Tauranga Girls take regional enterprise title

From left, Jacqui Morgan, Emily McCarthy, Shannon Lee and Lauryn Hill of Perpetuum Enterprise. PHOTO/JOHN BORREN

A young enterprise team from Tauranga Girls College, Perpetuum, has been named the winner of the 2014 Young Enterprise Scheme (YES) Regional Awards.

The team of six, made up of Jessica Corkery, 18, Kaylie Hunt, 18, Emily McCarthy, 17, Lauryn Hill, 17, Shannon Lee, 17 and Jacqui Morgan, 17, got together and formed their business Perpetuum Enterprise to compete for the national competition.

Through their business, the girls designed a financial literacy cellphone app targeted at young people.

Chief executive Emily said the group came up with the idea so youth could make the most of the opportunities of life without financial barriers. They wanted to make the app free so it would reach a large number of people.

Understanding that young people leaving home for the first time were probably not up to speed with what was necessary or what was on offer, Perpetuum saw a gap in the market.

They created an app that appealed in look and feel to the young market, then pitched it first Westpac and then ASB.

Perpetuum will now head to the Young Enterprise Scheme national awards in Wellington in December.

Added to this Emily was also named CAANZ Managing Director of the Year.

The full list of winners:

Tauranga Regional Winner
Perpetumm - Tauranga Girls College

Regional Runner Up Award
Meant to Bee - Otumoetai College

Business Operations Award
Hex Chocolates - Tauranga Boys College

Customer Service Award
Cocoa Evolution - Aquinas College

Marketing Award
Walk the Dog - Otumoetai College

Manufacturing and Production Award
Element Design - Aquinas College

Innovation Award
Hire and Seek - Aquinas College

Sustainability Award
In Scentive Co - Katikati College

Sales Award
Evolve - Otumoetai College

Nationally the scheme had 129 schools, more than 600 companies and 2700 students.

Locally there were five schools, 18 teams and 130 students.

Regional co-ordinator Anne Pankhurst said, "what is particularly exciting is the high standard of business ideas that our region produces".

"Innovation and sustainability feature very highly in each company, with some particularly innovative companies. The winner of the Regional Award will now travel to Wellington and present to a panel of Dragons Dens and are in the running for a National Excellence Award."

The runner up team was Meant to Bee from Otumoetai College, who wanted to promote the importance of the protection of bees through producing and selling a locally made natural lemon and honey dark Belgium chocolate.

They had the chocolates made in Whakatane with Scilla Chocolates, and then partnered with the Enviro Hub.