“Innovation Circle” in Murmansk is still in action. Murmansk City Administration together with Murmansk Region Board of Youth Affairs is holding the annual young entrepreneurs business training “KPD”. Last year this event was organized with the help of New Eurasia Foundation and about 20 participants went through it. Year 2008 the training is completely financed by the City Administration and the Board. Organizers got more than 40 applications with business ideas from all over the region, but only 25 were selected by the expert team. Among the most prominent business ideas applied for the training were the following ones:

·         “Oriental Café”

·         “Leather Accessories Design Company”

·         “School of Brazil Dancing”

·         “Rent-a-bike Company”

·         “Internet Murmansk Business Map”

·         “IT Company for SMEs”

·         “Producing wooden pellets (alternative kind of fuel)”

·         “Murmansk Internet Auction”

·         Etc.

The expert team consists of specialists from banks, accounting companies, city administration and people representing SMEs. In the framework of two-week theoretical course the participants were able to study the following issues of practical business:

·         Making a business-plan

·         Defining kinds of activity

·         Choosing type of enterprise and form of tax reporting

·         Registration of an enterprise

·         Search of seed capital

·         Organizing and implementing entrepreneurship

·         Promoting business

·         Marketing plan

 This moment the participants are working on their business plans and are getting ready to present them to the Commission.

After evaluating the business plans by the professional the winners will be awarded with laptops and a possibility to take a short-term business course in Moscow.

Some winners will be able to work and implement their ideas on the basis of Norwegian -Russian business incubator “Polar Star”.

To be continued…