Business studies graduate, Lewis Bowen, founded Air Global in response to the millions of deaths that occur annually from indoor air pollution caused by fuels such as paraffin, wood and kerosene.

Air Global's bestselling product is LightMe - a bio fuel candle which is refined from a sustainable source of palm-kernel oil.

LightMe candles burn more cleanly than regular candles and self-extinguish when knocked over. Lewis' candles are also proving popular in emerging nations, where there is a need for alternative energy sources that are affordable and sustainable.

Lewis approached the University's Enterprise Team with his business idea back in 2011. Since then, Air Global has gone from strength to strength, and received a boost this year by securing £300,000 of investment from Finance Yorkshire's Seedcorn Fund. The money will enable Air Global to invest in stock and boost marketing while researching and developing new products.

Lewis now returns to Sheffield Hallam to give talks to current students about his business and his journey since graduation. He recently returned to deliver a talk at the Sheffield Business School Inspirational Student Awards.

We caught up with Lewis to ask him what lessons he'd give to anyone thinking about launching their own business.

1. “Starting a business means you will be rich tomorrow” – Anyone can have an idea but it is the implementation that is key. It will take years of blood, sweat and tears to get your business making a good income. You will need to be prepared for huge social and financial sacrifice.
2. “No means no” – Many people give up at the first hurdle of being told no by potential customer, investor or key stakeholder. No is never just a no, it’s a yes but not right now. Take time to understand how to develop that no to a yes. For example, can your product or service improve? Can you develop your team to achieve that yes?
3. “I don’t have the right skills or knowledge to get my idea off the ground” – Find it. You are surrounded by a world of help. Universities have an enormous network and resource available for you to find help. From market data and packaging design to video production and accountancy.
4. “Failure is bad” – People get defeated by failure but the biggest part of starting a business is that you are trying to do things differently to everybody else. Pushing boundaries and doing things differently will mean that failure will happen, it's part of the cycle. You have to fail and fail fast. Learn from it but don’t be defeated by it.
5. “People won't respect me because of my age” – I started Air Global at the age of 23. I was definitely nervous about the potential of speaking to older, more experienced people but the fact is that age doesn’t really matter. If you are passionate, have a good grasp on your business and respect others, people buy into you and ultimately your business.
6. “I will be on my own” – starting a business can mean you find yourself out on your own. As you start, quickly surround yourself with a good support network that you can turn to. Find a good mentor and don’t be afraid to say you need some help.
7. “I haven’t got the money to start a business” – Nobody does (unless you are very lucky!). You have to be entrepreneurial both in your ideas and your way of doing business. Use every resource you have to get as much as you can. You will be amazed what a few cheeky requests can get you. We got a free full page spread in the times because of exactly that.

If your ambition is to become self–employed, you don't have to get there on your own. As a Sheffield Hallam student – or a graduate from the last five years – you have free access to our specialist business knowledge and resources to improve your chances of success. Last year, we supported almost 600 students with their business ventures.

If, like Lewis, you would like to impart your experiences since graduation to mentor current students or alumni, we'd love to hear from you. You can contact us at alumni@shu.ac.uk