A WORCESTER Business School student is to complete with some of the best young entrepreneurs in the country for a top business award.

Rowena Simmons, who lives in Droitwich, runs Black & White Boutique, an online jewellery company which she co-founded as an 18 year-old and which had a turnover of £86,000 in its first year. Having already won a regional heat, Miss Simmons and her business partner are in the running for the national best digital company prize at the 2014 Lloyds Bank Enterprise Awards finals in Birmingham.

The 19-year-old, who has just started the second year of her business, finance and entrepreneurship degree at Worcester, grew up as part of a business-minded family – her father also owns his own company – but she says she is still surprised at her early, extraordinary success.

“I have always had the ambition to start my own business, probably since I was around ten years-old,” Miss Simmons explained. "I grew up with business knowledge and experience in the family, and it is something that I am used to. However, I have definitely been surprised with my success so far for Black & White Boutique. We specialise in female costume jewellery; I started out by selling a couple of bracelets to friends at school, and we are now selling to 35 different counties with a turnover of £86,000 in the first year.

“Since actually starting my own company and seeing it grow so quickly, I realised the potential. Over the past couple of months I have been looking at setting up multiple companies and it is something I would like to do full time, after I finish university."

Worcester Business School’s business, finance and entrepreneurship course offers students the chance to engage with employers and undertake a variety of modules geared towards developing job-ready career skills. The Lloyds Bank Enterprise awards attract thousands of entries from across the country each year. They are designed to recognise and reward the best emerging businesses and business people in Britain. Black & White Boutique was one of nine companies shortlisted for the Central region’s best digital business award and will compete against the other regional winners for the £10,000 prize at Edgbaston Cricket Club on Wednesday

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