University News Last updated 01 March 2013
A Birmingham social enterprise and events entrepreneur is to be honoured at a Birmingham City University graduation ceremony next week.
Daniella Genas, from Digbeth in Birmingham, graduated from the University’s School of Media in 2006 with a degree in Media and Communication and is being honoured on Tuesday 5 March as one of the University’s Alumni of the Year in the Community Engagement and Leadership category.
Daniella organised her first events whilst studying at Birmingham City University and went on to set up her own event management company, Aspire4u, in 2007. A year later, she returned to study a Master’s degree in Media and Creative Enterprise, adding practical business knowledge to the event management skills she already possessed.
Daniella said: “The teaching at Birmingham City University was fantastic. The facilities were great and I built some really great industry contacts. My time at university was a big help in getting where I am today, not just in terms of the practical experience but also the career and personal development modules we completed.”
“I heard about a training programme called Insight Out which helps young people to set up businesses and this is where Aspire4u was born. I teamed up with three other former students from the University and Insight Out gave us all the support we needed to get started – from drawing up a business plan to designing our corporate identity.”
Aspire4u is a not for profit events management company that invests all profits into training and development opportunities for disadvantaged young people in Birmingham.
The company has helped to put on a number of high-profile events in the city – including a fashion and talent show as part of the Jamaica in the Square festival in Birmingham City Centre, the finale event for the Birmingham Made Me design awards, the Music Video and Screen Awards ceremony for the Black International Film Festival, and marketing support for The Drum arts centre in Newtown, Birmingham.
Daniella’s work was recognised by BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour series ‘Women in Business’, which followed her for a year giving her fresh insights and raising the profile of her organisation. She regularly returns to Birmingham City University, offering her time and advice as a guest lecturer and dissertation supervisor, as well as offering placement opportunities to students currently at the University.
Daniella said: “By the time I’d finished my Master’s degree, we were getting a lot of students coming to us asking for work experience, or young people saying they’d like to get involved in the industry but didn’t know how. That was when I had the idea to use the company to provide opportunities for young people and it has continued to develop from there as our reputation has grown, and various organisations and individuals now refer people to us who they think we can help.”