Entrepreneurs’ Selection Assessment Announced for New Branson Centre Caribbean
MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica, June 30, 2011 /PRNewswire/ –
Applications for the Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship Caribbean closed
earlier this month and, after attracting over 5,000 visits to the Centre’s
website, 20 hopefuls have now been invited to attend a special assessment
day with Virgin Holidays and Virgin Unite on 4th July 2011, to demonstrate
if they have what it takes to be the ‘Caribbean Richard Branson’.
The Centre, a collaboration between Virgin Unite, the non-profit
foundation of the Virgin Group and Virgin Holidays, the UK’s number one long
haul holiday company, will open this September in Montego Bay, and will
support local entrepreneurs to create and grow small businesses, ultimately
generating jobs for the region.
July’s assessment day will be attended by Amanda Wills, Virgin Holidays’
Managing Director and Virgin Unite’s CEO, Jean Oelwang, as well as the
Branson Centre – Caribbean team itself. Candidates will be required to take
part in a series of interviews, pitches and group exercises before being
notified later in the month as to whether they have been successful.
The Branson Centre’s mission is a comprehensive one. Rather than
attempting to teach ‘entrepreneurship’, it will seek to provide aspiring
entrepreneurs with practical business skills, mentors to share their
experiences and access to financing opportunities to enable growth. In doing
so, it will support the sustainable development of small businesses and jobs
in the Caribbean. Jamaican entrepreneur Patrick Casserly will lead the
centre as Interim Chairman.
Virgin Holidays [http://www.virginholidays.co.uk ], which sends hundreds
of thousands of customers to the Caribbean each year, is the lead business
sponsor of the Centre and has committed almost $3.5 million over the next
decade to support the initiative. Managing Director, Amanda Wills, comments:
“We’re delighted with the number of applications we’ve received and I can’t
wait to meet our aspiring entrepreneurs next month.
“However, although applications have closed, the door remains open to
businesses and mentors to get involved. We would love to hear from
experienced entrepreneurs who believe they can contribute to this fantastic
initiative – whether by donating time, expertise or seed funding – and urge
anyone who wants to know more to get in touch so they can help nurture the
new business ideas that will form the future of tourism in the Caribbean.”
The Branson Centre’s Chief Development Director, Lisa Lake said: “It’s a
really exciting time for the Branson Centre – Caribbean. We are eager to
support high-potential entrepreneurs that can make a huge difference not
only to their immediate families and communities, but also to the
Caribbean’s economic growth in the long term. Entrepreneurs need a variety
of support mechanisms and we are looking for others to join us in this
initiative to bring about real impact.”
Virgin Unite CEO, Jean Oelwang, comments: “We are really looking forward
to working with some great entrepreneurs in the Caribbean. We’ve got a
fabulous team at the Branson Centre who will ensure that these budding
businesses turn out to be great success stories. We would love to join
forces with partners and business leaders who share in this exciting vision
to help create thousands of new jobs in the Caribbean.”
For more information on getting involved in the Centre as a business or
mentor visit http://www.bransoncentre.org/caribbean or email:
enquiries.caribbean@bransoncentre.org
About Virgin Unite:
Virgin Unite is the non-profit foundation of the Virgin Group. We unite
people to tackle tough social and environmental problems in an
entrepreneurial way. Our aim is to help revolutionize the way businesses,
government and the social sector work together – driving business as a force
for good. This is based on the belief that this is the only way we can
tackle the scale and urgency of the challenges facing the world today.
Virgin Unite’s overheads are covered by Sir Richard Branson and the Virgin
Group, meaning that 100% of additional donations received go direct to the
frontline where they are needed most. For more information please visit
http://www.virginunite.com.
Follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/virginunite
Join the movement on Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Virgin-Unite
The first Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship was launched in
Johannesburg, South Africa in 2006, and has seen an array of successful
businesses funded, thrive and grow. These range from IT, fashion designers,
and a bespoke uniform supplier to small hotels to a gaming business that
equips young people with computer skills, as well as providing a safe
environment for them to play the latest video games. These businesses have
created jobs in their local communities and inspired a new generation of
entrepreneurs.
About Virgin Holidays:
Virgin Holidays is the UK’s leading Worldwide Holiday Company with all
inclusive holidays [http://www.virginholidays.co.uk/info/about/all_inclusive
], last minute holidays [http://www.virginholidays.co.uk/special_offers ] and
beach holidays [http://www.virginholidays.co.uk/info/about/beach_holidays ].
Offering adventures to the USA, the Caribbean, Africa, the Middle and Far
East, the Indian Ocean and Australasia.
As one of the top travel companies in the UK, Virgin Holidays strives to
deliver amazing holiday experiences to all customers. Formed in 1985
following the creation of Virgin Atlantic, and built on the Virgin
principles of excellent customer service, high quality and value for money,
Virgin Holidays offers maximum convenience and flexibility with an emphasis
on fun and excitement.
The brand is particularly known for its ‘brilliant basics and magic
touches’ approach and is synonymous with honesty and reliability. The
company is proud of its commitment to encouraging sustainability in travel
and has led the market in introducing numerous innovations to ensure
customers ‘give back’ to the destinations they visit. For more information
please visit http://www.virginholidays.co.uk.
SOURCE Virgin Holidays