Our penultimate Science 2 Start-up workshop discussed business development and marketing with the help of Nicholas Duggan. The interactive session saw our start-ups consider how they could raise awareness of their business and how that marketing strategy could get customers access to their product to convert it to a sale.

Since the basics of commercialising an idea have now been covered, our start-ups will pitch their business idea and plan to a panel of judges for a chance to win £200. Their flash pitches will be <5 minutes long and will address the market need, competition and the subsequent steps that the funding will assist with. Our start-ups will be judged by:

Rosie Thomas

Rosie works at Oxford Sciences Innovation, which supports and builds world-changing companies from across Oxford’s science and technology departments. She is passionate about helping businesses grow and learn to tell their stories in the most compelling ways. She has an MSc in Sociology and was previously an election campaign organiser and parliamentary researcher.

Gerard Gregg-Smith

Gerard Gregg-Smith is the Managing Director of GGS Associates, and a specialist in life sciences and financial services. With 10 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, and 15 years as an investment banker advising healthcare and life sciences companies, he has extensive knowledge of strategic issues and business models.

Dr. Renos Savva

Renos Savva is a research team leader in recombinant molecular and synthetic biology, and senior lecturer at Birkbeck. He is also the CDH (combinatorial domain hunting) technology originator and co-founder of Domainex. Renos helps shape new cohorts of science entrepreneurs as the programme director of MSc Bio-Business at Birkbeck University.

What is S2S?

Innovation Forum UCL and UCL Innovation & Enterprise’s S2S is a “Science to Start-up” workshop series and a fundamental programme for those interested in how to establish a start-up in today’s fast-paced and competitive market. These interactive workshops are led by sector specialists and shall introduce concepts essential for understanding and considering when developing your start-up.

From the first workshop, you’ll develop your idea and refine it with the new information that you will have gleaned at each workshop. At the final session, you will pitch your idea (whether it’s hypothetical or a true start-up) to our judges for a chance to win a £200 prize. You can also attend this series for your own education/ knowledge with no expectation that you need form your own real/ hypothetical start-up.

What will be covered during S2S 2019?

This year’s workshop series will run over 5 consecutive weeks (Tuesday 8^th October to 5^th November 2019) and will cover: idea generation, business model, intellectual property, finance, marketing and business development and pitching.

Each workshop is split into an interactive lecture by our sector specialists followed by Q&A and networking to enhance your own knowledge and develop your evolving start-up. So, come along and hear from the very best about start-up creation and network over food and drinks. It’s all on us!

How do I sign up?

Our first session started last week, but we welcome those interested in innovation and enterprise. Any start-ups formed from this week onwards will, unfortunately, be ineligible for the £200 cash prize at the final pitching session. For more information, timetable and registration, click on our Eventbrite. Feel free to contact Innovation Forum UCL with any queries on [email protected] 

See you on Tuesday 5^th November, 18:00 at 537, IOE UCL.

Article written by Bethan Davies.