The Taunton School Young Enterprise team have secured a place in the Regional Finals of the competition thanks to their highly successful FUSION charity bracelet.
Team FUSION won Best Trade Stand and Best Overall Company at the Somerset County Finals which took place at The Castle in Taunton on Saturday, 13th May. The team will now progress to the Regional Finals on 14th June in Gloucester where they will face companies from seven other counties.
The FUSION charity bracelet is designed with key ideals of the team with which they identify strongly – unity, peace, mindfulness and inclusivity. As a Social Enterprise, the proceeds will go to charities that support these issues including the British Red Cross, Oxfam, Stand Against Violence, CALM and Amnesty International. The bracelet comprises two coloured cords which can be mixed and matched, each colour representing a different charity.
The idea was formulated by the group of 15 students including Lower Sixth student Fred Wieser who is the Managing Director of the FUSION team. Fred commented “We are really pleased to have got through to the Regional Finals with this product as it means a lot to the whole team.”
Sales of the bracelets have been in high demand, with Taunton School’s Head of Cricket Development and Somerset Cricketer Marcus Trescothick and Somerset Captain Tom Abell wearing their own (click here for this news story)
Fred added: “We are grateful for all the support and it was brilliant to see Marcus Trescothick wearing his Fusion bracelet when he was on Sky Sports! We have sold over 350 bracelets raising £1500 so far with projected sales of about £3000 to be distributed between charities.”
The Fusion Team are hoping to secure a spot at the Somerset County Cricket Ground to sell their bracelets at forthcoming matches. They are also approaching local charity shops Oxfam and Red Cross in the hope that they will boost sales.
Fusion Team member Dominic Court, commented “By winning the Young Enterprise competition, we could provide a national forum for our vision.”
Support their cause on Facebook @FusionBraceletsYE, Instagram @fusionbracelets_ye and Snapchat, @fusionbracelets and use the hashtag: #maketheconnection
