📷 Singular Photonics Launch, Hop Software milestone, A Scottish-only post-study work visa?
Plus we dive into the challenges that spinouts face.
Here's your Campfire for the 27th of January, 2025.
💼 Johnston Carmichael are a leading accountancy and business advisory firm, with offices throughout Scotland, in Newcastle and London. A partner owned firm for over 85 years, they have grown to offer core and specialist services to business of all sizes. With specialist sector teams, they are fast becoming one of the most trusted advisers for entrepreneurs, founders and businesses that are successfully scaling. Talk to the team today to discuss what growth stage your business is at.
🌊 Updates
🚀 Edinburgh-based hospitality management startups Hop Software shared that it handled nearly 500,000 bookings and £170m in transactions in 2024, and is aiming to expand globally in 2025 with features like automated pricing, rota management, and loyalty programs. Hop will present its latest innovations at ScotHot in Glasgow in Feb. SBN
🌐 John Swinney, has proposed a Scottish Graduate Visa to help international graduates from Scottish universities stay and work in the country for up to two years, addressing skills shortages and boosting the economy. The visa, linked to a Scottish tax code, would act as a bridge to the Skilled Worker Visa. For those of us old enough to remember the last Labour government, it’s reminiscent of the previous Post Study Work Visa that Scotland had. The UK government has already signalled that it’s unlikely that a new special visa would be likely. DGT IN
🎯 Edinburgh-based Singular Photonics launched advanced image sensors using single photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) with in-pixel computation, enabling ‘noiseless imaging and unprecedented detail at low light’ and being able to capture depth and other information at the pixel level. A spin-out from Professor Robert Henderson's lab, the company’s sensors support applications in electronics, medicine, and science. They’re launching with two sensors, including one in partnership with Meta. IN
📣 Asks & Offers
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Challenges & Opportunities with Spinouts
By Robert Gelb in partnership with Johnston Carmichael
I've shared my views before about university spinouts and how tough I think life is for those involved with trying to build one. The responses I received ranged in degree of agreement and prompted some fun debates (to put it lightly).
One of the more interesting conversations was with Shaun Millican, Partner and Head of Business Advisory and Technology & Life Sciences at Johnston Carmichael. Cheekily, I thought it might make a good topic for an article. Little did I know, it would turn into several! What follows are 3 articles on the subject of spinouts in partnership with Johnston Carmichael, the accountancy and business advisory firm. The first of which is about the challenges that many spinouts often face when trying to get off the ground (I won't include equity in this, as some of the arguments can be read in a previous piece we've written which you can find linked to above). The second will look at the opportunities that spinouts have that are often overlooked, and the third will go over some common founder mentalities and tips that Shaun sees when interacting with spinout teams.
So if you're working on or thinking about a potential spinout, stay tuned for some valuable knowledge bombs (my term, not Shaun's, thankfully).
Spinouts are hard
Yes, they certainly are. Not just hard in the same ways other startups are hard, but in many ways there comes an added set of challenges due to how they usually get started in the first place.
Spinouts refer to the concept of taking advancements, discoveries, and intellectual property that result from academic research, and directly commercialising that research into viable, scalable, and profitable businesses. Often medtech and pharmaceutical companies are the most visible examples of successful spinouts, however many also forget that Google itself was a Stanford University spinout in its day.
While there are certainly success stories, Shaun has seen several common challenges that often make it harder for them to get off the ground.
Starting with a solution
The first major challenge is one that often goes against everything you learn about effective startup development. Not starting with the problem. Typically, after falling in love with the problem, you then work to figure out the best solution for that problem. With spinouts, often it's not that simple. As Shaun says, "In many cases, the inspiration for a spinout comes from the technology, the technical know-how, the expertise, and then seeing if there is an application of that, instead of the other way round."
You might have a brilliant technical innovation, but what's it actually for? Who actually wants it? What problems exist that it's needed in order to solve? "In general a startup should come into being after somebody sees the problem and thinks, 'how do we solve that problem?' Whereas in the university it usually starts more with the fact that we have a solution here," Shaun says.
Academic blindness
Add to this, the fact that most academics involved in spinouts don't come from a commercial background, which can introduce blindness and friction into the process. As Shaun notes, "There's a stereotype of the academic thinking that the commercial application is the easy bit. They often assume the R&D will be the biggest challenge, and after it's built, the customers will just come, because why wouldn't they? When in reality, the way in which an IP gets commercialised may and often is quite different to where they started, and the bigger challenge can be how to build a business around an innovation, rather than the innovation itself."
