The Future High Street programme supports the creation and growth of enterprises and initiatives that will catalyse high street and local place rejuvenation. We are looking for incremental, sustaining, disruptive and radical innovation concepts across a variety of sectors, spanning but not exclusive to:

• • Education

  • Engineering & Design

  • Green Tech

  • Consumer

  • Professional Services

  • Healthcare

  • Real Estate & Construction

  • Fintech

  • Manufacturing

  • VCSE (Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise)

In today’s disruptive and fast-changing business environment, more of us than ever will experience the challenge and opportunity of embracing entrepreneurship and launching a new business venture.  Mastering a set of core entrepreneurial skills and competencies, and building the right mindset is critical in determining the prosperity of your venture – and setting you on the path to success.

The Future High Street programme is your essential introduction to the skills, concepts and actions you need to build a successful new business venture.  From exploring how to generate and develop game-changing ideas, testing the concepts in the marketplace to identifying and engaging with investors, you will master every step of the entrepreneurial journey to success.  This includes exploring ideas beyond the confines of the classroom and putting theory into practice via real-world customer interaction and pitching to actual investors.

The programme is designed for:

• • Entrepreneurs who want to start up a new business from scratch
  • Innovators who are looking to introduce new product/service into the market
  • Those who are looking to build new initiatives and concepts for social and community benefit
  • Start-ups that are looking to take their venture to the next level
  • Business owners who are looking to grow their businesses
  • Executives/Senior managers leading a venture within organisations or looking to build an entrepreneurial business culture
  • Investors and consultants working with start-ups and/or entrepreneurial business ventures

The programme is also suitable for corporate entrepreneurs, employees or executives in family businesses, those involved in private equity, corporate venture capitalism, or working for business support organisations.

High Street and the local place focus

Over the last few years, we have seen the decline of our local High Streets and there is little to cheer about on most of them.  In the last 12-months more than 200,000 jobs have been lost in retail.  More than 17,500 outlets disappeared from our High Streets, Shopping Centres and Retail Parks.  This number is expected to double, big names such as Debenhams and Topshop have vanished.  The shoppers will not return to the High Street and the local places they remember.  Pandemic, social and economic factors have accelerated changes and decline that are very visible in our local places.

We are on a mission to find, support and grow innovative and viable concepts and initiatives that will act as a catalyst in the rejuvenation of our High Streets and local places.  We are the first programme in the UK that focuses on solving local place issues through innovation and entrepreneurship to deliver positive economic and social outcomes.

What will you learn:

You will learn how to think like an entrepreneur and will develop the sharpness of vision, agility and mindset to:

• • Understand where the best ideas come from
  • Appreciate how inferior players can successfully compete against superior ones
  • Know when growth can be crucial for survival, but might endanger it at the same time
  • Determine how entrepreneurs should think
  • Lean to navigate terms and processes needed to manage frequent entrepreneurial tasks such as leading board meetings and raising venture capital

Drawing on the latest in thought leadership, leading-edge partner research and real-world experience, the Future High Street programme is a transformative learning experience that will equip you with everything you need to build, scale and grow your ideas with confidence and clarity.

Benefit to you;

• • Explore how to generate, identify and test new business idea
  • Learn how to attract and build your customer base
  • Build and transform your network and relationship building skills to interact successfully and effectively with partners, investors and customers
  • Discover how to organise, scale and grow your venture
  • Gain the knowledge to sell your idea effectively through pitching
  • Develop and access professional networks
  • Receive small grant to develop your MVP
  • Funded internship programme and free recruitment support
  • One-to one consultations and mentoring
  • Access to expert workshops

Delivery

The programme is delivered in 2 phases over a period of 6-months.  It starts with a 6-week Start-up School and is then followed by 16-weeks on the Hub 109’s Incubator.  Participants will receive the support in trialling, testing, starting and scaling their product, service or initiative.

The Future High Street programme is run twice a year and the participants will get to attend a variety of sessions, expert talks and networking events.  The programme is delivered and managed by experienced entrepreneurs that have launched and operated businesses/initiatives on the high street.  Participants will receive extensive support and mentoring from individuals that have previously been on the same journey.  Through peer-to-peer learning and external partner support participants will be able to develop their skills, knowledge and expand their professional network.

The programme is delivered in partnership and collaboration with businesses, universities, local government and third sector organisations through a hybrid model of both physical and virtual methods.