THE ENTREPRENEURIAL SPARK

Interview with Jim Duffy, 2009 Fellow &CEO/Founder of Entrepreneurial Spark

Jim Duffy started his career as a police officer. Leaving the force, he set up a number of successful car-wash franchises, started up a dealership re-finishing, which he grew to over 20 people and had a brief stint as the owner of a pub. After getting out of that ("by the skin of my teeth"), Jim was considering going to University to pursue an MBA when he came across an ad in the Sunday Herald for the Saltire Foundation's Fellowship Programme. Now, almost two years after graduating as a Fellow in 2009, he has just ignited his hugely exciting, Entrepreneurial Spark.

So Jim, tell us a bit about Entrepreneurial Spark...

These days everyone in the UK is talking about start-ups, saying start-ups and small businesses are going to pull us out of this recession but there's not a lot of infrastructure there to help them. You can go to Business Gateway in Scotland and they can signpost you but there's not really any money, no funding and it's difficult to get a lease. Normal routes to opening a business are disappearing and dissipating. For loans, the banks say they're open but I'm not really sure; it's difficult for banks because they've got to re-capitalise their balance sheet and it's difficult to lend to risky businesses because while one out of ten small businesses will make it, nine out of ten might fail.

So, Entrepreneurial Spark takes away the blockers and the barriers to anyone wanting to open a business. It's easy-in, easy-out, fail fast, fail cheap. There are no onerous contracts and it takes all of that fixed-cost stuff off the balance sheet right away. It's all free: space, desks, computers, phones, parking, mentoring, entrepreneurial ideation and enablement - even the coffee's subsidised. Everything that you need to try and start a business within a year, we're going to try and provide. It's for all sorts of businesses across all sectors. They can come in and it's about having a workable idea, having a business model that they can work through with us, and having the right attitude. If someone's got that spark then we can shape and mould it. We're not looking for people who just want to be self-employed; we're looking for people who want to be entrepreneurs and to really make a difference. We want to create a start-up renaissance in and from Scotland.

So when does it take off and what are the fundamental aims?

We launched on Friday4th Nov but businesses will come into the space in January. We've had 80 enquires already in just over 72 hours and it would be great to get a wide variety of businesses in the space. With regards to aims, we'd like to open up to all sorts of businesses and for them to come in, grow and get a step up the ladder. We'll give them that little bit of... not life-support, because we're not an incubator or accelerator -we're a hybrid, but support in that they'll move along at a pace, but we'll nudge them hard. It would be great to get a few successes over the next five years.

And what would you like to see happening five years down the line?

I'd love Entrepreneurial Spark to be a focal point and still entrepreneurial in itself as an entity within the whole ecosystem of start-ups. I'd like it still to be alive and kicking and I'd love businesses who have actually grown out of it to become ambassadors almost like a mini entrepreneurial exchange. It would also be great to see some of our businesses being floated up to the exchange as well.

Lastly, what effect do you feel your time on the Fellowship Programme has had in the lead up to now?

The Fellowship Programme never leaves you. The four months at Babson are stunning, it's just a stunning experience. I really can't reiterate; four months at Babson is stunning. Your leadership, your self-awareness, your brand, how you would manage your business - it opens up all kinds of business models you've never seen before, and when you get that exposure it instils a confidence in you. There's nothing that will faze you in business. You look at the elephant and just take it piece by piece.

To anyone who's thinking of developing themselves professionally, or is passionate about leading a business or contributing entrepreneurially either within a business or starting one; the fellowship, more than anything else, more than any MBA, will prepare them for that.