This is one area where Shaun notes, the university's spinout processes can play a role, "To be fair to the universities and their high-growth spin out programme, the purpose of that programme is to try and assess the commercial viability of an innovation to try and fill in some of those early commercialisation gaps. Yes, the order of starting with a solution first might be a different approach, however if a spinout goes through an effective commercialisation process that's rigorous and fast, the best ones end up in the same place."
Slower pace of commercialisation and experimentation
It's a generalisation, but when you layer on university high-growth processes, a lack of commercial experience from many academics, and having to find that commercialisation experience from elsewhere, you run the risk of costly delays. For those with commercial experience or eagerness and who are keen to move quickly, they can find the spinout process a challenge and may instead try to get their company launched without relying on university IP. "Defensibility is an interesting point that can sometimes be overstated," Shaun says, "How many potential spin outs haven't got out the door because a team have effectively just said 'Well, we can fix that without actually having to rely on the university's IP whatsoever and let's just go and do it outside of the university.'"
But Shaun cautions against this generalisation, "Why are universities considered to be slow? Sometimes their processes can be onerous, however it's not always down to the university, though. Fundamentally, there is a question about getting this proposition right for investors, and that can take some time. There are of course examples of spinouts like Novosound where David Hughes has said they were able to get it spun out in less than six weeks."
We covered a lot of ground about spinouts, and as Shaun often said, the one thing you can be sure about when it comes to spinouts is that no two are alike, and surrounding yourself with people who have been there, and experienced the unique challenges many spinouts face is pretty crucial to not falling into the same traps yourself. Shaun says, “We often get involved at the earliest stages just to have a chat and share our experience. If it turns into a client, that’s obviously great, but honestly just helping a founder avoid something simple, or get unstuck is something I really enjoy.”
Stay tuned for next time, we'll go into some of the advantages that spinouts have when it comes to getting off the ground.
This is part one of a multi-part series of articles covering university spinouts, written in partnership with Johnston Carmichael. Johnston Carmichael is a full-service accountancy and business advisory firm that works with founders and startups (including many spinouts) from pre-launch through exit, and beyond. Find out more information or get in touch with Shaun and the team for a chat here.
📅 Events
🎯 25/01, 17:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Makers gonna make - Episode 4: This is the place where you can start, learn and conquer all the features that have been sitting in your backlog for ages. MORE INFO
🏷️ 28/01, 06:30 🗺️ Online: Selling Online series - managing your ecommerce customers - online event: Learn about selling online as a great way to start, diversify or grow a retail business – and anyone can do it! MORE INFO
⭐ 28/01, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Scottish Notion Meetup – 28 January 2025: Join us for a lovely, chill meetup for Notion lovers in and around Edinburgh, hosted by Codebase. Enjoy excellent chat, with speakers and case studies to develop your Notion knowledge. With free soft drinks and food, this is the perfect post-work hangout. MORE INFO
🤝 28/01, 18:00 🗺️ Dundee: Dundee Data Meetup: Join us for our monthly Dundee Data Meetup, featuring two expert speakers who will share their insights into getting started with data and sustainable business analytics. MORE INFO
🚀 29/01, 09:30 🗺️ Dumfries: Leadership and Management 6-week Programme: Unlock your leadership potential: join our free 6-week development programme for business owners and senior leaders in the South of Scotland. MORE INFO
🎯 29/01, 12:00 🗺️ Dumfries: AccelerateHER + Techscaler Meetup: South of Scotland: This Meetup will be a space for women and non-binary founders, of all industries, to come together, hear inspiring stories from fellow founders, and connect for ongoing peer-support. MORE INFO
💡 15/01, 15:00 🗺️ Kirkcaldy: Lightbulb Sessions: Fife Creative Tech Workshop and Meetup: The Lightbulb Sessions are monthly workshops looking at a different aspects of data driven theatre: From exploring what data driven tech is and how you could/should use it, to IP and contracts, from finding and commissioning technologists, to designing inclusivity and accessibility into new tech, to thinking about security and ecologically responsible tech. MORE INFO
