Monthly Newsletter

University of Edinburgh academic Nick Gilbert has beaten off tough competition to win a prize worth £10,000 at a boot camp for aspiring bioscience entrepreneurs run by BioCity Scotland and sponsored by North Lanarkshire Council.

Nick received the accolade at the BioEntrepreneur Boot Camp Scotland, an annual event designed for scientists looking to commercialise a business idea or to gain a greater understanding of enterprise.

He joined fellow delegates in an intensive three-day introduction to business delivered by seasoned entrepreneurs and business consultants. The delegates enjoyed lively discussion and networking opportunities, and benefited from one-to-one mentoring on topics ranging from market research and intellectual property to leadership and business promotion.

The workshop sessions built towards the final day when all who attended presented their business ideas to a friendly ‘Dragon's Den'-style panel of leading entrepreneurs and subject experts. Nick emerged victorious after a strong pitch on his work into how DNA is folded up in cells, which has implications in a range of medical therapies. The judges also commended him for his overall contribution to the programme.

The prize consists of office space for a year at BioCity Scotland, alongside professional business advice in legal, financial and regulatory affairs from corporate partners.

Nick said: "Being exposed to a range of experts in commercial disciplines was a steep learning curve but, as an academic scientist, I found it invaluable. I would have had to spend weeks on the internet and reading books to gather the knowledge that was presented so efficiently in the three days of the boot camp, particularly the sessions on fund raising mechanisms for business which really allowed me to solidify my business ideas".

BioCity Scotland decided to offer a Special Award to a small group of bioentrepreneurs whose ideas show potential for collaboration. They include Ellie Hopson-Pow, for her research archive and document monitoring service and Dr David Fergusson, for his plan for a specialist computing and data management support service for biomedical science companies. The prize is six months rent-free office space from which they can develop their individual ideas, and look for collaborative opportunities. They plan to provide a complete data life-cycle service for biotech and pharma companies, from data capture, through flexible analysis support to secure archiving.

David said: "This award from BioCity provides both encouragement and practical support. The boot camp was an excellent condensed introduction to the process of starting up a business in the Scottish bio sector. Networking with the other participants was also enjoyable and productive.  I'm now working with two colleagues from the boot camp to see how we might collaborate to improve the impact of our original ideas".

Lending their support to this year's Boot Camp were solicitors Pinsent Masons and patent attorney Harrison Goddard Foote. Their staff helped deliver some of the more technical aspects of the schedule. Delegates, speakers and an invited audience came together for a lively debate on the evening of 26^th April sponsored by solicitors McClure Naismith, ‘Entrepreneurship: Art or Science, Nature or Nurture?' Recruitment consultants Eden Scott supported of the final day's Dragons' Den.

Ian Webster, Managing Director of BioCity Scotland said: "This was the first Boot Camp run Scotland and unearthed some incredibly innovative scientists. If Nick can continue the momentum generated by the programme, his idea could have wide reaching implications for drug screening, investigating changes in the DNA structures within cells, and the development of prognostic tests. We are also delighted to offer ongoing support to Ellie and David, and hope to stay in contact with all those who shared the three days with us."

Potential tenants, university representatives and organisations interested in becoming involved in any way with BioCity Scotland should make contact via the website www.biocity-scotland.co.uk