When Rita gave up her job in a creative agency for health reasons, she knew she wanted to do something different next: she wanted to help people in some way, and make use of the love and knowledge of plants she learned from her grandmother, (also named Rita). Here’s how a Multiply course helped make that happen.
Rita landed on the idea to open a plant shop with a difference – one with a strong community ethos and emphasis on mental health.
โI just envisioned a place where it would be more of a community-based business. I wanted to not just have a plant shop, my goal was to create a space for people to feel more themselves.โ
However, she wasnโt sure how to get started. She felt lacking in investment funds and business knowledge, and crucially, was also lacking in confidence about her numeracy skills.
And thatโs where Rita discovered Multiply. Funded by government, Multiply courses were created to help adults without Maths GCSE to improve their maths skills and number confidence. There have been a huge range of different courses offered under the Multiply programme, including many with a practical element, or focusing on specific interests that are related to, but not limited to, maths and numeracy.
Rita was able to take a Multiply course on ‘How to start your own business without money’ run by The Rebel Business School (a Multiply provider for Surrey County Council). It didnโt cost her anything, and boosted her number confidence from a score of 1 out of 5 before the course, to a score of 4 out of 5 on completion.
Importantly the course helped her to understand tax, VAT, and the basics of setting up and running a small business so that she felt confident to make the leap and start her own. She says,
โIn terms of numeracy, [the course] really boosted my knowledge. And then I got the confidence when I got through it.โ
Following the Multiply course, although Rita still didnโt have any funds to invest in starting a business, she took the resilience and adaptability skills sheโd learned on the course and applied to a business competition to win a pop-up-shop premises in Guildford.
โI didn’t have a lot of things to help me to go where I wanted, but [the course] pushed me to find alternative routes. They taught me skills of dig deep, keep looking, just keep going, it will happen, you’ve just got to keep searching, it might take longer but you’ll get there. And how to barter, how to get things.โ
Rita won the pop-up premises, and made such a success of it that her plant shop, Rita Botanicals (named after her Nonna Rita), now has a permanent home in Guildfordโs White Lion Walk. All thanks to that initial Multiply course she took.
And has Rita fulfilled her dream of running a business that is also a place for the community to benefit from? She says,
โIt’s like this bridge between generations and a common interest, which is really nice to see. And also a lot of people get educated on nature again, because they don’t have the means to get out and about. ย Whatever they’re going through it encourages them to bring it home. And I think that really helps a lot of people with their anxieties as well. I have a lot of people with depression that come through and I see how much they feel more at ease in the shop and I love that. So it’s not just a business it’s more of a place as well.โ
Support for Surrey businesses
Although the Multiply programme comes to an end in March 2025, there are still many opportunities for Surrey residents to gain skills. Find out more on the Surrey County Council website.
And if you’re looking for support for your Surrey business, speak to our team of experts who can provide tailored advice to help your business grow and succeed. Get in touch to find out more viaย our business support form.
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