We are delighted to be writing our latest blog post from our new centre for entrepreneurship, our cutting edge home for Business Gateway, and we are ready to welcome applications to our world-class business accelerator programme.
However, we haven’t just moved base we are also undergoing a rather exciting name change.
That’s right, in the coming weeks, 'Enterprise North East Trust' will be phased out and our new name will be (drum roll please)… Elevator.
Elevator – Our first centre for entrepreneurship
You may have read our previous news about plans to build a state-of-the-art centre for entrepreneurship here at our headquarters in Aberdeen..
Since then, a complete transformation in the top floor of The Hub building in Aberdeen Energy Park (Bridge of Don) has taken place, and we are now situated close to our friends and neighbours, Aberdeen Grampian Chamber of Commerce. Thanks to the amazing teams at Graven who designed the space, and Space Solutions who implemented the design and technology - which there is a wealth of - we now have a home that ticks all of the boxes.
This was made possible thanks to additional funding from the Government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport, assistance from Aberdeen City Council and support from Aberdeenshire Council; the result is a £1million hub to boost the entrepreneurial contribution to the region
The space offers the fastest broadband facility in the region, a diverse range of vibrant meeting facilities, a unique amphitheatre, an iPad library for market research and entrepreneurial learning, a collection of business books, along with white board and video conferencing cutting edge technology to connect us to other entrepreneurial bases across the globe.
Our Chief Executive, Professor Gary McEwan has had the vision to create a unique centre like this for some time and researched various entrepreneurial centres and business accelerator programmes across the world. He travelled to some of the top Universities and business centres including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston, Boston’s Babson College of Entrepreneurship, Mass Challenge, Harvard University, and closer to home; Barcelona Activa in Spain. Each of these centres have a unique offering of not only business mentors and advisers, but interest and support from both the public and private sectors and investors waiting at the end of the process. We wanted to create a centre with all of these inclusions but with the added bonus of Business Gateway and educational elements to enhance the work we already do.
Professor McEwan’s goal was to remove barriers to the expert business advisers through the Business Gateway service and to create an environment where high growth potential businesses can be accelerated, where businesses starting up and growing can have access to their adviser without a traditional reception and waiting area, and where an ecosystem of support is available for all.
The Elevator centre for entrepreneurship will be connected to 55 similar programmes around the world, allowing North-east entrepreneurs to participate in events and access help on a worldwide scale.
This centre will also be the core home of our community driven projects and where we will coach the entrepreneurs and employees of the future through our involvement with pupils and students at local schools and universities.
The Elevator Programme - a business accelerator programme unique to Aberdeen and Scotland
Professor Gary McEwan: “We want to attract the best talent from across the globe to Aberdeen, and Elevator will offer them the best working environment and expertise to start their entrepreneurial journey. As challenges in employment arise in the energy sector it is more important than ever that we work to develop top-class emerging entrepreneurs as they are the people who will go on to build companies of scale, creating employment and contributing to the growth of our local and national economies in the future.”
The Elevator Programme is a 20-week business accelerator designed for ambitious entrepreneurs who wish to give their high potential early stage business a launchpad from which to develop a global business. We welcome applicants of all ages, locations and business sectors to apply for entry. Elevator works to establish the crucial foundations on which the business can grow and give the support, advice and connections to the founders to successfully drive high growth businesses forward into new national and international markets.
Do you have the ambition to propel your business internationally or into new markets?
With support from Elevator, does your business have the potential to be world leading?
Elevator could be exactly right for you. It is run BY entrepreneurs FOR entrepreneurs.
The Elevator Programme
Stimulates creative thinking, Expands entrepreneurs to think globally, Encourages the peer to peer learning required for a global potential businessm Enhances the opportunity to achieve real success. Places on each cohort are free of charge and gained through ‘winning’ a place on Elevator. You have to show commitment, drive, enthusiasm and ambition and above all, a willingness to engage, listen and learn.
For more information please email accelerator@elevatorUK.com
Our new name - Elevator
Moving into our new centre provided us with the perfect opportunity for our organisation to re-think our brand and how it is seen by staff, stakeholders, the people we assist in the business community through start up and growth phases, businesses we home in our business centres, other business support organisations, and those we support in the coaching of entrepreneurship and employability.
Enterprise North East Trust, has long been referenced as ‘ENET’ and ‘Enterprise’ and often confused as a public sector organisation or as Scottish Enterprise, with whom we work closely. With so many of brands in the mix: Business Gateway, Enterprise Business Centres, The Grampian Awards for Business Excellence, Enterprise Projects, The Recruit, The Enterprise Challenge, The Enterprise Conference, Enterprise in Education…the list goes on - we find ourselves with a positive brand that people have great things to say about - but as a diluted brand. People we work with often don’t know that we are involved in all of these different projects or how they can use all of the various elements to better their business journey.
Add further new business streams and brands: our new centre for entrepreneurship, a global business accelerator programme, a digital demonstration centre - and you have further potential to lose our message and further dilute the brand.
As we embark on these new horizons, we are provided with a fantastic opportunity to re-brand and create an uplifting, inspiring name to match our activities, our culture and most importantly our people - who every day are ‘making it happen’. I’m delighted to present to you our new name: Elevator
Elevator will become our umbrella brand covering everything in place of Enterprise North East Trust but will also be represented in each of our projects and business streams.
Elevator will be the name of the new centre for entrepreneurship in Aberdeen - Bridge of Don, and The Elevator Programme will be the name of our version of a business accelerator programme.
Elevator Business Centres will replace Enterprise Business Centres - with all signage to reflect this in the coming months.
Elevator Business Challenge - will replace The Enterprise Challenge. An opportunity for aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners to elevate their future business plans, honing their skills and talents.
The Elevator Awards - will replace Grampian Awards for Business Excellence (GABE) and will now be scalable to further locations beyond Grampian. In fact, Elevator as a brand works for us as it means out current representation from Fraserburgh to Perth can be scaled further.
The Elevator Conference will replace The Enterprise Conference, with the same inspiration themes surrounding ‘Making it Happen’.
All in all, our Elevator team will continue to elevate employability skillsm elevate business plans to a reality, elevate businesses to the next level, elevate young people’s future in employability and entrepreneurship with key partners.
So friends, clients, neighbours and future business owners - we welcome you to visit us in our new home, and we welcome you to share our news to those who you feel could benefit from the business support available here.
Most importantly, if you know a high growth potential early stage business that could benefit from the unique opportunities to elevate their business to new heights, please pass on the news of our Elevator Programme.
We hope you will join Team Elevator on our new journey - onwards and upwards.
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