Matt Willmers from Yarm came to Five Lamps in April 2014 for help in developing his business idea for a Security Alarm installation business
Matt had experience in this field but had never been self-employed and was slightly daunted by the prospect.
Ian Garforth Five Lamps Enterprise Coach gave Matt one to one guidance, support and advice over a period of two months.
He also informed Matt that because he was currently claiming Job Seekers Allowance, he qualified for the New Enterprise Allowance programme which would pay him £1270 over 26 weeks as a new business start-up.
Following some thorough preparation work, market research and having completed a Business Plan, Matt felt confident about the sustainability of this venture. He also attended Five Lamps’ ‘We Mean Business’ workshops which covered subjects like finding and keeping customers, how to maximise social media, planning the business, book keeping, self-assessment and tax.
Matt started ‘Be Alarmed’ two months after his initial enquiry and has had a good start with a healthy workflow.
Matt said:
“The support and advice provided by Five Lamps was exactly what I needed in order to give me the confidence that going self-employed can work! I was provided with expert advice by my mentor Ian Garforth, from the start right to the very end. From Ian’s support in conjunction with attending the workshops I could then develop my business idea & implement the information provided and knowledge gained in order to form the starting blocks for my business strategy”
The NEA contract is delivered by Five Lamps and is part funded by the European Union, ERDF fund.