Pictured above: (l-r) Kay Marsden (UKTI), Shannon Ashley 14 (Bolsover School , Derbyshire), Natasha Williamson 14 (Bolsover School, Derbyshire), Min Rose from the China Bureau

More than 30 East Midland teenage entrepreneurs proved their business potential by pitching a new product for Chinese teenagers - at an event supported by UK Trade & Investment.

The event, funded by Routes into Languages East Midlands and organised by Business Language Champions, highlighted how vital China is to the region's economy, with Chinese due to be the major language of the internet by 2020. Students had the chance to learn some of the Chinese language and about culture and business with help from Min Rose from the East Midlands China Business Bureau and China consultant Elisa Kuang.

Student teams had three minutes to pitch their product and faced tough questions from a panel of experts who know what makes a product successful in China - and also what are the cultural no-nos.

The panel members were China Business Bureau adviser, Stewart Ferguson, a Mandarin speaker based in the region, UKTI's international service manager Kay Marsden, who specialises in China and also Rob Grant, Head of International Development at Brooksby College, near Melton Mowbray where the event took place. 

Panel member Kay Mardsen said:

"We saw lots of innovative, eye-catching ideas which is why it was so difficult to choose a winner.

"The young people's challenge was to work with people they had only met for the first time and to put everything they had learned about the Chinese export market, business etiquette and language, into practice. They then designed a product and pitched it to us. 

"Most teams picked up on the fact that China is a growing economy with ever increasing numbers of businesses and consumers who want and can afford British quality design and products.  China is brand conscious, fashionable and interested in trying new things, so students made products with a western twist, such as a designer bag with a union jack logo."

"This event was a great chance to continue celebrations of the Chinese New Year and give our future exporters to China a head start."

Event organiser Sally Fagan from Business Language Champions said : 

'We were delighted to be able to organise this event for talented linguists throughout the region. A majority of those students who attended said they were motivated to take their interest in Chinese further, which is excellent news for companies wishing to deal with China in the future.'

And a Nottingham firm also helping to support the entrepreneurs of the future is digital media experts, Cool Creative. It recently attended an UKTI-organised Mandarin language and cultural event which covered tips on how to meet and greet, the low-down on China's gift-giving culture, the importance of exchanging business cards, dining out, social etiquette, key language phrases and maintaining good business relations with colleagues in China.

Joyce Gemmill, company director said:

"The China training day was both valuable and enjoyable. We have been working with UKTI on our US and European export markets and are now considering China as a strong market for our digital products and services. We are also involved in a joint project with Nottingham Trent University to produce language teaching resources for primary schools. It was a great overview of Chinese business culture and language. You could say we are supporting the entrepreneurs and exporters of the future! 

"And of course our interactive language resources lend themselves very well to other export markets all over the world. Our potential international customers want to learn Mandarin - and the Chinese want to learn English."