The 4th in our series of interviews with The Prince’s Trust mentees we’re going to be support is the lovely Eleanor from One Nine Eight Five

In March we announced a three year partnership with leading youth charity, The Prince’s Trust. Championing their ‘Women Supporting Women’ initiative, empowering young creative women with an entrepreneurial flair to unlock their full potential. Each week we are going to be showcasing each mentee and finding out about their story and what they are hoping to get out of the notonthehighstreet mentor scheme…

Why did you decide to reach out to The Prince’s Trust for support / funding? How did you hear about The Trust?

Once I took the leap to set up my own brand I was overwhelmed by how much there was to do and how little I knew about running a business so I reached out to The Prince’s Trust for support. I found out about them through a friend who encouraged me to join the scheme and I’m so happy I did!

What were you doing before you came to The Prince’s Trust? And what did a typical day look like for you?

Before I came to The Prince’s Trust I worked as a print designer for H&M in Stockholm. A typical day would be designing prints, managing a team, communicating and delivering trends with the concept designer, buyers and other senior figures. It was a busy full on job and it really helped prepare me for setting up One Nine Eight Five.

How has The Prince’s Trust helped you to date?

The Prince’s Trust has helped me so much more than I could have ever imagined. It’s taught me invaluable business skills as well as building up my confidence and opening up a vast network of like-minded young entrepreneurs, creating a fantastic space for us to help and share with each other on our journeys. This has been crucial for me as setting up a business on your own can be isolating and daunting. The Trust also has a wide range of workshops which has given me insight into unfamiliar areas that would have felt a lot harder to tackle without their support, for example how to run an online business, marketing tools, accounting workshops — they offer help for every area of a business! They also assign you a mentor to work with once you have officially launched your business — my mentor Malcolm has been a fantastic support who I still keep in contact with.

Do you think it’s difficult for women to succeed in business? Do you feel you have faced barriers in starting up your business?

I think it’s a challenge for anyone to set up a business but I do believe it is harder for women in certain situations. I have found that sometimes, as a woman, I am not taken as seriously as I would like, at times my work has been undervalued and depending on the situation being assertive has been seen as a negative.

What advice would you give to other young women trying to succeed in business?

Don’t give up!! It’s truly an incredible achievement to have your own business. Be determined and focused with what it is you want to achieve and make sure you plan! Don’t be scared of making mistakes, my advice is to embrace them and the failures that come with creating something new — it’s better to make these mistakes and learn from them in the early stages than later down the line when there’s a lot more at stake. Lastly I would also encourage you to surround yourself with like-minded people who understand the journey you are on — having a support network around you is crucial.

Tell us a bit about what you’re hoping to get out of the notonthehighstreet mentor programme…

I hope that NOTHS can help me grow my brand without comprising on the businesses core values of sustainability and social practices. I hope that they can guide me on how I can grow whilst keeping the integrity of the brand and why it all started in the first place.

What are your dreams for the future / business goals?

At the moment I run One Nine Eight Five on my own, my short term goal is to have a studio with a small team so that I can continue to grow the business and give it the love and attention it needs to evolve. Long term my dream is to become a sustainability leader in the homeware industry that is respected by its piers for its design aesthetic, sustainable practices and work with charities.