A nineteen-year-old from Grosmont has decided to follow in the footsteps of her parents and start her own confectionery business in Abergavenny, with assistance from local business support agency, Newport and Gwent Enterprise.

Tanya Ong's shop, Thimbles Chocolates, will be familiar to many people as it used to trade on St John's Street before it closed five years ago.

After leaving school, Tanya worked for her parents in Thimbles Chocolates in Symonds Yat.

"When I left school, I didn't want to go away to university and, having parents who have always run their own businesses, knew that I didn't want to work for anyone else," Tanya explains. "My parents decided to move their business back to Grosmont and gave the opportunity to take over the confectionery side of the business."

Tanya started to prepare to take on the business around a year ago, when she came across an advert for Newport and Gwent Enterprise in the Monmouthshire Beacon. "I felt that if I was going to start my own business I needed to prepare properly," says Tanya.

"I contacted Newport and Gwent Enterprise, who put me in touch with business adviser John Powell, who has been amazing. Not only has he helped me to prepare my business plan, but he has provided me with advice and guidance that has given me the confidence to persevere, particularly during the preparation to open the shop."

"I have known Tanya's family for a number of years, and it was no surprise that she decided to follow in her parents' footsteps and set up her own business," John Powell explains. "She has the right attitude and determination and has taken every advantage to improve her business knowledge and gain practical experience, thus laying the essential foundations which every successful business needs."

Tanya has also received a lot of support from her parents, and her sister, who works for a business support organisation in England. "I am very lucky to have a family that can give me the benefit of their experience," says Tanya, "but it is nice to know that I can just pick up the phone and ask John Powell for advice if I get stuck, and there have been a few times when that has happened over the last year!"

In addition to business advice and planning, Tanya has also attended various training courses at Newport and Gwent Enterprise's Newport office, to gain the necessary skills for the day-to-day management of the shop. "I feel very lucky to have come across Newport and Gwent Enterprise. Aside from the advice and training I have received, it has been invaluable to be assigned a business adviser who comes from Abergavenny and who has local knowledge, which has helped when addressing market research issues," she explains.

Thimbles Chocolates opened on Friday at 9, Cross Street, Abergavenny. It sells high-quality Belgian chocolates and offers a different selection from other high street confectioners. "The chocolates provide unusual gift ideas that we will wrap to customers' specifications," says Tanya. "I am also planning to start making my own fudge next year and, in the summer, will sell ice-cream."

Thimbles Chocolates has a strong following with its customers in Symonds Yat, and many of them have assured Tanya that they will be making the trip to Abergavenny once she opens. "I am also hoping that people who remember Thimbles Chocolates from five years ago will be curious enough to come and see what we have to offer," she says. "The Christmas-themed window display will also, hopefully, arouse interest in the shop, and is something I intend to continue by changing the window-dressing every fortnight."

In addition to her plans to produce her own fudge, Tanya also intends to develop her business over the next few years with the introduction of a website, which could lead to mail order. It is early days yet, but Tanya's determination to develop her business with the help of Newport and Gwent Enterprise looks set to shape the success of Thimbles Chocolates.