Ignition helps spark actions into words

The founders behind four Perth startups spoke candidly about their formative experiences at a recent Curtin Ignition seminar.

Working to overcome a fear of public speaking is a no-brainer for business people looking to promote their startup; just ask udrew founder Tom Young.

A 2019 40under40 winner, Mr Young has been busy during the past two years, being named Western Australian Innovator of Year and pursuing plans to launch his innovative design platform in Europe and the US in 2020.

Presenting to an audience of early-stage business founders at the Curtin Ignition intensive training program last month, Mr Young acknowledged his outward confidence betrayed his distaste for making public presentations.

“Public speaking was and still is a huge phobia for me,” Mr Young said.

An alumnus of the program, Mr Young said he had to overcome his fear after an invitation to pitch his idea at Curtin Ignition several years ago.

Managing to overcome his initial reticence, Mr Young spruiked udrew to the audience, among which was a former senior executive from Macquarie Bank.

Mr Young said the executive had quit his job two months earlier and saw potential in the innovative planning tool (udrew), overlooking Mr Young’s lack of money or experience and offering to mentor him for a time.

As Mr Young tells it, he was never asked for anything in return.

“He was passionate about helping [me] give it a go,” Mr Young said.

Reflecting on that chance meeting, he advised those in the audience to have confidence in their abilities and trust those who reach out in the early stages of founding a business, when funding and prospects could be limited.

“The genuinely passionate people won’t ask you for equity,” Mr Young said.

Progressing innovation
Having just completed its ninth year, Curtin Ignition brings together a series of workshops, panel discussions and mentoring sessions to help Perth’s aspiring entrepreneurs develop foundational business skills.

Mr Young, CV Check’s Steve Carolan, Tiller Ride’s Julian Ilich, and Tap Into Safety’s Suzanne Bahn have graduated from the program, with all four presenting as part of the event’s ‘Ask the Alumni’ panel.

Speaking candidly about their experiences, the four discussed their own challenges founding a business, as well as how they learned to network with stakeholders and raise funds.

Asked by one attendee at the event how he knew his business was worth pursuing, Mr Young said the turning point came years ago when he first attended Curtin Ignition.

Inspired by the stories he was hearing from the program cohort, Mr Young started planning how he would leave his job, scrounging for as much money as possible and preparing to live in poverty while he built his business.

Though nervous about the situation, he saw no point in pitching his idea and raising funds while working part-time.

“It’s a bit of a paradox, really; you need money to survive, and you need to build your company as well,” Mr Young said.

He advised the audience that if they were committed, and undertook appropriate planning and consideration of their circumstances, there was no reason not to dive in.

“Think and reflect on your own personal circumstances. How far away are you from revenue? How much do you need? What does that mean for your life?” he said.

“Don’t quit your job if you have three children and a mortgage.

“And if you do, at least talk to your partner first.”

Mr Ilich said he faced a similar situation when he founded Tiller Rides in 2016.

A creator of urban bicycles, Mr Ilich said he sold his house and quit his job after receiving huge demand from the market and investors for his e-bike concept.

While that move seemed rash at the time, he said it was necessary to be serious and committed about his business.

“If people don’t see that you’re committed and that you can deliver, they won’t back you,” Mr Ilich said.

“In 2016, I threw all the paperwork in and went full time to build our first prototype.

“It was tough to look at all my friends who were engineers making $300,000 or $400,000 [a year], and I was making nothing, but [we were] building a bigger dream.

“At some point, you need to back yourself or you can’t expect anyone else to.”

Ms Bahn echoed that sentiment.

Formulating the idea for Tap into Safety while lecturing at Edith Cowan University, Ms Bahn had mortgaged her house and brought her husband out of retirement when she found options for commercialising the business were limited.

“We had everything we owned on the line,” she said.

“Either you believe in yourself and your idea, or you don’t.”

As the only one on the event’s panel to head an ASX-listed company, Mr Carolan offered a unique perspective on starting a business.

Early on he networked and found a group of entrepreneurs and executives with whom he could consult when needed.

While conceding some may feel nervous about doing that, Mr Carolan said he had never faced a problem with looking to his network for counsel.

“Generally, people are willing to help, and all you have to do is ask,” Mr Carolan said.

“They do it because they can.”

He advised those at the Curtin Ignition event to cultivate relationships in the early stages rather than desperately sell a stake in their business in an attempt to grab funding or secure investors.

“Once you give equity away, you can’t get it back,” Mr Carolan said.