Venture Taranaki launch 'PowerUp' to support entrepreneurship within the region

In a fitting part of Global Entrepreneurship week, Venture Taranaki has launched PowerUp, a range of support services and activity focused on fostering and nurturing entrepreneurship in Taranaki.

PowerUp is driven by three key initiatives, Grow, Tell and Connect, and its purpose is to support entrepreneurship and enterprise innovation by helping to power-up Taranaki’s entrepreneurship ecosystem, to help create smart, connected communities and enterprises.

“PowerUp is a carefully constructed programme of events and activities, delivered in conjunction with partners around the region, and designed to complement the services and support already on offer by the wider ecosystem,” explains Venture Taranaki Chief Executive Justine Gilliland.

The 2020/21 calendar of activity and support for entrepreneurship, start-ups and existing enterprises will run from November 2020 through to mid-2021. The PowerUp programme will also see the continuation of Venture Taranaki’s popular start-up support and ideas competition with a grand prize of $10,000 up for grabs.

“We have also reshaped, evolved and added new content to the mix,” continues Justine. “There will be capability building through masterclasses, workshops and a mini-acceleration programme, alongside a range of freely available resources, an investment series, a podcast series and seed funding support.”

“Another key objective is to highlight the range of support available for start-ups, entrepreneurs and enterprises across the entire ecosystem, helping to build visibility of the ecosystem itself,” says Michelle Jordan, GM Enterprise at VT. “Connection and collaboration with the region’s institutions, businesses and communities will be key to successfully powering-up Taranaki’s entrepreneurship ecosystem.”

“In today’s world, fostering a strong entrepreneur and innovative culture is critical to boost Taranaki’s enterprises, so we become an even more resilient, more diverse and a more sustainable and inclusive community,” says Justine.

See PowerUp for further information and events.