10-year old Scout’s business plan convinces John Lewis bosses to back a homeless charity.

A business plan, written by a 10-year old Scout, so impressed a surprised management at the John Lewis store in Welwyn Garden  City that they gave him their whole-hearted support as he raised funds for a local homeless charity.

Alex, a Scout with the Caddington Scout Group, spent months gathering donations but when he was invited to present his business plan to John Lewis the project really took off.

Val Fowler from the Welwyn department store said “I was astonished by this young man’s grasp of the business world. He talked about quantities, items and deadlines in a way few professionals can manage. We were able to provide enough sacks for all his donations and a generous supply of items for Signpost his homeless charity in nearby Luton.” It was a real  ‘Skills for Life’ lesson for Alex.

Alex said, “I wanted to beat last year’s total of19 sacks of Christmas goodies so this year my parents and I wrote to lots of companies asking for help.   They all seemed impressed with my business plan and the general public provided lots of donations as well. It soon mounted up.”

Kevin Porter, CEO of Signposts said, “At the final count we had 78 sacks weighing over a quarter of a  ton. There were so many that we had to use Alex’s Scout HQ as there were too many to fit in his home. These donations will bring a rare smile from the homeless.”

Kevin added, “We are all inspired by this amazing Scout, listening to how he approached retailers and attended meetings with his business plan. It certainly inspired John Lewis management who were very generous.

“On behalf of the people who will receive the donations and the Signpost team, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. You are an inspiration to us all.” With acknowledgements to Luton News January 9th 2019.