Fiona Anderson, Entrepreneur Development Manager for Natwest, is heading up the new Entrepreneurial Spark hatchery in Brighton, which opens its doors in August. Fiona speaks to Ian Trevett about this exciting boost for the city’s start-ups.
“87% of businesses fail in their first year of start-up.”
It is a terrifying statistic, and Fiona Anderson has another. “Brighton is the fourth-largest city outside of London for start-up businesses, but it actually has the highest failure rate as well.” Happily, she also has a more encouraging fact to share. “The businesses that have been through the Entrepreneurial Spark process in Scotland have had an 84% success rate. So it’s a complete switch-around.”
Entrepreneurial Spark has been present in Scotland for over 3 years with over 350 businesses benefitting from the hands on mentoring and coaching.