New Youth Business Hub Invests in Midland Start Up Loanees


Two of the co-founders of BizBritain Finance, a national delivery partner of the Start Up Loans Company have launched The Hot500, an inclusive entrepreneur hub network designed to support young people from the Midlands who are interested in starting their own business, alongside those who have received funding from the £112 million StartUp Loans funding scheme.

Midland entrepreneurs Joel Blake AGP and Gary Lennon co-founded The Hot500, to support the top 500 young entrepreneurs in the region, providing a peer to peer learning community that brings together StartUp Loan recipients, aspiring entrepreneurs from local colleges and universities, young people who have never been to university and young people from disadvantaged communities.

The Hot500 Club is free for 16 - 35 year olds and provides a peer mastermind programme for young people, alongside 121 mentoring support, business and personal development training, talent showcasing and motivational seminars from business and community leaders.

The Hot500 also works with local enterprise education providers, to help them measure the impact of their activity and create cross sector partnerships that are focused on supporting young people.

In January 2013, both Joel and Gary teamed up with leading UK young entrepreneur Matt Gubba, to form BizBritain Finance, a company that was successful in securing £1.75 million pounds as a national delivery partner of the Start Up Loans Company.

The Hot500 will be operated from the Midlands but will work alongside BizBritain Finance, creating a national network that connects aspiring young entrepreneurs with other young entrepreneurs from across the UK, regardless of their level of business experience, difference in background or academic ability.

Joel Blake AGP, Co-Founder of the Hot500 said: “The Hot500 is a place where young people can feel confident about their own entrepreneurial journey, gain access to finance through the StartUp Loans to kick-start their own business and receive the right type of personalised support, that is so often overlooked in business”.

The Hot500 Business Awards will also be taking place on Wednesday 24th April 2013. This will be a black tie event, rewarding young people who have turned their passion into a successful business – guest speaker on the night will be star of the BBC Hit TV Series The Apprentice in 2012, Nick Holzer.

Award nominees on the night include StartUp Loan Youth Ambassador Jodie Cole and BizBritain Ambassador (West Midlands) Chloe Tomalin.

For more information about The Hot500 Business Awards and how to become a Hot500 member, please visit our website.  

Finance News