➰ 29/01, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Prewired: Prewired is here to help enthusiastic young coders of any ability to take their ideas and make it into a software reality. MORE INFO
💡 29/01, 18:00 🗺️ Inverness and Online: Ideation Workshop - Hybrid Event: A collaborative, interactive workshop in which we'll explore where tech startup ideas can come from, how to ensure you have a 'good' idea to work on, and techniques you can use to map out your idea in more detail. MORE INFO
🤝 29/01, 18:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Entrepreneurs Social Club (ESC) - January 2025: Welcome to our monthly Entrepreneurs Social Club (ESC) gathering! Skip the talks, presentations and lectures - in favour of going straight to the bar, where real connections are made! MORE INFO
💻 30/01, 08:30 🗺️ Kinross: Breakfast Networking at the Court House: Open to everyone, join us in Kinross' Court House to connect with members of the local tech and business community and regulars of The Court House's workspace. Come along for coffee, breakfast and networking! MORE INFO
🚀 30/01, 09:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Productivity Tips for Tech businesses: As part of National Productivity Week, Eagle Labs are teaming up with Peers Works, as Eleonora Vanello runs a session tailored to Founders. The Workship focuses on helping Founders to enhance their prioritisation skills and mater time management – helping them to be more Productive! MORE INFO
🤝 30/01, 09:30 🗺️ Kinross: Coworking at the Court House: Join us at Kinross' Court House for a day of free coworking in their space. This is a great opportunity to connect with the local tech and business community, use the excellent facilities available and get an extra dose of motivation. MORE INFO
🤖 30/01, 09:30 🗺️ Online: Mastering Prompt Engineering with ChatGPT: Join this webinar and discover the world of AI communication for improving productivity. MORE INFO
⛓️ 30/01, 17:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Blockchain Scotland Meetup: Welcome to the Monthly Blockchain Scotland Meetup at the Bayes Centre in Edinburgh. The event takes place at the ground floor in G.03. MORE INFO
💻 30/01, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: WORKSHOP - Intro to Hoshin Kanri: Creating strategic clarity. LIMITED SPOTS!: The workshop is ideally suited for Product Managers and leaders who are unfamiliar with Hoshin Kanri. However it is suitable for anyone with a desire to improve the quality of setting strategy and planning at work or in their personal lives. MORE INFO
🍾 30/01, 18:00 🗺️ Glasgow: 2025 Kick Off Mixer: Be Bold, Take Action, Go Global 🌍: This isn’t business as usual. It’s the night we kick-start 2025 with ambition, fun and a little bit of swagger. Expect a vibrant mix of sharp ideas, high-energy networking, and the kind of atmosphere that gets you thinking big. MORE INFO
💼 31/10, 11:00 🗺️ Online: Online Office Hours with Digital Dairy Chain: Michael Christian: This event is open to anyone in the Scottish tech community, whether you’re a founder, aspiring entrepreneur, or simply curious about the industry. MORE INFO
🙋🏻♂️ 04/02, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Online Office Hours with Digital Dairy Chain: Michael Christian: This event is open to anyone in the Scottish tech community, whether you’re a founder, aspiring entrepreneur, or simply curious about the industry. MORE INFO
💰 04/02, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Webinar: Fundraising from US investors: This webinar is an opportunity to hear directly from Alexander Lamley and Laura Donald as they walk you through how to approach fundraising from US investors. Areas they will cover during the webinar include: Basics on US Securities laws, UK vs US differences, and ASAs vs SAFEs. MORE INFO
👋 04/02, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Tech Meetup Edinburgh - February 2025: The Tech Meetup is a monthly excuse for the tech community around Scotland to network, learn and share new ideas! Enjoy informative tech presentations from your peers, hear about exciting community projects and create new connections. MORE INFO
🤖 04/02, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Data Science + AI Meetup: Join us for networking and talks on Generative AI for 3D images + The role of the modern data analyst. MORE INFO
💼 04/02, 18:30 🗺️ Online: Selling Online series - administration & accounting for ecommerce - onlin: Learn about selling online as a great way to start, diversify or grow a retail business – and anyone can do it! MORE INFO
☕ Series: Unfiltered: Open to everyone, join CodeBase to connect with members of the local tech community. Come for a coffee, networking and build connections. Hotdesking is available after the event, but needs to be booked and paid for at reception.
