Brains Behind Venture Gets Helping Hand
A promising entrepreneur emerging from The Prince’s Trust’s Enterprise Programme in Leeds has been selected to launch his start-up company with a year’s free use of a high-tech office pod at the Round Foundry Media Centre (RFMC) in the creative quarter of Leeds city centre.
Originally from India until the age of ten, 28 year-old Bhavik Savjani, who has lived in Leeds for the last four years, will use the work pod to launch ‘Web Brain’, a specialist SEO and Ad Words service, having built up expertise in both the sales and delivery aspects of web optimisation services for a number of local companies.
Bhavik was selected for the Enterprise Programme which aims to help young people into business, on the strength of his business plan for ‘Web Brain’ and for the benefit that free use of the office pod at the RFMC, having secured some start-up funding from The Prince’s Trust charity, could bring to the business. The selection panel included senior figures from The Prince’s Trust and Creative Space Management, which acts as management and commercial agent for the RFMC on behalf of the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), as well as other creative, digital and technology work spaces across the North of England.
Bhavik will have free use of one of three high-tech office pods based at the RFMC, which is already home to more than 100 creative and digital companies, until July 2014. The work pods are specifically aimed at digital or creative start-up businesses and provide a self-contained environment in which young companies can grow during the early stages of their development. In addition, Bhavik will also benefit from free use of meeting rooms, high speed internet access, free visitor parking, reception and front desk services.
Bhavik Savjani, proprietor of Web Brain, commented: “Although I had valuable experience in the digital sector, following a period of unemployment I wasn’t sure if starting up my own company was a realistic option. But, thanks to the invaluable support and advice from The Prince’s Trust and the fantastic opportunity to have a rent-free base at the Media Centre, which will allow me to reduce overheads at a crucial time in the launch of my company, I have every faith that I can succeed.”
Creative Space, which has built a reputation for attracting and offering ongoing support for high growth creative companies, has been instrumental in building a partnership with The Prince’s Trust, giving the charity free regular use of the RFMC meeting rooms since the start of 2012 for the Enterprise Programme, which offers business mentoring and advice for entrepreneurial unemployed young people who are looking to start up their own business. Past graduates of the scheme include Bradford magician and TV star ‘Dynamo’, real name Steven Frayne, and Rob Law, the designer of Trunki Luggage, the ride-on hand luggage suitcase for children, which appeared on Dragons’ Den and has gone on to win more than 50 product and design awards.
Paul Taylor, Creative Space Management, commented: “We’re delighted to be able to offer Bhavik this opportunity, as the business address alone has a certain kudos, but he’ll also enjoy the company of many fantastic digital and new media business in the area, some of which have grown from SMEs to multi-national companies. For example, Flashtalking, a global provider of digital advertising software, started out in one of our office pods in 2005 and now employs 32 people in Leeds and over 100 globally.”
“We’ve long been champions of young and fledgling companies, and working with The Prince’s Trust allows us to offer support to young people who may not have had the advantages that many of the workers here have had, but that have the drive and entrepreneurial spirit that it takes to succeed given the opportunity.”