Young people can be more!

With creative ideas, the interactive programme for young people “you can more!” was concluded in July, whose national rural network activities “support for the promotion of entrepreneurship for rural youth” were organised by the Rēzekne division of the Latvian Centre for Rural Advice and Education (LLC). At the end of the interactive programme, young people have the opportunity to participate in the business plan contest “to be!” by getting money prizes for the start or development of their business. The programme included young people from Rezekne and Viļānu, with valuable insights and incentives to launch their business, how to make it competitive and attractive to the consumer.
The interactive programme started with an informative day, during which young people were given the opportunity to meet people who are active in the business world, both by driving their businesses and helping young entrepreneurs. On active cooperation and integration of youth in public life, the participants of the event were informed by the youth affairs specialist of Rezekne, while the Head of THE Latvian Development Finance Institution Altum said about the possibilities of financial attraction for the development of their business. Thinking creative and innovative, young people were encouraged by Aija vanaga, head of the business incubator of Latgale business incubator, also telling about the benefits of business incubator for young entrepreneurs. With his success story, the positive attitude of what you were doing, the daring and the enormous determination, the winner of the 2014 competition “Fields to be!” was shared in his experience. After the information day, young people took part in training for five days, meeting experienced lecturers and entrepreneurs.
To think a little differently from the usual, creating and analysing his business idea, young people were encouraged BY Marika Rudzīte-Griķe, head of international projects OF SIA “ArGaumi”. Ideas, their objectives, tasks and development were generated throughout the day, actively working together. On the concept of successful marketing, the changeover of their product on the market and advertising, young people gave their views to the Rēzekne Higher School mg. oec. lectore Iveta Dembovsky. In the further training process, more information on business planning, the company registration process, as well as the development of the business plan was provided by THE business advisor of THE LLCC Rēzekne division Arthur Skesters, while the use of the theoretical and practical skills of accounting in the activities of his company was told BY the accounting adviser Sanita Kowalenko, accounting advisor of THE LLCC Rezekne counsellor.
By participating not only in theoretical but also in practice sessions with entrepreneurs of different sectors, young people gained valuable insights. While visiting Carlos's municipality, the participants met the owner of the fashion cabin “LAGA”, Guntu Nagli, who had participated in the competition “Fields to be!” in 2012. Having completed his studies in Denmark, obtaining higher education in the clothing design is able to demonstrate that he can achieve considerable success by focusing on his goal. Gunta Nagle Carlo has created her own fashion cabin with a specially designed logo that offers tailored clothing services for women, one of the closest future plans for Gunta is to develop her own footwear line. The garments of the Gunta are made with special care, taking into account the wishes of each client and developing an individual design at very affordable prices. Gunta emphasized “it is not important where to see if they are fields, or the city, it is important that the product or service offered is necessary and requested”. After the visit of the fashion cabin, we went to a “veil bakery” where young people were welcome and the bakery of their bread was shown by the village of the “subterranean bakery” in Barsukova. Young people listened carefully and with interest to the company's narrative, how to develop marketing so that they could sell their products as much as possible. While working together with the housekeeper, young people were able to bake and enjoy aromatic and crunchy pizza, as something unusual was offered to the pizza “latmeat tastes” with curd, which was found to be very delicious.
In the coming days, young people would have a great experience in attending the grain farm “Solta Bay”, where its owner Valdis Zvejsalnieks has carried out the project “Support for young farmers”. Valdis Zvejsalnieks shared his experience as to how important it is to manage, plan finances and always supplement his knowledge in any sector where there is a desire to further work. The next stop came to THE ZS “fishermen”, where young people, with great interest, listened to the fascinating narrative of their owner, John Macan, on tourism and one of the largest wealth of Latgale, Luban Lake. Jānis Macan's life and work experience for young people led to the idea that we can do very much for our forces, the willingness to do so and to be a master in our land.
At the end of the interactive programme “You're More!”, young people presented their business ideas in the production of rabbits, the cultivation and processing of vegetables and the production of bio-humus, herbs, sheep farming, tourism, watch production and marketing services. Ideas are really a perspective and a young people who wish to keep up, continue to meet their goal and succeed.
The information was prepared by:
Dace Gedusheva,
LLKC Viļānu is led by rural development consultant