⛾ 05/02, 08:30 🗺️ Aberdeen, MORE INFO
⛾ 05/02, 08:30 🗺️ Stirling, MORE INFO
⛾ 05/02, 08:30 🗺️ Dundee, MORE INFO
⛾ 05/02, 08:30 🗺️ Edinburgh, MORE INFO
⛾ 05/02, 08:30 🗺️ Glasgow, MORE INFO
⛾ 05/02, 08:30 🗺️ Inverness, MORE INFO
🤝🏻 05/02, 17:30 🗺️ Gretna: Business & Community Networking (Gretna): Join us at a town near you for one of our informal networking sessions, open to all! Find out all about SOSE and what we can do for you. MORE INFO
✏️ 06/02, 09:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Understanding co-ops (Edinburgh): Learn how becoming a co-op could help your business thrive at this free Edinburgh workshop hosted by Co-operative Development Scotland. MORE INFO
🚀 06/02, 11:00 🗺️ Hawick: Pathways to Success – Time to Talk, Celebrate & Connect: Join us for the Pathways to Success networking event. Open to all! Connect with inspiring, new and established businesses. MORE INFO
🌐 06/02, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: nocode.scot meetup #17: This meetup is about who gets to build software. Being able to build software is a huge advantage in life, and for the most part that advantage belongs to a tiny fraction of the world's population. MORE INFO
🤝🏼 06/02, 18:00 🗺️ Glasgow: Tech Meetup Glasgow - February 2024: Join us at Civic House, Glasgow on the first Thursday of each month for our free event featuring two talks on tech with soft drinks and pizza. MORE INFO
🌱 10/02, 15:30 🗺️ Dumfries: Seeding Enterprise across our Communities workshop - Dumfries: Two-day course aimed at exploring early stages of starting a business aimed at women and under-represented groups in our communities. MORE INFO
🚀 11/02, 10:00 🗺️ Online: How Scottish Space Technologies can support the FS Sector in Denmark: Join this webinar and find out how Scottish Space Technologies can support the Finical Services Sector in Denmark. MORE INFO
🛒 11/02, 10:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Go-To-Market Without the Gamble: How to Validate Before You Execute: Learn how to build, and develier against, an effective Go-To-Market strategy. MORE INFO
📍 11/02, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Navigating telecoms investment in Scotland: This session will provide investment advice and insights to start-ups looking to enter the telecoms market or seeking funding to develop their applications for the telecoms market. MORE INFO
🎯 11/02, 12:00 🗺️ Thornhill: Pathways to Potential: Women in Business and Tech: Inspiring women to lead the way in business and technology across Dumfries and Galloway. MORE INFO
✌️ 11/02, 18:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Startup Founders Meetup - February 2025: Tactical fireside chats with experienced entrepreneurs and speed networking with other founders, potential cofounders, and investors! MORE INFO
🌐 11/02, 18:30 🗺️ Online: Selling Online series - Reporting & analytics for ecommerce - online event: Learn about selling online as a great way to start, diversify or grow a retail business – and anyone can do it! MORE INFO
🌱 12/02, 09:30 🗺️ Duns: Seeding Enterprise across our Communities workshop - Duns: Two-day course aimed at exploring early stages of starting a business aimed at women and under-represented groups in our communities. MORE INFO
💼 12/02, 13:00 🗺️ Eyemouth: Business & Community Networking (Eyemouth): Join us at a town near you for one of our informal networking sessions, open to all! Find out all about SOSE and what we can do for you. MORE INFO
🤔 12/02, 18:00 🗺️ Glasgow: Curio 02: Our second evening of inspiring talks based around our core theme of curiosity and creative thinking. MORE INFO
💰 13/02, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Selling Your Business Masterclass: Do you have a business succession plan? Join our free webinar to learn about selling your business to an employee ownership trust. MORE INFO
💼 13/02, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Online Office Hours with Potter Clarkson: Our Office Hours are a series of one-to-one sessions with various experts from the legal and accounting sectors to support tech startup founders on their journey. In this one, participants will be able to engage directly with and receive personalised advice from IP Attornies for Potter Clarkson. MORE INFO
👨💼 13/02, 10:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Edinburgh Professionals Quarterly Networking - Thurs 13th Feb: We wanted to bring together our local professional network, here in Edinburgh, as a way of introducing them to each other. MORE INFO
🍺 13/02, 18:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Edinburgh - Small99's People, Planet, Pint™: Sustainability Meetup: Pop down to your local People Planet Pint meetup to find more about what's going on locally with sustainability and how you can get involved. MORE INFO
🎯 14/02, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Online Office Hours with Digital Dairy Chain: Michael Christian: This event is open to anyone in the Scottish tech community, whether you’re a founder, aspiring entrepreneur, or simply curious about the industry. MORE INFO
🎯 Deadlines
🇬🇧 Upcoming Innovate UK deadlines:
AI solutions to develop AI competencies in key sectors Applications close 29 January
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That’s all for this week - have a great one, and a happy New Year!
Team 🔥 Campfire