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Company: Education Takeaway
Project: Education Takeaway

http://www.educationtakeaway.com

Dates: Apr 2007 to Aug 2007

How did the project start?

When my daughter started school she came home with a story sack. A story sack is a large cloth bag containing a good quality storybook with supporting materials, such as puppets, soft toys and a game to stimulate reading/language activities. There is usually a cassette tape with the story recorded onto it so the children can follow along and act out. The game in our sack was so much fun and we enjoyed playing it every night until it had to go back to school. After searching the high street looking for the game from the story sack I realised that it wasn't easily available to buy. After months of careful research I contacted the company that manufactured the game, they were willing to supply to me on a party plan basis provided I paid upfront for my orders. I invested a small amount and started selling to family/friends, then contacting mother/toddler groups and built up my stock and reputation over the next few years while my daughter was still very young. I opened an eBay shop and soon realised that there was a demand for educational resources.

What options did you consider?

Continuing with an eBay shop or have a web site developed. Choosing to have a website developed has made me step out of my comfort zone. Although I still have a long way to go.

What help and expertise did you receive?

From the beginning I did everything myself without any advice or financial assistance. By the start of 2007 I contacted Business Link and my local enterprise agency. I was told about the Catalyst 2 project, applied and secured funding to help with my website development

Did you face any challenges or learn any lessons?

Everyday is a challenge, learning new skills from SEO to saying NO to pushy sales teams. Having no previous business skills I have learnt as I have gone along. SEO is my main challenge but down to my continued commitment and passion I will continue to work at it.

What are the outcomes and how has it improved your business?

A bright easy to use website that we can build on to encourage more parents to use by adding information relevant to their Childs development.

What are your plans for the future?

Adding new lines to the website, increase revenue, improve SEO and market off line into schools. To encourage parents to take an active roll in their children’s education by using simple tools like games, puzzles and books. Develop my site over the next few years to include information, resources and online games related to learning.