Thestudio supports business start-up.
A young Birmingham entrepreneur is hoping to taste success as she launches a brand new savoury snack business with the help of city centre meeting and events venue thestudio.
Asma Inayat, a 20 year old Pharmacy student at Aston University, has fused the original ‘desi’ taste of the east with a touch of western influence to create Desi-licious Bites, which she aims to launch with the support of studio director Emma Jennings.
Emma has been mentoring Asma through the Birmingham Skills for Enterprise and Employability Network (BSEEN), which helps students and young graduates to start up their own profit-making businesses or social enterprises. As a Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses graduate, and with her expertise in running thestudio, Emma’s business knowledge and passion for start-ups has provided Asma with a solid foundation to grow her own business.
Asma was born in Pakistan and spent some of her childhood in Saudi Arabia before moving to the UK in 2006, enabling her to combine her eastern heritage and western life to create great-tasting homemade savouries with a twist. Specialising in spring rolls, samosas and bread rolls with interesting and ambitious flavours, Asma draws inspiration from family recipes to create her freshly produced Desi-licious Bites.
Currently a mobile business which can be found at various food festivals and cultural events around the city, Asma’s future plans for Desi-licious Bites include working with shopping centres to place her stall in high footfall areas selling her food directly to consumers.
Asma said: “I’ve always been interested in business throughout school and sixth form, so when this opportunity came about after a chance encounter with one of the BSEEN judges at an event earlier this year, everything fell into place.
“Emma has been invaluable in developing my business plan, and as a city centre venue which has an excellent catering team, it was a great match. I was even given the opportunity to provide some samples at thestudio’s recent Halloween party, which was fantastic exposure for me and the business. Emma’s insight and experience has really ticked all of the boxes and I couldn’t be more grateful for her support.”
Emma Jennings, who regularly hosts BSEEN events at thestudio’s unique and innovative four-storey facility on Cannon Street, added: “Asma is a very passionate and ambitious young entrepreneur, and to have the opportunity to get on board at the early stages and help her business reach its full potential is really rewarding. I look forward to seeing how the plans develop over the coming months, and have no doubt that Asma will be very successful in this venture.”
Business mentoring is a key element of the BSEEN programme, which is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund and Aston University as lead partner in collaboration with Birmingham City University and the University of Birmingham.
Thestudio, provides a selection of creative and colourful spaces that can be adapted to suit any event. With state-of-the-art rooms and facilities able to cater for between two and 250 people, incorporating signature breakout zones, thestudio provides a refreshingly simple and unique approach to organising and hosting events.
For more information, or to discuss how thestudio can deliver your next meeting or event, visit www.studiovenues.co.uk or call 0121 634 2800.
For more information about Desi-licious Bites, visit www.desiliciousbites.wordpress.com.