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Living up to its name: Innovation Central

With a name like Innovation Central, the expectation is high for Darlington’s latest business centre on the town’s Central Park development.

But the £8million centre is already living up to its name, with the first new tenants in and the first new ideas out in its first few months of operation.

Add to this a calendar of popular events designed to bring local business leaders together to overcome common challenges, and operators the North East BIC say they’re seizing every opportunity to inspire innovation and growth.

“We worked hard to design a creative, collaborative and supportive environment where ideas people can be inspired,” said Centre Manager Vanessa Wood. “So, it’s really exciting to see the building coming to life with real businesses and busy events.

“The new workspace choices are already attracting businesses with solutions to real-life challenges in sectors as varied as training, food technology and healthcare.

“And most importantly, customer feedback has been great. Tenants really like the size of the spaces and the spec we have on offer. They also like the proximity to the town centre and the excitement of being on Central Park as it continues to develop.”

Built to accommodate the demand for office and lab space from innovative businesses and start-ups in the Tees Valley, Innovation Central is just around the corner from the already-thriving Business Central site.

Together, the two centres have created a connected business hub, providing a choice of coworking, office and lab space, along with services to support healthy businesses and lifestyles. Tenants benefit from shared facilities including meeting rooms, a gym and micro spa.

Candid conversations

Business support that really makes a difference to growth and innovation lies at the heart of this new business community.

A programme of monthly fireside conversations at Innovation Central is bringing peers together to share and learn from each other’s real-life experiences, mistakes and dilemmas.

Growth Lab: Darlington takes place on the third Thursday of each month, and sees a local business leader answer questions on challenges they’ve faced and overcome.

Already, the sessions have seen Charlotte Nichols, Founder of PR company Harvey & Hugo, share her experience of balancing the needs of a young family with those of a teenage business. And Daryl Lynch, MD at subsea cabling specialist Primo Marine, opened up about the challenges of winning customers with a small team and limited marketing budget.

The next event in series takes place on March 16th when Ian Brown, CEO of software developer Excelpoint, will open up about the challenge of financing a growing business while retaining a company he still loves.

First success story

Entrepreneur Josh Verdon is testament to the inspiring environment Innovation Central provides. One of the first tenants to move into the building, he has already launched is first innovation – a solution to ease a headache of the hospitality sector.

His fintech start-up Fyre offers a new till and card payment system to simplify online ordering for restaurants and takeaway businesses who are struggling to manage orders from apps and websites as well as on the phone and at the table.

He took an office at Innovation Central to focus on his business and now his software has been integrated into Point of Sale equipment - providing online ordering, table side ordering and card terminals in one simple and affordable solution.

Josh plans to launch the product with local businesses first, before rolling it out nationally and exploring the global opportunity.

Innovation Central and Business Central are owned by Darlington Borough Council and are managed by the North East BIC. Innovation Central is jointly funded by Darlington Borough Council, the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), £3.55million from the Tees Valley Mayor and Combined Authority, and the Government’s Getting Building Fund.

For more information visit darlingtonworkspace.co.uk

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by North East BIC .