Pictured: Eleanor Watson
A budding entrepreneur based at Birmingham Science Park Aston
(BSPA) has secured a grant of £7,500 and is now looking to
secure match-funding.
Eleanor Watson, founder of made-to-measure clothing business
Poikos Limited secured the funding from national innovation agency
the Technology Strategy Board and is looking for private investors
who will be able to provide the support to allow her innovative
company to take off.
A part of BSPA's Entrepreneurs for the Future (e4f) business
incubator programme, Poikos Limited aims to deliver custom-fit,
custom-designed clothing at affordable prices. Using Poikos'
own innovative piece of intelligent software called MeasureCam,
customers are able to accurately record their body measurements via
any digital camera.
Eleanor said: "As the Technology Strategy Board is a
publically-funded body, I now need to match the funding with
private investment in order to release it. We are still in
the very early stages of development and this funding will be
crucial for the development of strategic partnerships and a working
prototype of our MeasureCam system. I am hoping that we will
be in a position to begin offering this service online next
year.
"Being a part of e4f has been absolutely fundamental to the
success that we have enjoyed so far, not only in terms of the level
of support that we have received from the team at the Science Park,
but also through working so closely with so many other like-minded
entrepreneurs."
A unique six-month incubation programme part funded by the
European Regional Development Fund, e4f is dedicated to supporting
technology start-up companies in achieving growth and commercial
success through the provision of funding support, expert advice and
mentoring. Members also receive business support including office
or desk space, and telephone and internet access.
Simon Jenner, Head of Incubation at BSPA, said: "Since we
launched e4f in 2009, we have seen a phenomenal number of
businesses take part in the programme, with many going on to become
revenue generating companies. It is hugely rewarding to be
able to see businesses such as Eleanor's that are in the very early
stages of their development receiving funding opportunities such as
these and capitalising on them.
"Ultimately companies that are attracted to BSPA through e4f and
establish themselves in or around Birmingham will help in the
future economic development of the region and create new jobs, as
well as encouraging more companies to the West Midlands to do
business."
In order to secure the total investment from the Technology
Strategy Board, Eleanor is hoping to secure funding from a number
of private investors, and will be bidding for £2,500 from the
Birmingham Skills for Enterprise and Employment Network (BSEEN), a
professional support organisation that enables students and local
graduates to achieve their entrepreneurial ambitions.
Eleanor, who has also been nominated for the Shell LiveAwards
2011 Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, is now exploring the
possibility of licensing her technology to large, established
retailers and aims to use this technology to provide
made-to-measure apparel online in 2012.