Are you sick of the rat race?  Wish your life was more “Good Life” than “This Life”? 

Is a day on the allotment your idea of heaven?  Think you can run your own business?

BBC is looking for ten couples to take part in a new series which will really put your aptitude for farming to the test.  Over six weeks you’ll learn how to run and manage your own farm; from animal husbandry and harvesting, to coping with the unpredictable British weather.

The series will culminate in the winning pair getting the opportunity to live and work  on their own small farm.

Whatever your background or relationship; friends / married / siblings, as long as you both share that yearning for a life on the farm we want to hear from you.

To apply, please email your name to farm@splashmediatv.co.uk and an application form will be emailed to you.

The deadline for applications is 28th April 2010

Successful candidates may spend up to six weeks away from home in summer 2010

More details

The series we are working on will feature ten couples or pairs (married couples / siblings / friends etc.) who would like to grasp the opportunity to change their lives forever and run a farm/small holding. 

The programme will see the ten couples learn all the basics they need before decamping to a farm in the beautiful British countryside where they will be challenged in all areas of farm life, from animal husbandry to coping with the unpredictable summer weather.  The series will culminate in the winning pair getting the opportunity to live and work on their own small farm. 

We are really keen to make sure that we are reaching out to people from all walks of life and from a variety of backgrounds whether they might bring rural skills to the table or transferrable business skills.  We just want couples of all ages and relationships (married couples / siblings / friends etc.) who are serious about wanting to change their lives and who will relish farm life.

We are also looking for people who may already have some experience in working or volunteering with animals, food or nature, just some kind of demonstrated interest that would make them a credible and hopefully successful small holding partnership.  On the other hand we are also very much hoping to reach people who have business skills and experience developed or learned over the years who would like to apply them in a new, greener, field and it is this area that we hoped you might be better connected within.  It could be people looking to break out of the city rat race or people who are looking to reassess and refocus their efforts and perhaps life.

Need some help finding your dream home and business premises?

Kirsty and Phil are back for a brand new series of Relocation Relocation and they’re looking for small business owners. If you’re on the hunt for the best new home and business premises and would like our help, we’d love to hear from you. 

To apply send your name and number to location@iwcmedia.co.uk or call 0141 353 8409

Entrepreneurs from across the country once again have a chance to make their business dreams come true by appearing on Dragons’ Den. If you’re genuinely seeking investment for your business idea or invention, we’d like to hear from you.

This series saw some of the most diverse range of inventions and business ideas receive offers of investment from the multi-millionaire investors - All the Dragons were won over by entrepreneur Sharon Wright and the simplicity of her cable wiring device; Rupert Sweet-Escott went into business with James Caan who was impressed with his unique range of aviation designs and prototypes; and Carol Savage chose to accept Deborah Meaden’s offer of a cash injection into her tasty new food networking website. In fact, when the Den finally closed for business an incredible 15 entrepreneurs had managed to convince the fearsome financiers, they were worthy of their cash.

Previous success stories in the Den include Brixton based Levi Roots who secured an investment of £50,000 for his secret recipe, Reggae Reggae Sauce. Just 4 weeks after his appearance on the programme his Dragon investors helped him launch his sauce in a major supermarket all over the country. Now Levi has increased his product range to 8 sauces, produced a Caribbean cook book, won Best New Product at the World Food Awards 2009, even going on to present his own successful BBC Television series - ‘Caribbean Food Made Easy with Levi Roots’ . Having also successfully licensed his sauce to one of the world’s largest frozen food manufacturers and to an international fast food chain, Levi says that thanks to the Dragons he has a business empire that is now valued in the millions.

Of course, not everyone secures investment in the Den, but that doesn’t stop the most tenacious of entrepreneurs from achieving success. After a gruelling time in front of the Dragons in 2008, inventor Natalie Ellis failed to convince them to back her Road Refresher. But one year on, her product became the fastest selling dog bowl on Amazon USA. Natalie says her company now has a million pound turnover and that her range is currently stocked in 32 countries. Likewise Shaun Pulfrey wanted the Dragons to invest £80,000 in his rework of the hairbrush – the Tangle Teezer. Unsuccessful in his bid he claims he is now stocked nationwide in high street stores and top hair salons, with sales approaching 400,000 units.

The rules are simple: entrepreneurs can ask for cash investment in return for equity in their business.  However, they must get at least the amount they ask for or they will walk away with nothing.  The Dragons are prepared to listen to a pitch for any kind of business but they must be convinced that it will make money.

