King’s Trust award for Fife man who turned his passion into thriving business
A Fife man who turned his passion into a business has won a prestigious King’s Trust award.
Dylan Masson, from Lochgelly, scooped the NatWest Enterprise award at a presentation ceremony held in Glasgow last month. It recognised young people who have succeeded against the odds, improved their chances in life and had a positive impact on their local community.
The 30-year old turned his passion for gardening into a business with training and financial support from The King’s Trust. He has now been trading for over a year and was able to employ someone during the summer season.
Dylan made the decision to leave his job in social care and start his own garden maintenance business - he had been a passionate gardener for a few years and wanted to start a business which meant he could work outside and with his hands.
But despite being confident in his gardening abilities, Dylan had no experience of running his own business, so he reached out to The King’s Trust.
Through its enterprise programme, he attended a three-day course which gave him vital insight into the fundamentals of cashflow, the basics of HMRC and how to develop a business plan.
He then successfully applied for a start-up grant of just under £2000 which he used to secure professional tools and branded workwear, and used his is savings to purchase a work van.
One year on, and he is thriving. The business has a lot of positive reviews on Google and he is constantly busy with jobs in his area.
Dylan said: “I am over the moon to have won this award. It shows with hard work and a bit of help, you can achieve great things.
“Thanks to The King’s Trust I was able to turn my passion into my career. There are so many different things you need to think about when starting a business, but the support I got from The Trust made it so much more manageable.”
Joanne Mallon from Royal Bank of Scotland, who presented Dylan with his award, said: His determination in overcoming barriers to build a sustainable business is inspiring, and we would like to wish him every success as he continues to grow, innovate, and make a lasting positive impact in the years ahead.
Dylan is in with a chance to become a National King’s Trust Award winner at the Royal Albert Hall, London, in May.