BY Helen Kay | Thursday 12 December 2024
One of Hull’s oldest shopping destinations is providing an opportunity for the city’s young entrepreneurs to develop their skills and catch the eye of customers looking for Christmas gifts with a difference – and a chance to win a £10 voucher.
Hepworth Arcade will be home for most of December to a series of pop-up shops organised by the Youth Enterprise and Making Changes 4 Careers (MC4C) team.
First to move into the unit – which is next to the famous Dinsdales joke shop – is Jesy’s Jewellery, which was set up four years ago by Jessica Ware and is now gearing up for growth with the help of MC4C.
Other businesses from the Youth Enterprise/MC4C stable will also be selling their wares in the shop, which will be open from 11am until 3pm from Tuesday to Saturday every week until the last day on Saturday 21 December.
As an incentive and thank you, every customer that walks through the door will receive a free raffle ticket for a weekly draw to win a £10 high street shopping voucher, with the draw to be conducted live MC4C social media pages.
Jessica launched her jewellery-making business in 2020 and her work with MC4C in 2023 helped her take it to the next level. Her potential was recognised by the John Cracknell Youth Enterprise Bank which last year handed Jessica a grant – the 1,000th payment in the bank’s 20-year history.
Youth Enterprise and MC4C have now liaised with Hull City Council’s major projects team to secure temporary use of the vacant unit.
Jessica said: “I did a stall at a market in the Guildhall last year and I’ve also had stalls in St Stephen’s and the Prospect Centre. We’ll also be in the Guildhall on Friday 13 December for the Youth Enterprise Christmas Fayre which will feature young entrepreneurs who are neurodivergent and/or care experienced.
“We really appreciate the support we’ve received and we hope the pop-up will bring in the customers to see what we and the other Youth Enterprise businesses can do.”
