Councillor to get hands-on Startup experience

Pascale Hyboud-Peron.

The third annual Tauranga Startup Weekend, due to kick off on November 7, has a new dimension, says co-organiser Pascale Hyboud-Peron.

A fresh organising team of volunteers, new venue and a competition to encourage local people to participate and come up with business ideas to solve problems for Tauranga have attracted the attention of Tauranga City councillor Matt Cowley, who has signed up to take part in the 54-hour business startup event.

It will be held at the new Basestation, Communications and Technology Space, which is being created on Durham St.

"It's an incredible time for the Bay of Plenty's entrepreneurial community," said Ms Hyboud-Peron. The event followed a format that has worked in more than 400 cities, in 100 countries.

More than 1000 Startup Weekend events had taken place and more than 8000 startup businesses created.

She added that, so far as the organisers knew, this was the first Startup Weekend to have an elected politician participate.

"You really get the help and knowledge you need to start a business from this event," said Ms Hyboud-Peron, who took part in and was on the winning team at last year's event. "You can take action, actually do something real to demonstrate how you think we can solve local problems."

Tina Jennen, Tauranga business woman and national facilitator for the Startup Weekend not-for-profit organisation, said it was a bonus that Cr Cowley was taking part.

"It's an important step in creating a more vibrant and collaborative local economy to have a councillor commit his personal time to understand first-hand what a business can achieve in a short time frame, to meet and work with local people with ideas that could solve local problems and go global," said Ms Jennen.

Cr Cowley said he had been given a copy of Eric Ries' best-selling business book The Lean Startup by a member of Tauranga's entrepreneurial community last year, and had been looking forward to practising its knowledge and methodologies in a hands-on environment.

"I'm looking forward to entering my first Startup Weekend," he said. "It's not just for business owners, as anyone can learn to think like an entrepreneur."