Mussel farmer does well at US business school
A Brae mussel farmer has come through a programme at one of the world’s most renowned business schools in the USA with flying colours.
Michael Laurenson of Blueshell Mussels excelled at an entrepreneurs development programme at the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston.
The business plan competition was won by a team including Mr Laurenson, whose business was one of seven from the Highlands and Islands taking part in the week-long programme. They were working with over 120 businesses from 30 countries.
The programme was made possible through a partnership Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) has developed with MIT, which gives local businesses access to world class business and sales training and the latest in research in management and leadership techniques.
Mr Laurenson said: “Our time at MIT was a fantastic learning experience with world class lecturers who could hold an audience with every word. I took back a number of key fundamentals learned at MIT which I find myself applying subconsciously on a daily basis.
“It changes the way you think about things and helps you examine where you really want to go in your business. I have learned a lot of practical lessons from some very high calibre people which will undoubtedly help me to grow the business back home.”
Blueshell Mussels is a family business formed in 1997, which has developed world-leading cultivation techniques to supply quality mussels to leading restaurants and major supermarkets.
