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International start-ups head for Middlesbrough

Moves towards making Middlesbrough the UK’s business start-up capital are underway with new tech firms representing six different countries joining a new accelerator programme.

Searchcamp received applications from tech entrepreneurs and early-stage internet start-ups from across the globe for its first accelerator programme before plumping for eight representing South Korea, Singapore, Italy, Romania, Spain and the UK.

Middlesbrough-based Searchcamp is providing a 12-week immersive accelerator programme and follow-on business incubator that will see international bright young things based at Teesside University as they take their first steps in the business world.

Each start-up business receives seed capital, world-class presenters, mentors and investors, offices and living space in return for 6-10% equity stake in the company.

Searchamp’s founding team – comprising directors Bobby Paterson, Andy Preston and Alistair Waite - received more than 80 applications representing 14 nations for the accelerator, with interest also coming from Russia, the United States, Canada, Brazil, Hungary and Belarus.

Middlesbrough already has an established and growing reputation for tech start-ups due to the success of the Teesside University-backed DigitalCity, a project focused on developing a self-sustaining cluster of world-class digital media and technology enterprises

Entrepreneur Andy Preston, co-founder of Searchcamp, believes Middlesbrough can follow in the unlikely but ground-breaking footsteps of Boulder in Colorado, now renowned as the USA’s capital for start-ups.

“The sheer volume of start-ups means there is something truly remarkable going on in Middlesbrough right now,” said Mr Preston, who returned to Teesside following a highly successful career as a hedge fund manager.

“We might not be the country’s start-up capital right now but that is our naked ambition – and I believe it’s realistic too.

“If Boulder can be the start-up capital of the United States then there’s no reason at all why Middlesbrough can’t take up the same mantle over here.”

Searchcamp programme director Bobby Paterson, whose partners also include Teesside University and businessman Alistair Waite, is confident that the start-ups taking part in the accelerator programme will emerge from it ready for fast growth.

“We initially believed our first accelerator would act as a pilot programme but we were blown away by the outstanding quantity and quality of the applications we received from across the UK and around the globe,” he said.

Core to the success story of Searchcamp’s accelerator programme and its chosen start-ups are weekly ‘master classes’ delivered by proven international speakers and authors, domain-specific mentors, start-up founders and experts from the global business and lean start-up community.

The programme will culminate in two demo days at the end of August, one in Middlesbrough and another in London, where teams will pitch to venture capitalists and business angel investors.

The tech teams taking part in Searchcamp’s first accelerator include Romanians Ciprian Tomofte and Dana Apatachioae, who are launching a social network site for cats, showmecats.com. South Korean Junghyun An and Singaporean Jian Xiong are owners of Mobcoin, a sustainable, searchable mobile rewards platform for advertisers.

Tangle Labs – comprising Italians Lorenzo Pietrangeu, Diego Carrea, Gianluca Carrocia and Mauro Toffoli – is a dating app for students that “rewinds time” and connects you with people who have caught your eye.

Co-founders of Lean Sales Panel of Spain are Ruben Santiago and Antonio Gala, who provide start-ups with an online tool to map their sales process.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Martin Walker .