Cash boost for Derry fashion designers after Dragon's Den-style 'pitch' to Prince's Trust

Derry fashion designers, Leona Cregan and Kyree Forrest from the Fashion and Design Hub on Shipquay Street have received a welcome financial boost to their business after winning the The Prince’s Pitch – a Dragon’s Den-style competition run by the Prince's Trust - with ACA Model Agency owner, Alison Clarke. The Prince’s Pitch offers young entrepeneurs the opportunity to pitch their business ideas to a selected panel of judges to earn grants of up to £500; This year, the panel of NI business leaders was headed by celebrity Alison Clarke.

After presenting their ideas to the panel, both young women were successful in gaining the maximum £500 award to help their business progress. Before applying for the competition, Leona and Kyree, both completed The Prince’s Trust four-day Explore Enterprise course..

The programme offered them a chance to learn the fundamental aspects of starting and running a business plus they both received grants to research their idea further. With the start-up finance from the Prince’s Trust, Leona has since launched her business, Elsie Tweed, selling a selection of hand crafted scarves. She also receives support from a Business Mentor volunteer assigned by The Trust.

Meanwhile, Kyree (pictured) is focusing on building her Autumn/Winter 2016 collection so that she can present her clothing range to buyers in the coming months. She said: “I would definitely recommend this programme to give a better understanding of how a business is run”