Graduate Sarah Williams has the recipe for success
Mon, 05 Oct 2015 11:54:00 BST
Sarah graduated from her Business Management degree in 2013. “I really enjoyed doing the group work and meeting people from different cultures which resulted in me becoming more confident as a person”, Sarah commented on her time at Huddersfield.
It can be said entrepreneurialism runs in Sarah’s family as she spent her placement year working for her father’s business, Trace and Connect. “My placement year enabled me to put the skills I had learnt into practice whilst gaining experience in a working environment. This motivated me for my final year.”
In the year following her graduation, the young entrepreneur joined forces with friend and keen baker Philippa Atkin to create a business. After extensive market research, the result was Dottie Biscuit. Based in Halifax, the company has taken Yorkshire by storm with their carefully handcrafted iced biscuits. The hard work the girls put into their venture paid off quickly; within the same year of launching, they were awarded Best New Business at the Yorkshire Post & Deliciouslyorkshire Taste Awards.
What is the key to their success? Sarah thinks the answer lies in their combination of skills. “Philippa used to be a salesperson and she’s very good with food. I’m very organised and knowledgeable at the business side so together we have a well-rounded set of skills - however I also ice the majority of the biscuits now!”
It looks like the only way is up for Sarah and Philippa. Since winning their award, Dottie Biscuit has been featured in the press several times which brought on more clients and retailers. The strong demand coming in is already sending the girls on the hunt for a bigger production space. “We are rapidly expanding and over the next year we plan to move into our own unit as we are currently training up two members of staff – the world is our Oyster!”
Connect with Dottie Biscuit
www.facebook.com/DottieBiscuit
