Member Article

Entrepreneurs wanted for Teesside startup scheme

The next generation of North East digital entrepreneurs are being invited to take part in a unique Fellowship to help make their businesses a success.

The Fellowships offered by DigitalCity Innovation, at Teesside University, give graduates up to £4,000 to cover their living costs while they develop their business.

So far, the scheme has helped to create more than 200 companies and nearly 300 jobs and applications are being invited for the next round of Fellowships.

Potential startups have until noon on Tuesday September 10 to submit their applications.

As well as funding, the Fellowships also offer business training and mentoring from industry professionals and access to state-of-the-art equipment and software.

The most recent intake of Fellows also worked closely with Searchcamp, the accelerator scheme being run in partnership with Teesside University and North-East entrepreneurs.

They were given a masterclass in lean sales and marketing by the Searchcamp team.

David Jeffries, head of DigitalCity Innovation and Graduate Enterprise, said: “DigitalCity Innovation has a fantastic record of taking young companies and equipping them with the necessary skills and expertise to make their products and ideas commercially viable.

“Running your business is immensely satisfying and taking part in the Fellowship can have a significant impact upon the success of a startup.

“I’d encourage anyone thinking of setting up a digital business to get in contact with us immediately.”

Dan Riley and Paul Li developed their company Spearhead Interactive with the help of a DigitalCity Fellowship.

Spearhead Interactive creates 3D interactive solutions for the corporate, education and public sectors.

They used the Fellowship to build a range of demonstrators showcasing the breadth of their work and potential applications for it.

Dan said: “The support we have received on the back of the fellowship has enabled the company to grow from an idea into a fully-fledged business now employing six members of staff.

“The incubation, hardware and software, mentoring and the financial contribution playing a critical role in enabling us to achieve this.”

Fellowships are available to individuals and teams with an original project idea, who live in the North East of England and who have graduated from University.

This project is part financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), managed by the Department for Communities and Local Government.

The ERDF Competitiveness Programme 2007-2013 is bringing over £300m into the North East to support innovation, enterprise and business support across the region.

For more information visit www.digitalcityinnovation.com/fellowships

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