Christmas may not yet be upon us, but at tech scale-up support scheme Exchange, thoughts have already turned to 2023, and its fifth cohort of innovative start-ups.
The successful scale-up scheme is now in its third year and is welcoming applications for places on its next programme, which starts in March 2023. To date, Exchange has supported more than 450 people from over 100 businesses that have created over 120 jobs. The scheme’s tech start-ups have raised more than £10m in funding on their growth journeys.
Applications to find its fifth cohort of tech businesses are open now, and close on January 11, 2023. Judging and next stage interviews will also take place in January.
The scheme seeks to support the UK’s next generation of tech businesses reach their full potential and is based at Department Bonded Warehouse in Enterprise City, Manchester. It offers ambitious entrepreneurs and their businesses a physical base in the city’s tech, media and creative cluster, as well as access to industry experts, networking and learning events, opportunities and introductions for funding and a place in a network of likeminded entrepreneurs.
Programme partners span marketing, legal, accounting, recruitment and funding functions, giving successful businesses a complete toolkit of resources to thrive and place themselves among the UK’s most exciting start-ups.
Alice Glover, community outreach lead at Exchange Enterprise City, said: “Over the past three years we have witnessed many success stories and want to continue this and support another series of businesses reach their full potential, with the help of our partners and the ecosystem we have built.”
With just one-in-five businesses in the UK currently run by women, Glover added that the scheme hopes to attract more applications from women and other underrepresented communities this year: “This year we’ll be working more closely with Exchange alumni and the wider female business community to inspire even more people to scale their own enterprises, and make the best use of the ambition, ideas, and determination of people of all demographics,” she said.
The Exchange programme is delivered in collaboration with knowledge partner, Tech Nation. Previous alumni include Pixel Max, a 3D virtual workplace tech business which raised more than £2 million while it was an Exchange member, My First Five Years, which secured £1.4 million at the beginning of this year, Versori and Sparkbox, which have both recently completed £1.5 million deals to enable them to grow to the next level.
Find out more at the Enterprise City UK website.
