Back for a second year, Crowd10 – a programme that helps entrepreneurs get funding to see their startup businesses grow and succeed – is opening its doors to national applicants.
Following the success of the first round, Kirsty Ranger, founder of IdeaSquares the company behind the Bristol-based programme, tells us “We’ve learned so much and are looking forward to making some key changes to the next programme to make it even more successful than this one.
“We’ve learned more about the specific traits that make an entrepreneur successful”
“We’ve also learned more about the specific traits that make an entrepreneur successful in this process and we’ll be looking for these traits in choosing our next Crowd10 cohort.”
Highlights from the last programme include: Coherent – an app to help coworking places manage and connect to their communities – getting fully funded, LUX – who give rewards to fine diners – overfunding to the tune of 112%, Local Vets who surpassed their funding at 122% and This Mum’s Run who are at 112%; not to mention a live stream of the sizzling pitching event, and support coming in from the South West community and from Crowdcube’s 280,000 strong investor base. [Since the time of the interview, 4 more companies have funded!]
- You may like: See the Silicon Gorge Crowd10 Showcase live
Just like in the first iteration, successful applicants in the second round will receive one-to-one support from industry experts to help them build a strong crowd-funding proposition, and training in different disciplines including legal support, PR and marketing. IdeaSquares offers the Crowd10 cohort access to their bespoke crowd-building tool, and tried and tested video, timeline and marketing templates. The final 10 applicants will have the opportunity to pitch to a room full of investors before launching on Crowdcube – the world’s leading crowd-funding platform.
“Crowd10 was a unique and, some might argue, risky move! Attempting to support multiple companies at once had never been done before”
Crowdcube support
Crowd10 is the first venture of its kind, Kirsty tells us, “Crowd10 was a unique and, some might argue, risky move! Attempting to support multiple companies at once had never been done before.”
An integral part of the programme is having support from Crowcube onboard. As Kirsty explains, “We have enjoyed working closely with them to streamline and improve how we work together. They continue to be very supportive of Crowd10 and we are very much looking forward to working with them again.”
“The companies will be spending their investment with local tech talent to improve or implement their tech solutions”
Of the first intake, as well as those already funded, most are well over 50% of their funding target. Kirsty explains, “All should succeed at this rate. I’m also pleased to say that some of the companies will be spending their investment with local tech talent to improve or implement their tech solutions! These introductions wouldn’t have been possible had it not been for the programme and we have received some great testimonials from some of the funded/nearly funded companies.”
Crowd10 finalists: a happy bunch of entrepreneurs!
Searching in the crowd!
This time round Crowd10 has expanded its reach, so they are looking for budding entrepreneurs nationwide. As long as you are able and willing to travel to Bristol for four compulsory training events (fortnightly), then you can apply.
They’re seeking people who are raising £30 – £500k of investment, “We want motivated teams who aren’t afraid of hard work and understand the responsibility involved with seeking funding. The fact that some of the startups in the last cohort are funded or nearly funded proves that putting your Crowd10 learning to practice works and so we want people who are ready to engage with the programme and listen to our advice” says Kirsty.
If you’re a startup who thinks equity crowd funding may be right for your business, apply for Crowd10 now to be in with a chance to fund via Crowdcube in October 2016. They respond to every applicant personally within 48 hours.
