Sunrise Bakery’s Managing Director, Errol Drummond, is a member of the peer-to-peer business mentoring initiative, the 12/8 Group. This group includes six, African-Caribbean owned small firms dedicated to growth. 
 
Professor Monder Ram of De Montfort University and Professor Kiran Trehan of Lancaster University carried out a case study of the 12/8 Group which explains the benefits to the member firms, the successes and why the 12/8 Group model should be of interest to Local Enterprise Partnerships as an economic growth model. 
 
Established on the 12th August, 2004 (hence the name), the 12/8 Group, is still flourishing 16 years on from conception. 
 
 
The member firms of the 12/8 Group noted the key reasons for the success of the group including: allowing time to build strong trust and respect between members of the group and sharing motivation to “grow [themselves] and [their] communities”. Research from the US has suggested that successful growth-orientated ethnic minority businesses tend to stay in their communities, generate local jobs and create a new generation of role models. The 12/8 experience has supported this research. 
 
As a result of joining the group, Sunrise Bakery in Smethwick was able to build its strategic objectives as well as continue to support the local Birmingham community and the wider Jamaican community with Errol Drummond as Deputy Chair of the Jamaican Diaspora Council. 
 
 
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