Co-working community and start-up hub, River City Labs, recently announced that applications are now open for entrepreneurs and start-ups to take part in its three-month Sponsored Entrepreneur Program.
The Entrepreneur Program – sponsored by Australia’s largest customer-owned financial services provider, CUA – will offer five entrepreneurs full-time desk membership at the Fortitude Valley co-working space, structured mentoring by the River City Labs mentoring team, access to training and networking events, as well as sponsored marketing and publicity opportunities.
General Manager at River City Labs, Josh Anthony said they are thrilled to be ushering in the New Year with the next round of the Sponsored Entrepreneur Program.
“We recognise that not every entrepreneur and start-up can afford to rent a desk at a co-working space, so ideally the Program is about incentivising these people to take advantage of an opportunity that could potentially kick-start, grow and transform their business,” Josh explained.
“We want to encourage founders at all stages and from all over Queensland to apply,” he added.
“If they are in a position where they are thinking seriously about next steps to develop their start-up, the Program is a one-stop shop to receiving quality mentorship and gaining access to valuable networking and training opportunities.”
What do you stand to gain from this program?
Past participant and co-founder of eSports betting community, Mevu, Phil Barclay, commented, “As a group of university students, the Program opened our eyes to many different areas of business and entrepreneurialism that we weren’t familiar with – this has proven invaluable for our ongoing progress and development.”
“Everyday the team learnt new things, but perhaps the most valuable skill we picked up was the ability to move quickly and adapt to change,” Phil revealed.
“We also discovered that pitching your idea to as many different people as possible opens up new connections and provides ongoing, practical feedback for your business,” he added.
Sue Coulter, CUA’s General Manager of Business Transformation & Technology, said she was looking forward to seeing new, innovative business ideas being nurtured and developed.
“Innovation is a really important focus for CUA and working with River City Labs gives us a real insight into the QLD start-up culture, as well as access to smarter and more agile ways to work.”
“Our team saw firsthand how the initial group of entrepreneurs that utilised the CUA-sponsored desks last year were able to evolve their unique and interesting business models over the three months, turning ideas and hobbies into marketable products and services with promising prospects for the future,” Sue said.
Five start-ups completed the last round of the Sponsored Entrepreneur Program including Mevu; The Perch Project, which provides a managed feed of all the events, specials and promotions being offered by restaurants, bars and pubs around Brisbane; ModHub, a sharing platform for spreadsheet content; CaterMe, a catering management app for large scale corporate event organisers, and Black Stump Software, a small flexible company that delivers applications to save staff time.
Who can participate in this Sponsored Entrepreneur Program?
Below are the key criteria for the applicants looking to enter the program:
- Entrepreneurs can apply as individuals or as members of a startup team;
- Entrepreneurs must have proof they have started working on their business idea via a current prototype, website or operating business;
- Applications are open to entrepreneurs of all ages, gender, background and experience;
- Current and past members of River City Labs are able to apply;
- Entrepreneurs must be available to commit to work on their business full-time (minimum 5 days per week for the 3-month period);
- Entrepreneurs must be willing to share challenges, problems, and hurdles with the River City Labs community in order to access help from startup peers and mentors;
- Applicants must be willing to share their startup journey, story and personal business profile with the River City Labs program representative and Sponsor representative for publicity and marketing purposes, and;
- No Non-Disclosure Agreements will be signed as part of this program.
Keep in mind that applications for the program opened on Friday 8 January and close on Friday 22 January. Residency for start-ups commences on Monday 1 February.
