A Leeds Met graduate is enjoying the fruits of his labour after setting up his own business.

Since completing his studies, Jonathan Russell, who graduated with BA (Hons) Marketing, has set up his own fruit delivery company, aptly named 'The Fruit Box', thanks to support from the University's Business Start Up project which awarded him a Concept grant of £1000 to test the feasibility of his idea.

The Fruit Box specialises in delivering the finest fresh fruit to offices in Leeds, offering a regular delivery service. Jonathan prides himself on offering premium handpicked fruit from the Yorkshire Produce Centre.

"The idea came to me whilst working last year; the long hours spent in the office chair and the tearoom snacks were taking their toll so I decided to do something about my waning health by buying fruit for the office every Monday."

Jonathan always excelled in his studies at Leeds Met and won the 'Best Marketing Student' award at his graduation ceremony.

He added, "Leeds Met has helped me a great deal both during my time at the University and since leaving through Business Start Up. I particularly enjoyed the Contemporary Brand Management module and I have taken what I learnt from this and applied it to developing The Fruit Box brand, something I have found very enjoyable."

The Fruit Box business model has been built on a foundation of friendly and reliable customer service. "I am 100 per cent committed to making The Fruit Box experience as rewarding and hassle free as possible for businesses. I source only the highest quality and freshest produce for my customers."

Since the launch Jonathan has serviced several large corporate customers and feels there is an increasing push towards employers promoting wellbeing amongst their staff.  He believes that his fruit boxes are a great way to boost employee morale, health and well-being, increasing office productivity.

Over the coming months he will be working hard to develop The Fruit Box's Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategy; he currently donates all fruit which has not made the stringent quality checks to Emmaus - a local homeless charity. He also plans to recruit his first employee to help support expand the operation to the north of England.

Boxes start from £21 with an introductory offer of 50 per cent discount off during a two week trial. For more information on what The Fruit Box has to offer visit
www.thefruit-box.co.uk.