New Frontiers Entrepreneur Development Programme
Applications for our next Phase 2 is now open.
Click here to download the New Frontiers Application Form.
The closing date is 5pm Friday, 21st June. If you would like to apply please contact us in advance at newfrontiers@hothouse.ie to let us know.
If you are not ready to apply yet please register your interest here and we will notify you of when we are recruiting for our next programme.
What is New Frontiers?
New Frontiers is Ireland’s national entrepreneur development programme that is delivered at a local level by the Institutes of Technology. It is designed to help people like you, who have an innovative business idea, to establish and run your own companies. It will provide you with a package of supports to help accelerate your business’s development and to equip you with the skills and contacts that you need to be future business leaders. New Frontiers aims to support the creation of 100 high value, knowledge based, Irish owned businesses, with high growth and employment potential each year.
Who should apply?
This programme can help you if you:
- Can demonstrate the capability and commitment needed to develop a sustainable business.
- Are ambitious, intending that your enterprise will achieve turnover greater than €500,000 and create more than five jobs in three to five years’ time.
- Plan to build your business on a strong foundation of innovation and/or technology.
- Can provide evidence of a commercial market for your proposed product or service.
- Propose setting up an enterprise that is a manufacturing or internationally traded services business - eligibility criteria - or a new domestically traded service business with the potential to trade internationally.
The New Frontiers programme is open to applications from a diversity of sectors including; food & consumer products, information & communication technology, engineering & electronics, medical devices, biotechnology, pharma, digital media and eligible internationally traded services.
What does New Frontiers provide Entrepreneurs?
- Training in all areas of business including financial management, market research & validation, business process, patenting, product development, sales training.
- Mentoring from experienced business advisers and practitioners.
- Office and other business incubation facilities.
- €15,000 from Enterprise Ireland for individuals participating in Phase 2 (Income tax liability will be the sole responsibility of the participant, and individuals are encouraged to seek professional advice).
- Networking with other entrepreneurs and business development agencies.
- Introductions to seed and early stage capital investment networks.
- Access to entrepreneurship best practice, both national and international.
- Peer-group learning from participants in the region and across the country.
- Access to the expertise in Enterprise Ireland through our market information centre.
- Expertise from the Institutes of Technology and the supportive environment of their business incubation centres.
The Programme
New Frontiers is a three-phase programme that is designed to provide an integrated and comprehensive set of business development supports to participants.
|
Phase 1. Testing |
Phase 2. Developing |
Phase 3. Implementing |
|
|
Purpose |
Provide knowledge & skills to test business idea |
Intensive development of the promoter and business proposition Identify customers, sales and funding routes |
Determine viability of the business |
|
Commitment |
Part-time 6-8 Weeks No stipend |
Full-time 6 months €2,500/month* |
Ongoing No stipend |
|
Output |
Preparation of promoters for intensive planning phase |
Fully explored business proposition
Milestone-based implementation plan |
Sustainable business
Entry to EI or CEB process where appropriate |
Phase 1 -Testing the business
The first phase will be part-time over an 8-10 week period and will help you to validate the market potential of your business idea. These weekend and evening workshops will provide information and general start-up training, allowing you to tease out your idea’s feasibility and to see whether a viable proposition exists.
Phase 2 - Planning the business
Following a competitive selection process, committed participants who have a strong value proposition and who can demonstrate that their business proposition has potential to grow and create jobs may be offered a place on Phase 2.
If successful, you will receive intensive support for six months to develop both your own skills and to work up your business proposition. This will entail full-time participation in workshops, mentoring and regular reviews. Using these supports, you will fully detail and validate your business proposition and identify potential customers, sales channels and funding options.
You must be available for full-time participation. To facilitate this, you will receive up to €15,000 in funding subject to satisfactory development reviews (Income tax liability will be the sole responsibility of the participant, and individuals are encouraged to seek professional advice on this).
The aim of this phase is to support you in your development of an investor-ready business proposition.
Phase 3 - Developing the business
On the basis of their potential to develop sales and/or secure investment, businesses emerging from Phase 2 will then be guided to the government supports that can best help them at their particular stage of development. Further incubation facilities and support may be available to participants for a limited period.
