Accelerating the UK
Where — and why — one of Europe’s leading startup programmes is expanding across the UK
This week we announced plans for Ignite to expand across the UK. From September, our accelerator programmes will operate in Newcastle, Manchester and London, supporting early-stage tech startups with seed investment, workshops and our trademark coaching framework. It’s a substantial undertaking for us; we’re a team of just four, and collectively we’re responsible for managing programmes and a 10,000 sq ft co-working venue in Newcastle, as well as supporting some over 50 alumni companies.
Why Manchester? We’re no strangers to the North West’s startup scene; we’ve been helping founders and teams there for three years through events, sponsorship and Office Hours, we’ve invested in startups based in the city. With the launch of TechNorth and a renewed focus on supporting digital innovation in the Northern regions, it makes sense that Ignite takes a broader view beyond the North East.
As Manchester’s tech scene crystallises, it’s clear there’s a wealth of exciting entrepreneurs crying out for support. An established, successful accelerator programme will massively benefit the city, so we’re thrilled that we can support the regions’s growing tech community and truly represent the North of England.
The decision to expand to London has been welcomed by the tech media, founders and investors alike, but has caused one or two commenters to scratch their heads:
“Why bother with London? Aren’t there dozens of accelerators here already? Isn’t there an accelerator bubble?”
The truth is that for teams of first-time entrepreneurs based in London, there’s a crippling lack of support from programmes with established track records that are willing to invest at an early stage.
London’s last true champion of early-stage startups was Springboard, responsible for success stories like Tray and Hassle. The team at Springboard was folded into Techstars when it launched in London two years ago — but Techstars shifted their focus away from embryonic teams, preferring proven entrepreneurs with established track records. A team like Hassle, with three co-founders lacking any prior startup experience (and barely any coding ability) would likely never be accepted for Techstars.
Entrepreneur First is an outstanding programme, but looks to invest in university graduates. Seedcamp is now a fund (referring to itself as “an acceleration fund”) but doesn’t operate a programme. The likes of Accelerator Academy, Mass Challenge and Microsoft Ventures don’t offer investment.
And the rest? There are niche programmes in specific verticals that are yet to demonstrate any track record, and there are more than a few rumours regarding the demise of other accelerators in the city; it’s very likely London will see more than one programme close this year. In that respect there is a bubble, but one that will deflate slightly rather than burst altogether; investors simply won’t keep pouring money into badly managed accelerators that can’t demonstrate results.
In other words, there’s a genuine gap in the market for a proven programme to support early-stage teams.
So what can Ignite offer to startups in both London and Manchester? Well, there’s that all-important track record. Here are some of the numbers from our current investment deck:
We’ve achieved this by typically working with teams of first-time tech entrepreneurs who haven’t raised investment before — we believe we’ll work with more interesting startups if we remove historical parameters and take bigger risks.
More importantly — and this is a key differential between Ignite and any other programme in the country — the majority of our investment is from active angel investors - not VCs, the City or public pots of money. This means that for any team joining Ignite, they have experienced entrepreneurs with skin in the game and in their corner from day one. That’s critical once the programme ends; since 2013, over half of the teams have raised follow-on rounds in part or whole from their existing network of Ignite investors.
Beyond the programmes, anyone who’s worked with us knows we pour our heart and soul into supporting the the surrounding community. In Newcastle, this has meant establishing a community fund to support meetups, creating educational programmes and opening co-working spaces. Expect us to play our part in both Manchester and London.
We can’t do this alone; everything we’ve achieved to date has required effort beyond our team and family of alumni. If you’d like to find out more about investment in the programme or working with us, please get in touch. We’re digging in for the long-term to establish Ignite as one of Europe’s leading programmes for startup founders, and we’d love to have you along for the ride.
paul@ignite100.com
