News
Tuesday 22 January 2008
Speeding to a million
A student is well on his way to making his first million with the help of a university initiative which aims to encourage entrepreneurship. Nottingham Trent University undergraduate Kawsar Miah has developed a money-spinning business exporting electronic products to Bangladesh, as part of the Student Placements of Entrepreneurs in Education (SPEED) project.
SPEED, based in the University’s business incubation unit, The Hive, offered the 22-year-old Business Studies student an alternative to working for someone else during his placement year in industry – and supported him in setting up his own electronics company Digicom Solutions Ltd. The business is now set to hit the million pound mark after just a year of trading.
Kawsar realised the potential for his business – which trades electronic goods including plasma screens, digital cameras, games consoles, laptops and mobile phones – after a family trip to Bangladesh.
He said: “I realised the country had developed rapidly since my last visit in 1996. With significant growth in the electronics market, consumers were now buying on a regular basis but were paying a lot more for their electronic goods when compared to the UK. I decided to undercut the inflated prices that consumers were paying, and set up my business.”
After three months of trading Kawsar decided to turn the company’s attention to the UK, when the Bangladeshi government handed power over to the army and exports to the country were halted and taxes more than doubled.
“I knew that I had to adjust the business although we do still trade in Asia on occasion,” said Kawsar.
“I’m pleased to say that the company has since gone from strength to strength, and what started a year ago as a business venture with just three customers and two suppliers, has now grown to accommodate 40 distributors and suppliers servicing more than 60 customers.
“Juggling work between the business and university has been a challenge. The Hive has helped me overcome the obstacles that can often stand in the way when starting up a new business. Its support and expertise has been invaluable, and I’m glad I took the opportunity that SPEED gave me to establish my business.”
Phil Clarke Student Liaison Enterprise Adviser for The Hive said: “What makes Kawsar stand out is his single mindedness and commitment to the rigours of establishing his own business. The rewards for all of this hard work are reflected in the well-deserved success of Digicom Solutions.”
Following his graduation later this year, Kawsar plans to expand Digicom Solutions Ltd into the European Market, develop the company’s product range and set up a fully functional e-commerce website.
ENDS
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