Defining The Focus

Incubator location

The incubator building is selected to enable the incubator to achieve self-financing within a set period and to provide an environment conducive for development of entrepreneurs and their companies.  It has to be large enough to produce rents at market rates and a specific occupancy rate as well as to generate the cash flow required in the business plan (i.e. to break even or identify the loss needing to be covered by other revenues).

The incubator building, given its reliance on image, needs to look the part and to offer the type and quality of space needed to attract quality start-ups/businesses with high growth potential.

In particular it needs to offer common areas and good accessibility to help foster interaction between clients and the "growth environment", as well as units which can vary in size, good security and good car parking.

Incubator Type

There are no "model" solutions, what works in one place or one sector will not necessarily work as well elsewhere. Generally, though, there are 4 main types:

1. The incubator which is part of a technopole where it is located on and is an integral part of the development of a science or technology park (e.g. Aston and Warwick Science Parks, Aberdeen Science and Technology Park, Milton Park Oxfordshire).

2. The sector specific incubator which develop businesses in a specific sector or type (e.g. Oxford Trust, Campus Ventures in Manchester, Cardiff Medicentre). 

3. The general incubator which has a mix of different businesses (e.g. New Work Trust in Bristol, Preston Technology Management Centre ).

4. The incubator which concentrates on building businesses by creating management teams to develop specific commercial ideas (e.g. Lanarkshire Development Agency in East Kilbride, Univentures in Wakefield).