Oxford High School's Elixir in Young Enterprise regional final

Elixir UK, who are negotiating deals with foreign countries worth tens of thousands of pounds, are set to compete at Buckingham University for a place in the Young Enterprise Scheme national final - and they are not the only group from the all girls school involved.

Oxford High has seen at least one group make the national final for the last 10 years and this year has two Year 12 companies competing in the South East.

Elixir, who will join Glo, has created a ‘unique adaptation’ of sleek stainless steel bottles, which serve as an alternative to single-use plastic bottles and disposable cups for hot drinks.

The recyclable bottle features a 'touch-sensitive, temperature detecting LED lid' to protect customers from burns from hot drinks, while the group’s ‘planet friendly products’ also include metal straws.

The girls have already sold their products to foreign companies and are now hoping to set up international deals with companies in Africa and Asia.

Economics teacher Mike Gallager confirmed that the group are currently negotiating with an unnamed ‘Indian international conglomerate’, for orders each in excess of £40,000, while sales of at least £25,000 are also being finalised with a company based in Botswana and South Africa.

Student Milly Yurkova, the Co-Managing Director, explained: “We hope to use these profits to invest in new products for Elixir so that we can provide an even wider range of single-use plastic alternatives, and increase our current stock so that we can reach a wider market."

The 17-year-old added that as well as international deals the girls hoped to sell in bulk to local pubs and restaurants, to decrease plastic use within the community.

Mr Gallagher said where any profits went would be decided at a company annual general meeting.

Another Co-Managing Director, Niki Kini, 17, added: “Elixir is a company consisting of 12 young women who have been motivated by current environmental issues affecting our planet. We decided upon a common goal: the necessity to unite against plastic pollution and climate change.

“We believe this can be achieved through the use of both metal straws and our smart water bottles. Through (spreading) our message we can reduce plastic pollution.”

Having so far competed in city and county rounds, the group won the first but were then beaten by classmates Glo.

They are another group of seven pupils from the school and will be one of the of six other teams providing competition to Elixir in the regional final.

Their business model is based around designing ‘serotonin necklaces’, available for £8.50, which aim to raise awareness of mental health illnesses, depression and anxiety.

Edie Holt, Elixir’s Human Resources/Marketing Director, 17, added: “It has been such a great experience taking part in the Young Enterprise scheme; we have all bonded as a team and are really proud of our company.”

For more information, visit https://bit.ly/2YGNaJS (Elixir) and https://bit.ly/2HGqGlj (Glo).