A teenage entrepreneur is helping fellow pupils get a foot on the career ladder through the launch of a recruitment drive for part-time workers at his growing business.
Harry Tomkinson, 14, launched VIP Sneakers — an online trainers shop — in December 2021 in the hope of kick-starting his own journey to success.
Now he has set his sights on helping other young people to take their first steps into the world of work.
He is offering roles for pupils aged between 15 and 17, and is keen to offer opportunities to people with special needs.
As soon as I heard about the government talking about part-time work, I thought of how we could give other 15-17-year-olds the opportunity to get work experience
Harry Tomkinson
Harry's business has made five-figure profits since he began - though he declined to say exactly how much.
“I was so lucky that I was given the opportunity [to start a business] and discipline myself as I'm so young,” said Harry, who is originally from the UK.
“As soon as I heard about the government talking about part-time work, I thought of how we could give other 15 to 17-year-olds the opportunity to get work experience.
“Being able to work in business is amazing for me as it can help my business and GCSE studies.
“For the part-time employees, some of the jobs that they can be involved in is social media, they can come up with ideas for videos, and even film the videos or be in them if they want.”
The pupils, who will be paid for their work, will help write blogs, create social media posts, conduct research on products, be a part of marketing events and work in supply chain operations.
Harry said he has already had interest from about 100 hopefuls, with as many as 10 pupils to be selected to start work in January.
Success ignited business dream
The Year 10 pupil at Brighton College Dubai set up his first business at the age of 12, selling sweets to friends during the pandemic.
Initially, Harry used his pocket money for his business, but within a month, he had made profits of about Dh1,000. When his father realised his entrepreneurial abilities, he decided to help him start a trainers business.
“It started with me buying a few sneakers from the local store so I bought four sneakers and sold them all then it became 14, and is now past 500,” said Harry.
He said that limited edition or exclusive shoes sold out worldwide within a short amount of time.
Under an overhaul of visa regulations in September last year, teenagers aged 15 to 18 can apply for a part-time work permit, but they still need to continue with their education.
The Kick Start initiative is aimed at pupils studying a relevant subject in their GCSEs or BTEC in business and/or media studies.
Pupils who have an interest in e-commerce, social media, business and trainers are encouraged to apply.
Father offers helping hand
Stephen Haw, Harry’s father as well as an investor and adviser in his business, said he decided to help his son launch the business because he saw that he really enjoyed the process of business transactions.
“I thought, why not put some investment of my own into this, not necessarily for me to earn money, but actually to give Harry real-life experience of what it is to actually build a business,” said Mr Haw.
“This business was actually established to provide an opportunity for Harry, and now subsequently opportunity for others.
“We are reinvesting that money into our initiatives and the first we're running is the Kick Start initiative.”
VIP Sneakers is working with Gems Metropole School and Brighton College, and on Saturday, they sent more than 100 pupils studying business and media studies who are keen to sign up.
“Now, we're now going to be going through a kind of shortlist and have an informal interview to identify the first cohort of pupils that will start working with us in the from the start of the January school term,” said Mr Haw.
The cohort will run for a full term, with a new set of pupils joining the team every term.
Mr Haw said they have already received interest from other schools.
“We're still a small business, but our ambition is that we want to give as many people as possible this opportunity,” said Mr Haw.
“We don't just want to give this to the top high-flyers at school but we want people who have special educational needs. We want to give them as much power, as much as possible.
“Based on the level of demand and reaction from the schools and the students, we are going to approach the relevant government authorities to see how they can support us in actually rolling this out to a much greater community and much greater volume.”
He said they have received huge support from private businesses.
In the future, Mr Haw said they may work towards creating an ecosystem of different small businesses that also provide part-time paid work opportunities.
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
The biog
First Job: Abu Dhabi Department of Petroleum in 1974
Current role: Chairperson of Al Maskari Holding since 2008
Career high: Regularly cited on Forbes list of 100 most powerful Arab Businesswomen
Achievement: Helped establish Al Maskari Medical Centre in 1969 in Abu Dhabi’s Western Region
Future plan: Will now concentrate on her charitable work
Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
MATCH INFO
Borussia Dortmund 0
Bayern Munich 1 (Kimmich 43')
Man of the match: Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich)
Jetour T1 specs
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ICC Women's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier 2025, Thailand
UAE fixtures
May 9, v Malaysia
May 10, v Qatar
May 13, v Malaysia
May 15, v Qatar
May 18 and 19, semi-finals
May 20, final
match info
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Muniain 37')
Atletico Madrid 1 (Costa 39')
Man of the match Iker Muniain (Athletic Bilbao)
The Details
Article 15
Produced by: Carnival Cinemas, Zee Studios
Directed by: Anubhav Sinha
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Kumud Mishra, Manoj Pahwa, Sayani Gupta, Zeeshan Ayyub
Our rating: 4/5
Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
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What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
RESULTS
5pm: Rated Conditions (PA) Dh85,000 (Turf) 1,600m
Winner: AF Mouthirah, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: AF Alajaj, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Hawafez, Connor Beasley, Abubakar Daud
6.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m
Winner: Tair, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
7pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m
Winner: Wakeel W’Rsan, Richard Mullen, Jaci Wickham
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 2,400m
Winner: Son Of Normandy, Fernando Jara, Ahmad bin Harmash
SCHEDULE
December 8: UAE v USA (Sharjah Cricket Stadium)
December 9: USA v Scotland (Sharjah Cricket Stadium)
December 11: UAE v Scotland (Sharjah Cricket Stadium)
December 12: UAE v USA (ICC Academy Oval 1)
December 14: USA v Scotland (ICC Academy Oval 1)
December 15: UAE v Scotland (ICC Academy Oval 1)
All matches start at 10am
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