Blog: How Studying for a Degree at St Mary's Helped Me Set Up My Own Business

Alumnus of St Mary’s University, Twickenham Joseph Gregorio describes how working towards a degree helped him set up an online health and fitness business based on his experience of working to tight deadlines, networking with peers and harnessing his own experience of life as an undergraduate student.

I graduated from St Mary’s University in the summer of July 2014 with a first class degree in Management Studies with Business Law. During my time at St Mary’s, I learnt a great deal of business concepts, as well as underwent significant personal development that my degree arguably equipped me with the skills and knowledge I needed to set up a business.

I fully launched my website, CheckMeowt in April 2015 having bought the domain name in late 2014. CheckMeowt is a platform, or hub as I like to call it, to collate the latest supplement discount codes, offers and freebies from some of the biggest wellness and sporting brands in the UK and Europe.

I was able to do all of this based on what I had gone through at university. Despite having no serious technology, e-commerce or digital marketing experience – or even studying a sport or health related degree for that matter, it was my keen interest in health and fitness (derived from a young age) and going to a university boasting great sporting facilities, nourishing top athletes that spurred me on to find out how I could turn my passion into a fully-fledged business.

This led me to working towards a certified nutrition qualification at an adviser and consultant level and working full-time in affiliate marketing, running my website as a part-time venture (I’ve always been a tech geek at heart).

Going to St Mary’s gave me the opportunity to learn about the commercial world from a unique perspective. For instance, while studying an economics module, I discovered the concept of ‘opportunity cost’. This concept outlines that time and resource are often scarce and that one matter often needs to be forgone in place of another. This has allowed me to avoid procrastination and keep on top of business as usual tasks such as writing up a unique piece of content, planning a new marketing campaign and finding ways to drive more online traffic.

As a society, we often hail those men and women who did not follow the conventional route into higher education including the likes of Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Elizabeth Holmes.

Although these individuals have achieved remarkable success, they are often the exception to the rule as there is still great value in going to university, as demonstrated by J.K. Rowling, Jeff Bezos and Hilary Clinton. With that in mind, going to university can play a key role in setting up a small business.

Having essay deadlines (particularly a final year dissertation), working with, and building relations with lecturers, students and other alumni and finding out where to find the best information are all transferrable skills needed to withstand the strains, stresses and pressures of being a solopreneur – especially in the beginning.

It is easy to see that some modules you may study may be irrelevant to what you want to do or become in the future, however it is the intangible aspect of this that holds the key you need to be able to do what others believe may not be possible for themselves.

Adversity, disappointment and setbacks are inevitable whilst studying for a degree. Faith and persistence are two primary traits that are frequently called upon (which is usually developed throughout the years at university) to help see you through any task or project to the very end. These characteristics are what make up an ‘entrepreneur’ and university is the perfect environment to mould you into that, as it has with me.

For those who may currently be a student and are not 100% sure as to what they want to do after they graduate, my advice would be to associate with like-minded individuals, and as cliché as it is – follow what excites you the most. Your closest peers will often tell you what you’re good at, and it is that which is usually the direction you should be heading in.

The more you chase your excitement, the more plans begin to unfold to get you to where you need to be. Studying for a degree is not only an investment in your career, but an investment in your character too. Trust the process, always look for growth and doors will slowly open for you – including that of entrepreneurship.