Business Development Program Open for Applications
fSpace recently celebrated our 4th birthday with an event that included a visit from Mayor Brad Pettitt.
The mayor was on hand to formally announce funding for a third Business Development Program – a collaborative program between fSpace and The City of Fremantle that provides financial support to businesses within the creative industries.
Mayor Pettitt said, “The Business Development Program is a unique collaboration between the City of Fremantle and fSpace designed to promote the local creative and knowledge economy, assist start-ups and small business to grow and to encourage innovation in Fremantle.”
“This program has been a great driver in attracting individuals and businesses from outside Fremantle, with the majority of participants still going strong here in Fremantle.”
fSpace owner, Sabine Albers, said that over the two previous years, this program has helped over 20 businesses develop and grow in Fremantle.
“In addition to the financial support towards a professional workspace, businesses have benefited from the inspiring energy, collaborations, and strong sense of community at fSpace.”
She added that some former program participants have grown their businesses and are now in larger, dedicated offices in Fremantle.
“Our members, including former program participants, are doing ground breaking and award winning things in a variety of industries, including creative, health, professional services and technology.”
The Business Development Program offers qualified businesses and start-ups three to six months of subsidised workspace at fSpace.
To be eligible for the program, a business must fall within the creative industries sector. These are businesses that are primarily focused on individual creativity, skill and talent.
Curve Tomorrow was one of the first participants of this program when they expanded to Western Australia from offices in Melbourne.
Mo Jaimangal, a cofounder and director of Curve Tomorrow, previously explained during an fSpace Talks Event that they seek to positively impact the lives of 1 billion people by applying their knowledge of technology in health and medical services.
When the mayor asked for an example of this, Mo spoke about the work they’ve done with leading autism researchers to automate the diagnosis of children on the autism spectrum.
He explained, “We’ve taken what they were doing – a very manual process with psychologists observing children playing with toys, timing them with a stopwatch and making notes with pen and paper – and created a game that can be played on an iPad.”
“In addition to a quicker and more efficient diagnosis that leads to earlier treatments, this assessment can be done anywhere. We collect and store the test results on a secure cloud, where psychologists can look at them and decide on treatments.”
The Business Development Program is available to new business start-ups as well as existing businesses that are looking to develop and grow from Fremantle.
This year’s program has added optional coaching and mentorship towards developing a formal business plan – a crucial step for any new business start up.
Sabine Albers said she loves the diversity of the people who share and make her fSpace what it is.
“It’s really exciting to have such a mix of passionate people doing so many interesting and helpful things. The energy this creates is just fantastic.”
Sabine added that values of empathy, respect and support continue to create an inspiring atmosphere that not only helps maximize productivity, but also creates an environment that people want to a part of.
To learn more about the Business Development Program, visit fspace.me/business.
