Barry O'Connell, a former Royal Marine PTI has been awarded a £25,000 grant by the British Legion who have set up a Dragon's Den-style Be the Boss scheme for ex servicemen and women looking to set up their own business after leaving the armed forces.

O'Connell has used the grant to open State of Mind Fitness, a personal training gym in Hammersmith, West London and has equipped the cardio area with Scifit equipment.

Be the Boss is a joint venture between the Royal British Legion and the Department for Business Innovation and Skills and Barry is one of many ex servicemen to receive a grant after successfully pitching his business idea to a panel of Legion members and experienced business professionals.

Part of the grant funding was needed for the cardio equipment in the gym and Barry has chosen to start with two pieces of Scifit kit - the company's AC5000 Treadmill and SXT7000 Elliptical.

In its first year, the Be the Boss scheme was only open to those who left the forces after 2001 but it has recently been expanded to all former personnel.