How to Build a Business in One Weekend

Since publishing this article, Plymouth Startup Weekend has decided to reschedule their April event until later this year. Organiser say this will  give everyone a chance to come together with bigger, bolder, more innovative ideas. 

If you want to learn more about what the Culture and Tourism Weekend is all about and are interested in joining the next Plymouth Startup Weekend event, register your interest here. 

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Entrepreneurs in the South West are being invited to pitch their business ideas or join a team that will create a startup over 54 hours in Plymouth, later this month. 

The TechStars Startup Weekend on April 23rd is being led by the University of Plymouth’s iMayflower team, who are dedicated to making the city a more attractive place to live, work and visit.  

Similar to TedX, TechStars is a global initiative, where events are hosted all around the world in a structured format, but this one helps any individual who wants to get on the business ladder, and meet like-minded people to get their business up and running. 

Knowledge Exchange Officer at the University of Plymouth on the iMayflower project Emily Barrett says this year’s theme is Culture and Tourism and told the TribeTech podcast: “We are currently organising our fourth event in Plymouth. At the same time as ours, there is another Culture and Tourism one happening in Spain and there will be TechStartup weekends happening all over the world. So, it’s hacked Plymouth into a global network.” 

It is one of many events across the city that is being backed by the Cultural Development Fund. At the start of 2019, the government announced it would give five places across England a share of £20 million to invest in creative industries and cultural heritage to help drive economic growth, and Plymouth was one of them (along with Grimsby, Thames Estuary, Worcester and Wakefield).

The TechStars weekend this year, like last, will be held online and anyone who signs up can either pitch their idea or listen to others’ ideas and then team up with a pitch they like.

The organisers say the weekend is about collaboration and creativity, so once individuals decide who they want to team with, they immediately start working on their business plan.

Ms Barrett said that while the South West is a hub for tech and entrepreneurialism: “There isn’t really a space for new ideas from anyone to emerge and develop. I mean, if you’ve never considered starting your own business before, you might not know where to go and where to start and hopefully this is a space that provides that.”

Over the weekend, teams will design a prototype, deliver a pitch, and then receive feedback from experienced entrepreneurs before deciding how to move forward with their startup.

Ms Barrett added: “Over the past few years, we’ve been growing the community around it. So, growing the amazing mentors and people that are supporting the event, and are there to support the attendees, but also growing the attendees. It’s always great to have new faces, but we also see serial startup weekend attendees there, which is fantastic.” 

The TechStars wider programme chooses around 500 early stage companies every year to join a 3 month mentorship programme, and will invest around £87,000 in those businesses. 

Since it started in 2011, TechStars has helped create 2,379 businesses across the world, with 85% either active or acquired and total funding exceeding £8.3 billion.

If you’re interested in taking part in the TechStars Startup Weekend in Plymouth, email plymouth@startupweekend.org or go to their event page https://bit.ly/3tdO7sz

Alternatively, if you already have a tech startup but need more support, you could apply to the Tech South West StartUp Studio, which is a fully-funded growth programme for early stage tech startups. Companies take part in a 6 week accelerator programme. Find out about the first cohort here.