnwick Accountants and Evolution.

David Baldwin, director of Baldwins Accountants, said: “Bringing through the next generation of entrepreneurs is really important to us, and while these awards are all about celebrating our country’s young entrepreneurs, it also provides us with the chance to offer each of our ten semi-finalists advice on how to take their idea to the next level.

“All of our winners over the past years are doing well, growing their businesses and we are proud to have played a part in that.”

The deadline for entries into the KickStart Young Entrepreneur Awards is 31 August 2017.