Pall-Ex fires up young Dragons

Pall-Ex has been playing its part in raising the profile of the logistics industry with a Dragons’ Den style workshop for local school children at its central hub in Ellistown.

Year Six students from 10 local primary schools were split into groups and tasked with creating a new business product or service. They were asked to develop a business brief, including details of their concept and its target audience, and to create a brand name and logo.

At the end of the session, each group pitched their business concept to a panel of Pall-Ex staff, which included MD Adrian Russell, group sales director Chris Tancock, operations director Fraser MacNeill, marketing manger Holly Cave and HR manager Helen M

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The winning idea was a solar panel system for cars to help save running costs, and was developed by students from Newton Burgoland Primary and Saint Charles Primary. The panel was particularly impressed with the group’s grasp of production costs and marketing.

“The whole panel was blown away by the thought and application that each team demonstrated. Some real thought had gone in to each idea and they were all commercially viable,” says Russell.

“With some of the talent that we witnessed at the session, many of these youngsters wouldn’t be out of place sitting alongside Hilary Devey on the real panel in a few years’ time,” he adds.

Vicky Brooks, a teacher at Ellistown Community Primary School, adds: “The day gave the children a unique insight into the world of business and what it takes to be a business leader. There was some outstanding logical thinking and team work, which allowed their entrepreneurial potential to shine through.”