Member Article

Young Chester-le-Street entrepreneur's fitness and nutrition store ambitions

A young businessman from Chester-le-Street received the helping hand he needed when he decided to launch his own nutrition and fitness venture thanks to start-up programme Ready for Business.

Having studied health and fitness at Newcastle College, Michael Weston, 22 years old, decided to combine his studies with experience of working in sales to launch Blast Nutrition in Chester-le-Street.

Blast Nutrition retails a range of sports supplements, protein powders and multivitamins which have been designed to support health and fitness enthusiasts participating in a variety of sports and workout programmes.

Customers to the store on West Lane were treated to an appearance by Daniel Singh of Houghton-le-Spring - otherwise known as Warrior on hit TV show Gladiators - whose range of products are stocked at Blast Nutrition.

Like many people looking to start their own business, Michael wanted to be sure of receiving the best advice and upon a recommendation from a friend spoke to James Craft at enterprise agency TEDCO Business Support who introduced him to the Ready for Business programme.

Ready for Business, the investment ready start-up programme that supports new enterprises across the UK, has delivered more than 1,500 new jobs nationwide since its launch last summer, with over 200 jobs created in the North East alone.

The programme is supported by the Government’s Regional Growth Fund and Barclays and is delivered by the Cavendish Consortium, a partnership between some of England’s leading enterprise agencies together with the National Enterprise Network.

It provides individuals with concentrated support in the pre-start stages of their new business including intensive enterprise training via free Get Ready for Business Seminars delivered in partnership with Barclays, one-on-one help from a dedicated business advisor to explore and assess their business ideas and expert analysis into developing a business plan.

Michael Weston said: “I have always had an interest in health and fitness and was keen to develop my own business which allowed me to utilise my qualifications with my own extensive sales experience. Whilst I was confident about the retail aspect of the business, I felt it was essential to get guidance on the intricacies involved in actually running your own venture. James gave me real confidence, not only in the commercial strength of my idea, but also in pointing me in the right direction to get the information I needed to make the right decisions.

“Business is going well and in the first few weeks since opening, sales have significantly exceeded targets and I have received strong and positive feedback from customers. I am now starting to build up a regular client base and I’m working with local gyms and fitness studios to look at developing new contacts.”

Michael – with the support of his business partner Chris Timmins from F1 Signs & Digital in Team Valley - has ambitious plans for the future with the establishment of other Blast Nutrition branches across the North East and the development of his own brand protein powder high on the agenda.

He also plans to take on an additional member of staff to focus on the retail outlet in Chester-le-Street which will enable him to focus more of his attention on the development of the business and expand his customer base within the region.

James Craft, business advisor at TEDCO Business Support said: “Establishing your own business takes not only commercial acumen but a huge amount of passion and dedication. As well as actually being able to get your idea off the ground, you also need a clear vision for how you want the business to develop and put in place the right foundations to ensure you create a thriving enterprise.

“Blast Nutrition is a prime example of the type of operation that Ready for Business is designed to assist with guidance offered not only in the crucial early stages, but on-going support and tailored advice that unlike other programmes, goes beyond the initial start-up phase.”

For more information on Ready for Business or to find out about the series of free Barclays Get Ready for Business seminars running throughout the region please visit www.startupedge.co.uk.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tom Keighley .