Mego Employment Centre opens in Plymouth

A FORMER solicitors' office has been turned into an innovative Employment Centre.

Mego has opened its doors in Bretonside and provide jobseekers with a unique package of services.

The business will provide individuals with tailored services to improve their job-hunting skills and help them get hired.

The business will help those looking for work to find sustainable employment by providing face-to-face consultations to help people find the right type of work for their skills.

Chris Leonard, Mego managing director, said: "There is a gap in the market. An in-depth, personalised employment service isn't available anywhere else."

He said Jobcentres and the Work Programme are targeted to meet the needs of priority groups such as the long-term unemployed or the young.

Meanwhile, recruitment agencies focus on filling vacancies for employers but are not there to provide specific support for job seekers, he said.

"Mego has been created to fill the void between these two," he stressed.

Mego's five-strong management team is based in Totnes, but it has chosen to open in Plymouth because it is the largest city in Devon and Cornwall, and it has a proportionately high number of people who need support with employment-related issues.
Mr Leonard, who has 30 years' experience running employment agencies, said there are about 2,000 job vacancies in Plymouth at the moment – but a huge number of people competing for these jobs.

"Today's job market is highly competitive and demand for work significantly outweighs the number of vacancies available," he said. "This means there is a need for candidates to take a radical new approach to job-hunting and Mego has been created to provide one-to-one help and support."
The Mego team carried out a year of market research before deciding there is a need for such a business in Plymouth, believing about 50,000 city folk could benefit, including employed people wanting to up-skill.

People using Mego would have to pay per session, but Mr Leonard said research showed job-seekers would be prepared to do that and he expects to help 1,000 people in the first year.

Mr Leonard said Plymouth could be the first in a chain of Mego centres and said: "Many businesses are scaling down their physical shop fronts and moving online.

"But for Mego a physical retail presence is vital as our research told us people want to talk to an employment expert face-to-face, as you would a GP."

And he said the concept will help Plymouth businesses too.
"We know employers are struggling to find good staff," he said. "They get frustrated, and so do the people looking for work.

"So we will work with them to improve their employability."

Come in and see us at Bretonside, for an informal coffee and chat.