Tell us a little about yourself
My name is Karmen-Maria Kotter. I’m in the 11th grade in EBS high school and I am 18 years old. I study street dance in JJ-dance school and have always been interested in enterpreunership. This year I started a student company Bracelets Unite People aka B.U.P. with my two friends Friedrich Pangsepp and Robin Saagim.
What is your student company about and where did the idea come from?
Our student company is specialized in designer pillows and bracelets made out of bullet shells. The idea came while brainstorming and we started off with bracelets, later came the pillows.
What makes your designs special?
Both our bracelets and pillows are unique in Estonia. There are no other designers nor companies who offer universal bracelets that fit both men and women, made out of bullet shells. Our pillows have interesting designs. As an example, at the moment we have pillows with pictures of royal cats and dogs.
How much and where have you represented your company so far?
We have been to two student company fairs and you can order our goods from opilasfirma24.com. One of the fairs took place in February in Rocca al Mare shopping mall and the other one in Tabasalu high school. Both of those events were very successful for us in both ways, selling our goods and gaining the experience. We also went to Tabasalu high school to talk about our business to 7th grade students, trying to give them ideas about starting their own businesses.
Tell us a little about your team
There are two boys and one girl in our team: Friedrich Pangsepp, Robin Saagim and me, Karmen-Maria Kotter. We are all studying in EBS high school in the same year and we are really good friends. In 11th grade you are given the option to choose between doing a research paper and creating a student company. We chose to try something new and practical and ended up making the company. We really got to know each other better and gained the knowledge about forming and leading a company. I think I can say on behalf of us all that it has mostly been a positive opportunity. We have had our ups and downs, but so far we have found the ways to get over them.
Translator: Rebecca Põldma
Editor: Kärt Mättikas