Category: Entrepreneurship

HYBR- New Enterprise Competition alumni

Posted on by Careers Service

As well as coming back to class ready for the new academic year, it’s also a time for moving into new houses and getting to know new housemates. The student rental market has a bad rep, and runners up from last year’s New Enterprise Competition aim to tackle this: Meet HYBR. We spoke with their founder, Hannah to find out what they’ve been up to. 

Describe your business to us in a nutshell.

HYBR is an online marketplace for student accommodation that connects students directly to landlords, cutting out the traditional letting agent. Our mission is to provide an affordable landlord solution and support first-time renters throughout their rental journey. 

Where did the idea of HYBR come from?

University is some of the best years of young adults’ lives and one hugely exciting aspect of this is moving in with friends. My co-founder and I reflected on our positive rental experiences with Airbnb, and we realised renting a house is a part of the excitement of moving away. So why did it need to be a different story with student rentals?   (more…)

The New Enterprise Competition Ideas stage- Now open!

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The New Enterprise Competition, the University of Bristol’s flagship start-up competition hosted by the Basecamp Enterprise team, is soon to be entering it’s 20th year. 

Comprising  three stages: Ideas, Development and Growth, every year we award £35,000 plus pro-bono support over the stages to support start-up businesses, charities and social enterprises.  

The Ideas stage of the competition is now open for applications! 

via GIPHY

Why apply for the Ideas stage? 

The competition is designed to inspire and encourage you to develop your business and think about your long-term career plans.  

Over the years, applicants’ ventures have varied between sustainable clothing businesses to security software, from apps to enhance mental wellbeing to vegan snacks. Whether you have started to think about a product or service that could solve a problem over the summer, or you have a business venture you have been working on for the last few months, no idea is too small or too big for this stage.  

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The 3 Day Start-up

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Interested in start-ups or aspire to be an entrepreneur while befriending some like minded creatives? 3 Day Start-up is for you! 

What is 3 Day Start-up?

3 Day Startup

3 Day Startup (3DS) was founded by a group of students in 2008 who wanted to make entrepreneurship more accessible for students. Through the years, 3DS have worked with over 16,000 students in 35 countries, across 6 continents, and this year’s programme will be held at the University of Bristol!

Run in partnership between SETSquared and the Basecamp Enterprise team, 3DS is a free 72-hour workshop which teaches entrepreneurial skills to university students in a fun, supportive and hands on environment. Usually run on campus, this year’s programme will run as a virtual learning-by–doing workshop where students from partnership universities; Bristol, Bath, Southampton, Exeter and Surrey work collaboratively to solve ideas and generate credible business ventures. 

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Businesses thriving during COVID-19

Posted on by Careers Service
Photo by Edwin Hooper on Unsplash

Launching or owning a business as we enter a recession may seem like a scary and daunting time. With the media publicising how unemployment rates are rising due to the pandemic, and businesses varying between SME and global giants shutting down or making cuts, we assume that this is a reflection of all businesses in the country.

However, some have thrived using this as an opportunity to pivot their business plans or finally finding their place within the market.

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Top tips for building your networks online

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As we approach five months of limited public gatherings due to the global pandemic, the meaning of ‘meeting new people’ has changed.  Gone are the days of shaking hands, greeting someone has become a virtual exchange with an enthusiastic wave hello and goodbye. 

Even though in-person professional events may not be taking place for some time, there are still lots of opportunities taking place. Despite first impressions, our new digital environment has opened fantastic new opportunities to meet and engage with others from all over the world. Creating that great first impression is just as important online as it is offline, so we’ve put together a list of our top tips on building your network, right from the comfort of your own home. 

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The New Enterprise Competition winners!

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The New Enterprise Competition drew to a close last week and the winner of the Growth stage was Kaedim, winning £10,000 and 12 months incubation at SETSquared.

Kaedim, launched in 2019 by Computer Science with Innovation students Konstantina Psoma and Roman Bromidge, is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) start-up which turns sketches into 3D models. Their degree based at the Centre of Innovation and Entrepreneurship alongside the help of the Basecamp Enterprise Team, allowed them to develop their idea, enhance their entrepreneurial skills and draw on a pool of expert industry mentors.

Below: The Basecamp Team (virtually, of course) announce the good news to Kaedim

Over the course of the year, the Basecamp Enterprise Team received over 100 applications to take part in the Ideas, Development and Growth stages of the competition. Winning the competition gives students, graduates and staff the opportunity to win prize money and unlock support packages to help develop and grow their start-up ideas- whether it be a business, charity or social enterprise!

Here’s what Kaedim had to say about winning this years’ top prizes:

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Is freelancing for you?

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If you don’t think of freelancing as a graduate job, you may be missing a trick.

Being self-employed can be hugely rewarding and graduates shouldn’t dismiss it as either a short-term or more permanent option. To some it may sound like a precarious path with no certainty and little direction, whilst others see it as an exciting world of possibilities. It all depends on your mindset and skills. (more…)

We love Start-up Drinks

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Calling all Bristol’s budding entrepreneurs! On Tuesday 11 February we welcome the first Start-up drinks of the decade!

Start-up drinks is an event run on the second Tuesday of every month in collaboration between The University of Bristol’s Basecamp Enterprise Team and The University of the West of England (UWE).

Whether you have an entrepreneurial idea, an established and growing business or you are simply interested in entrepreneurship and growing your networks, this is the place to be. But don’t just take our word for it! We spoke to local businesses and students about what they heart most about Start-up Drinks…

Teck, 4th year student in Aerospace Engineering

Why did you attend Start-up Drinks?

I found out about the event while looking through the Careers Service page last year and decided to attend for a variety of reasons. I wanted to learn more about being an entrepreneur and to find out what’s going on in the local start-up community. I wanted to meet other people who might be helpful in making my start-up a reality like co founders and investors as well as customers.

What can other students expect?

Start-up Drinks is a friendly environment for students who want to get started with entrepreneurship. It is where you can meet other supportive and likeminded people. It may be just what you need to take that first step into turning your business idea into reality.

Do you have any networking top tips for budding entrepreneurs?

Always know why you are there. Have a friendly smile, be yourself and listen! (more…)

New Enterprise Competition Development stage- Now open!

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Basecamp caught up with University of Bristol alumni Adam Chambers, who has start-up business; Applichat. Adam won the Development Stage of the New Enterprise Competition and has shared some of his experiences below.

In a nutshell, what’s your business idea?

Applichat source, automatically pre-screen, then assign job candidates from Facebook and Instagram to recruiters’ workflows.

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Start-up Stories: Scribeless

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The Basecamp Enterprise Team caught up with Bristol University alumni and entrepreneur Rob Van Den Bergh. Rob co-founded Scribeless, who recently won the Santander Entrepreneurship Award 2019, and has been involved with Basecamp initiatives and events since he was a student at Bristol. Watch the video to hear about his start-up story with the Basecamp Enterprise Team, his experiences of winning the Santander Entrepreneurship Awards and his top-tips for anyone thinking of beginning their own start-up journey.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2gvBCZ3o_w&feature=youtu.be&rel=0

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