CALLING all budding entrepreneurs — are you planning to start up your own business in the next three months? Then we would love to hear from you, writes Rachel Bridge.

We are looking for three first-time entrepreneurs who are willing to share their experiences with our readers as they turn their ideas into reality. We will write about you on these pages in the next few weeks as you prepare to launch your business — and then follow your progress over the next two years, updating the story for our readers every six months.

Starting up a business is one of the most exciting things you can do, but it is also one of the most challenging and daunting. The reality is that one in every three business start-ups in Britain fail in the first two years, so it will be fascinating to see what happens to our three as they take on the challenge of turning their dreams into reality.

It does not matter what kind of business you are planning to start. The only thing we ask is that you are genuinely committed to making this happen. We will then choose the three most interesting propositions from your responses and follow their progress.

We will write about your hopes and dreams, the challenges and hurdles you face and, of course, your successes and achievements.

Those who strike out on their own often have little support and can feel extremely isolated in the early years. So the aim of our project is also to provide our three budding entrepreneurs with moral support and encouragement as well as offering practical advice for others wishing to take the plunge themselves.

Join our project

IF you would like to be considered for inclusion in this project, then please send me an e-mail at rachel.bridge@sunday-times.co.uk marking it “Start up project” in the subject line.

Outline your business idea briefly and explain how far you have got with it. Please state whether you already have funding — and, if not, how you plan to raise it — whether you are giving up your day job to launch your business, and your planned launch date. Please also tell me a bit about yourself and why you are doing this, and include a daytime telephone number.

I will then choose the three budding entrepreneurs who I think will be the most exciting to watch over the next couple of years and contact them by phone.

Watch this space.