CHRISTMAS has come early for young entrepreneurs whose enterprising ideas have won them £1,000 in an annual schools competition.
Team Tempest from Bede Academy, in Blyth, walked away with the top prize in the Emmanuel Schools Foundation (ESF) Business Game after a week developing their company around a tracker device product for children.
The team - Anna Bower, Bethany Appleby, Taylor Glover, Terence Bell, Joe Fell, Liam Watson and Jay Cook - each had a role in the company and carried out market research, forecasted financials, honed the product and worked on sales, marketing and branding during Global Entrepreneurship Week.
The Business Game is held each year by ESF for students in Year 9 at each of the four schools in the Foundation.
The eight themes students could choose from included wearable technology, a new brand of chocolate or breakfast cereal, a new app, or a product or service to benefit pets, to use on the beach or to help parents of children aged under three.
After working on their ideas three teams from each school - Bede Academy, Emmanuel College, in Gateshead, The King's Academy, Middlesbrough, and Trinity Academy, Doncaster - presented to a Dragons' Den-style panel of judges.
After questioning each team, the judges selected a shortlist of five before announcing the eventual winner, Tempest, and runners-up Just Pink, from Emmanuel College, who received £500. All three teams from Bede Academy made the finalists' shortlist.
Tempest's tracker device is aimed at children aged two-ten who might go missing in a shopping centre or crowded place, and also to help the careers of older people suffering from dementia.
Managing director of Tempest Anna Bower explained: "Madeleine McCann had been in the news again and we all have older relatives and have heard stories of people with dementia going missing, so that was the starting point. We all worked well together and we're really pleased to win a share of £1,000 each."
Judge Jennifer Welford, of London-based accountancy practice Accounts and Legal, said: "Tempest's presentation really stood out. We really liked the product because they didn't just go down the children route; they thought about it and expanded their market to the elderly as well."
Chairman of judges Malcolm Williams added: "All the teams came up with some great ideas and had obviously put a lot of hard work into their businesses. It was very difficult to choose a winner and runner-up because the ideas were so diverse. They should all be very proud of what they achieved in just a week."
Business studies teacher at Bede Academy Jennifer Bell said: “Team Tempest’s idea was brilliant and they completely sold it to the judges with a persuasive presentation. All in all, it was a great day for Bede Academy.”
King's Academy maths and business teacher Amy Williams, who runs the competition each year, said: "Whether it was clever clothing, an app to defrost your car or an earpiece to make emergency calls, all the teams went down the technology route and came up with products to make our lives easier, safer or more comfortable."
The other judges were businessman Rob Carson, retired primary head teacher Sue Fox and Diane Ritchie, project manager for Network Rail.