A group of young entrepreneurs supported by the Managing Director of local integrated marketing agency Sowden & Sowden, are celebrating after scooping the top accolade at the Humber sub-regional finals of Young Enterprise (held in Bridlington on Friday 11th May) with their solution to tackle the negative impact of single-use carrier bags on the environment.

The team came away with three awards; Environmental Awareness, Objective Setting, Planning and Reviewing, and best Hull school or College Company. Katy Galloway (Managing Director) also won Judges’ special Enterprise Award, and the team won the overall Humber sub-regional company of the year award. This means they will move to the next round of the competition, representing the Humber region, held in Sheffield on Friday 15th June.

The sixth form students from Hymers College are committed to making a difference by developing products and solutions to tackle serious environmental issues that are affecting the planet. They have developed an ingenious idea to change the habits of shoppers – a car air freshener designed to remind shoppers to re-use their bags and cut down on waste.

Katy Galloway, the 17 year-old Managing Director of Fresh, commented: “Our idea is that customers remember to bring back their plastic bags and reuse them again and again. Our product is an air freshener that would be given to customers free, either with a ‘bag for life’ or as a reward for re-using their plastic bags. This acts as a reminder to get their plastic bags out of the boot and bring them into the supermarket. Smell is related to memory, so the smell of our air freshener will subconsciously help the customer to remember their plastic bags.”

Paul Sowden added: “It’s hard to believe these young people are only 17, they have so much drive and enthusiasm and really are committed to making a difference. It’s been a pleasure to work with them and guide them on their business plan and we’re now looking forward to the next stage of the competition!”