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Wonderland event marks Successful Launch of High Growth Business Programmes
26.10.09
150 delegates joined Oxford Innovation at their Wonderland event held recently at the stunning Caerhays Estate near St Austell to launch two Solutions for Business programmes, funded by Convergence and the South West Regional Development Agency (SWRDA), to assist businesses in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly in realising their growth ambitions.
The High Growth Start-up and Coaching for High Growth programmes are receiving ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) Convergence investment and SWRDA funding worth nearly £9 million to support the development of high growth potential businesses in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly over the next three years.
The Wonderland theme of the launch event captured the spirit of the businesses that Oxford Innovation will be working with in Cornwall and of the support that will be provided. At the event, entrepreneurs were encouraged to have ‘aspirations which know no bounds’.
Start-up entrepreneurs were compared to Alice who had the curiosity and motivation to follow the White Rabbit down a hole not knowing where she would end up. The character of the Cheshire Cat was used to illustrate the non-directive coaching approach that Oxford Innovation’s coaches will employ to help businesses through their growth challenges. Alice asked: “Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?” and the Cheshire Cat famously replied “That depends a good deal on where you want to get to”.
Living up to its name, Oxford Innovation delivered an event with a difference – from the flock of six foot flamingos and assorted bone china tea services, miniature jam tarts and ‘Eat Me’ biscuits that greeted guests upon arrival to the keynote speaker, Mike Southon, of Beermat Entrepreneur fame, presiding as the Mad Hatter in his role as master of ceremonies. Wonderland is not new to Cornwall of course since Tim Burton’s film, Alice in Wonderland, starring Johnny Depp and due to be released in 2010, was partly filmed there.
The Starting a High Growth Business programme offers hands-on assistance to entrepreneurs with business ideas that have the potential to grow businesses to a turnover of £500,000 within three years. The Clean Slate Theatre Company delivered an entertaining sketch emphasizing the more extreme characteristics encountered in some entrepreneurs. Anna Scutt and Paul Henshall set up the theatre company in 2003 to enable actors with disabilities to participate in comedy theatre and the audience was completely captivated by the performance.
The Coaching for High Growth programme was explained by Geoff Ribbens, one of Oxford Innovation’s trained coaches, using a series of video clips to illustrate the difference between directive coaching, more akin to consultancy, and non-directive coaching, the approach that the team uses to assist business owners and managers through the challenges of growth. Oxford Innovation’s highly experienced team of 24 coaches, with board level experience across a range of sectors, is available to assist owners and managers with the capability and desire to grow their businesses by 20% per year to achieve their goals.
The audience then heard from Lucy Jewson, co-founder of Frugi, and Ernest Capbert, marketing director of Finisterre, who reflected on the challenges facing their expanding businesses and the benefits of the support they have signed up to receive.
Frugi is a fast growing supplier of planet-friendly, organic cotton clothing for babies, children and mums-to-be. Finisterre was set up in 2002 to fill a gap in the market for innovative surfing apparel that is manufactured with low detrimental impact to the environment.
Lucy Jewson said: “We are really excited to be working with Oxford Innovation. It is absolutely invaluable to us to have a knowledgeable third party to spend proper amounts of time with us to get to know our business inside out and analyse the areas where we could use some extra help. They have already arranged to bring in experts to help turn around certain aspects of our business that were effectively blocking our growth ambitions.”
Treve Willis, programme director at Oxford Innovation, commented: “Frugi and Finisterre perfectly represent the attitudes and ambitions of the types of companies that Oxford Innovation wants to engage with, and which will continue to sustain Cornwall as a great place in which to live and grow a successful business.”
The highlight of the event was the keynote talk by Mike Southon. Mike used the Beatles story as a powerful illustration of the ups and downs experienced en route to growing a successful business.
Carleen Kelemen, director of the Convergence Partnership Office for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, said: “This event marks the launch of two key business support products that have received ERDF Convergence investment which is intended to support high value businesses in their ambitions to become globally competitive.”
Stephen Bohane, SWRDA’s head of business development in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, said: “We congratulate Oxford Innovation on running an inspirational launch event for these programmes, which are all about creating the high growth businesses of tomorrow by giving them the support and encouragement they need to realise their aspirations and generate high quality jobs.”
The Coaching for High Growth and Starting a High Growth Business programmes are part financed by the European Union with £8,084,430 from the Convergence European Regional Development Fund, and £898,270 from the South West RDA.
The objective is to create new high value added businesses and help existing companies to expand, thereby generating new high value added jobs for the region.
For further information:
Margaret Henry
PR Director, Oxford Innovation
01865 811199
m.henry@oxin.co.uk
Editor's notes:
Dr Treve Willis (Oxford Innovation’s programme director for Cornwall & the Isles of Scilly) with guests at the inspirational Wonderland event to mark the launch of two major new programmes for entrepreneurs in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
About Coaching for High Growth and Starting a High Growth Business
The Coaching for High Growth and Starting a High Growth Business programmes encompass two investments which form part of the Convergence programme seeking to develop high value growth business success in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
Coaching for High Growth offers intensive coaching and assistance for up to 30 days to managers of high growth potential SMEs to support the realisation of their potential. The team of business advisors and experienced coaches have a range of board level business and sector experience gained from working in SMEs and facing similar challenges to those now faced by participants on the Coaching programme. The team can help managers who are looking for a new perspective on a business or would like help with specific issues such as growing businesses through a step change, refining business models, identifying new markets, sourcing new technologies, extending geographical reach and building teams.
Starting a High Growth Business assists individuals to start up businesses and helps entrepreneurs in start-up firms to develop their businesses. Advice is provided on issues ranging from developing a business plan and securing funding to identifying new markets, building a team and developing new products and services.
The programmes are managed by Oxford Innovation as part of the Convergence programme which aims to build a stronger economy for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
For more information: www.growcornwall.co.uk
About Oxford Innovation
Oxford Innovation has over 15 years experience of delivering business support and mentoring to thousands of companies of all sizes from start-ups and spin-outs to SMEs and large corporations. Advice is offered on all stages of business development from business planning, protection of intellectual property and securing funding to resource identification, manufacturing and sales and marketing.
Oxford Innovation operates a network of innovation centres that provide flexible office and laboratory space to technology, knowledge-based and creative companies throughout the UK. The company also manages three highly successful investment networks that link investors with entrepreneurs seeking funding from £20,000 to £2 million. For more information: www.oxin.co.uk
Oxford Innovation is part of SQW Group. Other divisions include SQW Consulting, which provides consultancy services in sustainable economic and social development to public sector organisations; SQW Energy, which provides energy market design and carbon management services and SQW Asia, which operates from Hong Kong providing economic and management consultancy services to Asia and international markets. For more information: www.sqwgroup.com
About the South West Regional Development Agency
The South West RDA leads the development of a sustainable economy, investing to unlock the region’s business potential. It is helping companies respond to the economic crisis and chart a course for recovery. The RDA is developing or expanding initiatives which include: establishing a Business Loan Fund; coordinating the response to large companies in difficulty and preparing for economic recovery. For more information: www.southwestrda.org.uk
About the Convergence Programme
In Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly the Convergence programmes are made up of European Regional Development Fund (£347 million) and European Social Fund (£153 million) Convergence Programmes will run until 2013 and follow the successful Objective One Programme and prior to that Objective 5b. For more information, Convergence helpline telephone: 0800 028012.
