On Friday 14 March, our Year 11 Business students had the incredible opportunity to attend a Business Forum featuring three local business owners. The event, designed to inspire and inform, allowed students to hear firsthand from these talented entrepreneurs about the creative ideas and strategies that led to their success.
The forum kicked off with a presentation from Leanne Daquino who shared her journey of building a business from the ground up. Leanne is a Melbourne-based mixed media artist and creative entrepreneur. She is the founder of Leanne Daquino Art, where she sells original artworks, prints, and art stationery, as well as running workshops to help others explore their creativity.
Old Paradian Ray Pastoors followed, offering insights into his business True Green Hosting and sharing some valuable tips about starting off as a young entrepreneur. Ray’s company received the top award for its environmental commitment at the 2024 National Australian Small Business Champion Awards.
Finally, Old Paradian Yin Van Beek wrapped up the session by discussing the importance of innovation and adaptability in today’s competitive market. Yin started businesses whilst still a student at the College and is now in partnership in Garage 46 – a workshop for servicing, modifying, and manufacturing business that specialises in BMW E36. His business partners with four Australian based businesses and three global businesses.
Throughout the event, students had the chance to ask questions and engage with the speakers, gaining practical advice on everything from personal motivation, business opportunities they encountered to the importance of social media in their marketing. The forum provided an exciting glimpse into the world of entrepreneurship and gave students a deeper understanding of what it takes to succeed in business.
We thank all the business owners for their time and generosity in sharing their experiences, and we look forward to seeing how our some of our students apply these lessons in their own future endeavours!
The business forum for the Year 11 cohort was an excellent opportunity to gain insight into what owning a business could look like in the future. Their presentations helped to link the theory we have covered to real life examples. I really appreciated how the guest speakers made a genuine effort to answer every question that was asked. I was particularly interested in Garage Forty-Six's presentation, where I learned about their business idea and the motivations that led them to start their business.
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