As demonstrated by the investments in the last seven series, ideas, businesses and products that meet some or all of the following criteria stand a good chance of securing the Dragons’ interest:

• A Unique Selling Point: a product that serves a need like nothing else.
• Scalability: something that can be up scaled to make real money.
• Route to Market: the clear way the product can be sold and marketed.
• Mutually Beneficial Arrangement: just what will the Dragons get out of it?
• Exit Strategy:  a plan of how the entrepreneur/Dragon will exit and make money.

The BBC is currently searching for Britain’s best entrepreneurs and will be auditioning throughout the coming months.  We want to hear from anyone who thinks they’ve got what it takes to enter the Dragons’ Den.

If you would like an application form please send an e-mail to dragonsden@bbc.co.uk or visit www.bbc.co.uk/dragonsden

A new website aimed at helping Liverpool businesses weather the current economic climate has been launched this week.

Liverpool Business Lifeline is a website aimed at providing useful advice and guidance for businesses affected by the current economic downturn.

The site pulls together information on the services and support that is available from the major business support providers, particularly Liverpool Vision, Business Link, Liverpool Chamber of Commerce and Industry and ACAS.

As well as providing advice on sources of funding for smaller businesses, the site also highlights some of the practical help available to enable businesses to shape up the financial management, marketing and sales of their business so that they emerge from the credit crunch with a stronger and more competitive business.

Mike Taylor, director of investment and enterprise, Liverpool Vision, said: “Liverpool businesses are coping well with the credit crunch, but its effects are undoubtedly being felt here and we want to help as many as possible weather this economic storm.

“The Liverpool Business Lifeline website is targeted at the city’s small-to-medium sized businesses and all Liverpool organisations that are struggling to find an easy route to advice and guidance during the recession.

“We hope it will prove to be an essential reference point for businesses looking to ensure that they will come through these difficult times in a healthy state from which they can again consolidate and grow.”

The website offers comprehensive advice on finance, property, employment and marketing and sales, together with links to seek further specific advice.

The launch of the website will be supported by an awareness campaign that starts at the end of the month which will include information on buses, taxis and posters around the city.

Liverpool Business Lifeline web site is now live and can be viewed at www.liverpoolbusinesslifeline.com

Ends
For further information please contact Jonathan Caswell, head of Public Relations at Liverpool Vision on 0151 600 2946 or via email at jcaswell@liverpoolvision.co.uk

The b.TWEEN 09 Interactive Digital Media Forum is just around the corner (11/12 June at FACT in Liverpool). It’s a chance to hear some of the most influential individuals from across the media industries - from advertising, branding, broadcast, social media, tech, mobile, gaming and web

Featuring a superb array of speakers from Spotify, Orange, Ogilvy, Channel 4, Penguin, Aegis Media, Bebo, New Media Age, Sellaband, Endemol, Mint Digital, Tate Media, Holler, Culture 24 and Emmy award winners RAW TV

b.TWEEN is at the intersection of the new creative economy… can you afford to miss it?

You can find out the latest at http://btween.co.uk and you can book tickets here: http://www.btween.co.uk/pages/book-now

b.TWEEN forum is now in it’s 5th year,  and remains the only event of its kind where delegates have total access to the panelists, and can take part in the discussion in real time via live web chats and Twitter.

At b.TWEEN you will make connections and collaborations, engage with the minds shaping the future of digital media and seed the deals to bring in business for the coming year.

The full programme can be viewed here: Thursday 11 June / Friday 12 June

Just announced is the chance to Present at b.TWEEN 09! Tell us about yourself and what makes you tick - pitch to speakers and delegate. Submit your idea here: http://www.btween.co.uk/quickfire

b.TWEEN 09 Sessions include Brand Grenades, Sacred Cows with Morgan Holt (HUGE), Mike Bayler (Strategy Review), Thomas Benski (Pulse Films) & Jamie Conygham (Dojo Media). Exploring the myths about Brands as content commissioners, this session will ask what branded content is, what success looks like and how to start conversations with Brands.

The Case Against Advertising featuring Steve Taylor (Aegis Media) & Jonathan MacDonald (JMA) exploring the new consumer sees straight through advertising dishonesty: they expect integrity, not a glossy film of glitter. What can agencies do to create real consumer value and enable conversations? This passionate session presents two sides of the same coin, exploring what the industry might look like once the dust settles

Boom & Bust 2.0? With panelist Jon Mitchell (Spotify), Mike Nutley (new media age), William Owen (made by many) & Giles Rhys-Jones (Ogilvy). Online success has its cost. Social networks raise revenue from their communities in a number of ways, but do they really turn page impressions into enough hard cash to cover mounting costs?

What is the end game? Are we careering towards the next boom and bust?

Book now
www.btween.co.uk