Business Diary: June 26

Fresh – a group of sixth form students from Hymers College in Hull – have clinched the Yorkshire and Humber stage of the Young Enterprise Company Programme Competition at Sheffield Hallam University.

Fresh has developed a car fragrance which is designed to remind shoppers to bring their carrier bags with them when they go to the supermarket.

The six-strong team of teenagers have teamed up with Waitrose to take their product to the shop floor.

Their research found that more people would reuse carrier bags if they could remember to pack them in the car before they went to the shops. The product capitalises on the link between smell and memory. It includes a visual aid to help you “remember your carrier bags”. As a result, it’s hoped the total number of plastic bags in circulation will decline, so you’re less likely to see them being blown about supermarket car parks.

As she received the prize, the firm’s managing director Katy Galloway, 17, said the team was “over the moon”.

“Young Enterprise is such an amazing experience,’’ she said. “Definitely, a rollercoaster of a ride, which we would certainly recommend to all given the opportunity.

The team will represent their region in the HSBC Young Enterprise Innovation Awards 2012 at The Intercontinental Hotel in London on July 1-3. There, they will compete against 12 teams from across the UK for the title of the UK’s Best Young Enterprise Company 2012.

Pedal power

ROBIN Hood’s Bay is one of North Yorkshire’s best known beauty spots, but the 13-man cycle team from Santander weren’t really in the mood to appreciate it.

Having completed a gruelling 187-mile trip from Whitehaven in Cumbria to Robin Hood’s Bay in 48 hours over the weekend, they were more interested in a lie-down than a spot of sightseeing.

Aged from mid-30s to mid-50s these MAMIL’s (Middle Aged Man in Lycra) say they were not a pretty sight, but it was all worth it when they raised over £10,000 for charity including Macmillan Cancer Support.

Santander sponsored the trip, printed the cycle shirts and also donated two tickets to the Grand Prix which has raised another £1,000 in a raffle.

The cyclists said the weather conditions were terrible with one month’s worth of rain falling in 24 hours over Friday and Saturday, flooding many roads while the 50mph winds also made it a testing event.

Slow boat to Siberia

PLANNING a boat trip to Siberia? Then Diary may have found the perfect vessel.

Yorkshire-based lawyers are ‘bracing’ themselves for an unusual deal – the disposal of a hoverbarge that can carry 200 tonne loads across water, ice and mud at temperatures as low as minus-40 degrees Celcius.

A US-based purchaser was found for the aptly-named ‘Siberian’ hoverbarge.

It was part of the assets of UK-based Hovertrans, which went into administration when Russian oil company Rosneft, for which the barge was designed, ended its contract.

Neil Kelly, an associate at law firm hlw Keeble Hawson, said: “This was probably one of the most unusual cases we’ve worked on. It’s not every day that we’re involved in seeking a buyer for a hoverbarge designed to transport sections of an oil rig in sub-zero temperatures.”

Answer the prayers

SOCIAL media such as Twitter and Facebook can be your best friend and worst enemy, said Peter Pritchard, a director at Pets at Home.

Speaking at a retail event in Leeds yesterday, he said: “You see all the invisible conversations that have always been there, but the first time you see them can be quite shocking really.”

But he said retailers have to embrace social media, adding: “The more you try and regulate Facebook, the more you try and regulate Twitter, within your own organisations, the more of a disaster it becomes.” And when you start to engage in social media, the most important thing is to respond.

Recently, a customer of Pets at Home complained about a product change via Twitter, to which Mr Pritchard responded, asking why she was upset. “The story unfolded that she had a dog that could only eat a certain thing and we’d changed the recipe. For her it was a disaster, an absolute disaster.”

Pets at Home found an alternative solution and sent the customer a free sample, said Mr Pritchard. She tweeted back to the world: “My God, somebody listened and responded.”