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Getting started with your side hustle

    Going in to business might feel like a leap into the unknown, but with a side hustle you can minimise the risk.

    Earning through a side hustle helps you earn extra an income while keeping paid employment and helps to maintain the cash flow as the new business establishes itself. With digital communities and marketplaces helping to fast track the route to market and allowing entrepreneurs to tap into a wider breadth of customers than ever before, more and more people are choosing to start side hustles, and seeing them grow.

    Vicki Broadbent has grown her blog, The Honest Mum, from a hobby and passion to her full-time commercial income. She is also the author of Mum Boss, which examines the opportunities you can unearth by unlocking spare time, often, while at home with a family.

    This session will explore the skills and support you will need to put your plans into action after Start-up Day, as well as practical tips on keeping up a side hustle while working the 9 to 5. If you have entrepreneurial ambition and a skill that can be monetised, join us and Vicki to hear about whether a side hustle start-up is the right option for you.

Speakers

Vicki Broadbent

Founder of Honest Mum

Lynne Robertson

Enterprise Education Lead and Sustainability Business Partner for Santander Business Banking

More Events

Purpose Driven Business – how to start and build a business with purpose


In support of the 15th anniversary of the Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN) and their annual Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) the Business & IP Centre will be hosting Purpose Driven Business, to celebrate the GEW 2022 theme of Grow With Purpose.

Our panel of speakers, representing a range of purpose-led businesses, will come together to share their expertise and business stories. They’ll question approaches from the past, challenge the status quo of today and discuss how all of these learnings can help build more resilient and focused businesses. We will discuss why having a ‘purpose’ is central to every start-up and how honing in on yours will help to drive growth and ensure your business thrives in the current climate.

About our panel:

Dr Liz Jackson MBE of BCMS is a motivational speaker and partially sighted business owner supporting the business communityJayni Gudka is the CEO of Unseen Tours, a provider of walking tours by formerly homeless guides who know the streets intimately and will show you the real LondonTasha Thompson is the founder Black Girls Do Run UK. Her business is changing the perception of running, and creating a safe space for black women in the health and fitness communityValerie Brandes of Jacaranda Books. Jacaranda books is a publishing company giving visibility for black and brown authorsModerated by Eni Timi Biu of Create Your Table

How to write your value proposition


London libraries are transforming the way ideas grow into successful businesses. By partnering with ten London boroughs, we are developing a community of new and existing business owners, which is free to join and open to everyone. Whether you are just setting out, need advice on protecting your intellectual property, or simply have a brilliant idea you want to discuss, we're here to guide you. Since April 2020, we have offered all of our Start-ups in London Libraries' services online, including our core workshops and virtual one-to-ones with our borough Business Champions, many of whom will be hosting sessions during Start-up Day. To find out more about Start-ups in London Libraries and how to join our thriving business community, visit bl.uk/SiLL.

Value propositions are incredibly valuable pieces of content, which allow you to communicate what your business is offering succinctly, and which can be used across marketing materials and pitches in the start-up stage of your business. Sarah Eschner, our SME Champion for Waltham Forest from the Start-ups in London Libraries programme will host this session where we will review how to incorporate all the important elements of your value proposition using a simple step-by-step process.

This masterclass will cover:
The purpose of a value propositionTools associated with a value proposition (value proposition canvas, business model canvas, profit model)The principles of a value propositionConcept of the ‘Core motivating value’An example scenario for how to write the statement.

Sources: Founders Institute, and L. Newey University of Queensland

The Beat Goes On: Black Voices in the British Music Industry


In celebration of the British Library’s “Beyond the Bassline” exhibition, we’ve assembled some ground-breaking Black entrepreneurs who’ve transformed the British music industry to share the secrets of their success, including the highs and lows of their entrepreneurial journeys.

At £2.5 billion, the UK is home to Europe's most valuable digital music economy (Statista, 2021, 2023). However, despite the undeniable contribution of Black music artists and entrepreneurs to these figures, 2021’s Black Lives in Music report found that among Black music professionals, 73% experienced direct or indirect racism and noted disparities in respondent’s earnings and ability to gain music funding.

As part of our Inspiring Entrepreneurs series, this event provides a unique chance to hear our panel discuss the challenges and realities of the industry and share their experiences leveraging their creative talent to drive positive change for other artists and innovators. So if you’re thinking about starting a business, or already running one, join us to gain insight into their journey – or simply be inspired!

On the day, you can expect to:

Examine how entrepreneurship has evolved in the music industry, focusing on the journey of Black music in Britain and how this has been impacted by trends and other cultural shiftsLearn how music artists and creatives are transforming wider popular culture and redefining BlacknessAnalyse diverse business models utilized in the industryDiscover new opportunities and potential pitfallsPut your specific questions to our expert panel.

Lunch and learn – swap skills for starting-up


Do you ever find it hard to ask for help? What if you could swap something you were good at in exchange for support in the subject you need it in most.

Just like swapping pre-loved clothes and goods, come along to swap and share your experiences and expertise. Set up in the early weeks of the initial lockdown last year, local entrepreneurs and friends, Rachel Hayward and Lee Marples, formed a not-for-profit to revive the fun and informality from the seventies show, The Multi-Coloured Swap Shop. The idea is simple – register online and get to meet other people looking to progress and learn in a peer-to-peer community.

From its beginnings in Derby, then to Nottingham and Leicester, the digital marketplace is now UK-wide and sees hundreds of new swaps posted monthly.

You might be looking for someone to help set up a new Instagram account for you and can offer up a monthly cake selection box from your baking business in return? Or even swap copy-writing for accounting?

Join us for this special, interactive session over lunchtime where we invite you to listen in and consider how to work with, and help, one another.

We’re looking to seal some deals and build up your support network.

Inspiring Entrepreneurs: The Business of Food – From Farm to Fork

The last few years have certainly been eventful for the food industry. From inflationary pressures to the enduring effects of the pandemic, many consumers have altered their food purchasing and dining out habits. However, despite these challenges ethical sourcing remains important: nearly four in five food and drink shoppers intentionally choose products with a sustainability claim (Mintel – Sustainability in Food report 2023).

Join us for an inspirational evening with Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones, warmly known as The Black Farmer and Thomasina Miers, co-founder of Wahaca as they share their insights on the emerging trends in the food industry and the changing image of food on the high street.

Has the growth of new eateries in the UK serving recipes from all corners of the globe brought forth an evolution of British taste buds? Are food businesses raising the awareness of sustainability and how we can connect more with nature in our food choices? Hear about and discuss these hot topics, and more with the two well-known innovators as they also consider the part their own business journeys have played in revolutionising the face of the food industry in the UK.

This event is part of the British Library Food Season 2023

Michael Cashman

Speaker Position

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