Hospitality and catering students from Hartlepool College have been advised to look at careers in the business side of the food industry by sandwich company, On a Roll.
As part of On a Roll’s ‘Beyond the Kitchen’ day, the students were given a tour of the company’s factory, sampled some of its products and got to interview managing director, James Stoddart.
“Running a business is a lot of hard work and it takes a lot of different skills including, managing a budget, being able to work with a variety of people and being able to be practical along with having the general skills you need to create a niche in the industry,” said Stoddart. “It is vital that young people are encouraged to nurture these skills."
Stoddard set up the Teeside-based company in 2007 after making a bet with a friend that he could make money from making sandwiches.
The company now produces over 8 million sandwiches a year and won 'sandwich manufacturer of the year' and 'sandwich designer of the year' at the 2016 British Sandwich Industry Awards.
Kevin Dove, hospitality and catering lecturer at Hartlepool College of Further Education said: "The tour showed students that they didn't have to stick to the usual route of working in a kitchen after they complete their course.
"Some of the students weren't sure what they wanted to do after they qualified but the tour has given them a lot of valuable insight into combining their catering experience with running a business.”
On a Roll’s ‘Beyond the Kitchen’ tour was part of World Youth Skills Day.