Entrepreneurial former students get business boost
Founders of Falcon DHQ, Thomas Williams and Benjamin Weld, secure a place on Pi Labs Accelerator, giving them a £50,000 investment in their businessThomas Williams, a London South Bank University (LSBU) Digital Media Arts graduate and co-founder of start-up Falcon DHQ, and business partner Benjamin Weld have secured a place on Property Innovation Labs (Pi Labs) Accelerator, Europe’s first venture capital platform investing exclusively in early stage property tech ventures.
The Pi Labs scheme is a 13 week intensive accelerator programme giving Thomas and Benjamin the opportunity to develop their paperless security product through investment and brand awareness. It will also give the LSBU former students access to some of the highest rated mentors in London and will expose their company to a range of well-connected, industry-wide experts.
Thomas Williams, School of Arts and Creative Industries graduate, said:
“The initial idea for Falcon DHQ came from the first-hand pain points experienced whilst working and managing in the private sector industry. We grew the concept by hosting industry-wide roundtables, enabling us to validate the product need and develop features which could benefit the industry as a whole. From the roundtables we were then able to develop a Falcon DHQ prototype which has given us initial user data and traction for the company.”
Former participants on LSBU’s Graduate Entrepreneur Scheme in 2014/15, Thomas and Benjamin have continued to grow Falcon DHQ. On the support received from LSBU’s Student Enterprise team, Benjamin Weld added:
“Being on LSBU’s Graduate Entrepreneur Scheme was an amazing experience for us and the development of Falcon DHQ. Having access to office space and mentors to support us really helped us take our idea and turn it into a growing business.”
Linsey Cole, Head of the Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Institute at LSBU, said:
“Congratulations to Tom and Ben! This is a really exciting time for them and the development of Falcon DHQ, and it’s great to see former LSBU students continuing to test and grow their entrepreneurial spirit, whilst still using all the enterprise skills they gained whilst studying here.”
Find out more about Student Enterprise activities at LSBU.