Before joining the Sarina Russo, Self-Employment Assistance (previously New Business Assistance with NEIS), Nadia Haralampou dreamed of turning her passion for speech and drama into a business.
"While I could teach speech and drama, I didn't know how to run a business. I didn't have those entrepreneurship skills," says Nadia.
With starting a business at the forefront of Nadia's mind, she visited Centrelink for some assistance. There, Nadia spoke to some government representatives who confirmed the Self-Employment Assistance program (previously New Business Assistance with NEIS) program would be the best option for her.
"I jumped at the opportunity because it was very, very achievable. I would go to Toowong, and I would work with a group of like-minded people three days a week for three weeks and draft a business plan, and for me, that was enormously exciting", said Nadia.
Nadia expressed her appreciation for her mentor, India Suter, and her Business Coach, Michael.
"I maintained a really good relationship with my mentor, India Suter. She was absolutely outstanding in every single way. My teacher Michael was very passionate for all of us. He was extremely interested in all of our businesses, which was so delightful. He was genuinely passionate."
After finishing her program, Nadia then opened the “Nadia Haralampou Speech and Drama Studio”. Her business grew exponentially, and Nadia's small speech and drama studio became the talk of the town.
"I felt extremely fortunate and blessed that my business grew so quickly and so unexpectedly", said Nadia.
The rapid growth of the business was unexpected, and Nadia hadn't planned for it, so she turned to her past mentor, India, for support.
"India gave some terrific advice. She said, ‘Nadia, It's simple. You employ a person. You hire another teacher’, and I took India's advice, and I employed a terrific teacher, a very experienced teacher, so I was able to successfully scale my business."
With the continued support of the Sarina Russo Self-Employment Assistance team, Nadia was able to run a small business successfully.
"I learnt all the skills to build a small business, and it was also really great to graduate with a Certificate IV in Small Business Management," said Nadia.
Want help to manage and grow your small business?
Sarina Russo offers accredited small business training that can help turn your business idea into reality. In conjunction with the Self-Employment Assistance program, Sarina Russo Entrepreneurs enables Australians to set up and run their own small business. The Self-Employment Assistance is 100% Australian Government funded.
Sarina Russo Entrepreneurs supports candidates as they complete BSB42618 Certificate IV in New Small Business. During this, candidates create a comprehensive business plan and a two-year financial cash forecast. SRE Trainers provide meaningful mentoring for the first twelve months.
Eligible candidates receive the training and support to create a viable business plan, in addition to obtaining a BSB42618 Certificate IV in New Small Business.
For more information, please click here.
