Crowdfunding has gone mainstream, but still has plenty of room to grow. Tech Trends takes a look at what the future holds.

Most of us have backed at least one crowdfunding campaign at some point. We featured many success stories on the site and personally even put our money where our mouth is. I mean, who could have resisted getting their hands on the world’s creepiest limited edition troll doll, shaped like Donald Trump? Not me, nor the other 10,000 or so backers that Kickstarter attracted…

Crowdfunding opens up many new possibilities for creative producers
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As a producer, my own upcoming release with Carrion Films – Borley Rectory – was successfully funded on Indiegogo, and I don’t think we would have been able to complete it – or to build the fantastic community buzz around the film –  without crowfunding. So it’s safe to say I’m a big fan of this medium that has opened up an entire new field of possibilities for small businesses, entrepreneurs, and their wonderful crazy ideas.

What is it about crowdfunding that has won the popular imagination?
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So last month we gladly accepted an invitation from Invest in Cornwall (the regional council’s economic development initiative) to visit the Newquay Headquarters of Crowdfunder.co.uk, based in an old surf shop overlooking the stunning Great Western Beach. The company was holding their annual Summer Experience and celebrating the milestone of raising more than £40 million for projects around the UK.

Crowdfunder has raised over £40 million for projects around the UK
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The party was not only attended by leaders from global businesses but it also welcomed a particularly special guest, the world’s first flatpack vehicle, the OX, as it finished its tour through Cornwall, stopping at a few of the region’s iconic landmarks along the way – including the Eden Project and Watergate Bay – before launching its own fundraising campaign on the Crowdfunder platform.

We got a chance to see the world's first flatpack vehicle, the OX
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Crowdfunder is aiming to secure over a million users by 2018
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By summer 2017 Crowdfunder.co.uk had supported over 90k projects with more than 200 new ones starting everyday and with over £40Million raised to advance those projects. The company now aims to secure over a million users by 2018 and looks set to take on the big boys of crowdfunding such as Kickstarter and Indiegogo. I chatted to Rob Love, Co-Founder & Chairman of Crowdfunder to hear his thoughts on business in Cornwall and why crowdfunding has become so popular and successful in recent years.

“It’s great to have so many people from around the UK joining us for our Summer Experience event in our headquarters in Newquay. This is what it’s all about – celebrating the success of companies we have been able to help. Cornwall is the ideal location to host this celebration as it’s home to a thriving forward-thinking business community and we look forward to celebrating that for many years to come.” Rob explained.

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This is what it’s all about – celebrating the success of companies we have been able to help
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A key member of the groundbreaking team behind TV sensations Big Brother and River Cottage, Rob is well qualified to talk about disruptive media and technology and sees crowdfunding as a powerful force for good in a society that has lost faith in the ability of big government and financial institutions to support us and help launch new businesses.

“When I saw the success of Kickstarter I thought, we can do better, let’s do a better UK version with more of a social purpose. Crowdfunding is a return to small things, a behavioural change in society. The concept is fundamental, let’s all do it together, sod the banks, if the crowd think it is a good idea, that’s what is driving it.”

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Crowdfunding is a return to small things, a behavioural change in society
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I then asked him how advances in technology have given rise to crowdfunding, and what additional benefits it can offer to small businesses that would struggle to secure funding through traditional institutions.

“We had a tech explosion and we got social media where you can hit Facebook, Twitter and all of them, crowdfunding combines marketing, pre-selling and community building, if it’s a customer facing idea why wouldn’t the crowd fund it? It’s proof of concept, it’s crowd validation and crowdfunding, and it’s very viral. People back people, so you need to get your passion across, tech is an enabler, but in the end it’s about real people and real passions – the tech should be almost invisible.” 

Despite the disruptive nature of crowdfunding, it is now interesting to see how forward-thinking mainstream companies are also embracing it. Crowdfunder has brought on board partners including Santander, M&S Energy and Virgin Media Business, who see the potential in crowdfunding to support and grow small business in the UK. I spoke to Julian Borra, Founder of The Thin Air Factory, who works with Virgin Media Business on their entrepreneurial VOOM initiative which combines crowdfunding with entrepreneurship.

“Crowdfunding is a new model of pitching for funding to faceless banks. Instead of blind investors, with a crowdfunding platform everyone is emotionally predisposed to make good things happen and they have the business’ back, they are emotionally invested before they become financially invested.” Explained Julian. “Virgin Media Business wants to inspire and champion entrepreneurship in everyone, everywhere through VOOM. It’s volatile out there, we’re in a time of uncertainty and the only thing we can be certain of is small business sparks start-ups, scale-ups, creates wealth, creates jobs and improves lives.” 

Virgin Media Business wants to inspire and champion entrepreneurship in everyone, everywhere
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“The benefits go beyond funding. What you’re doing is creating an audience, a market, a loyal, engaged support base and advocates, and you’re doing your marketing and strengthening the whole proposition.” Adds Rob.

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Crowdfunder success story What a Melon won the VOOM 2016 award and Founder Olly Bolton enthused about embracing crowdfunding to launch his business:

“We’ve raised a lot of money, grown our customer base, boosted awareness and audience engagement. It’s been a massive win, and we are definitely going to crowdfund again. We’ve opened up more opportunities through #VOOM than we’d ever imagined.” 

Crowdfunding brings investors close to the business in a very resilient model
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“Crowdfunding initially works better for people who evangelise their business, who are more likely to succeed. VOOM used this idea and challenged contestants to get out there and What a Melon did just that. Olly was great, he was out there rain or shine talking about his business,” Julian expanded.

Crowdfunder is part of an energetic, flourishing tech sector in Cornwall which is filled with entrepreneurial drive and spirit. Cornwall has had twice as many successful crowdfunding businesses than the UK average (40% vs 23%) and the region plays a key part in those local business success stories. Nicola Lloyd, Head of Inward Investment for Invest in Cornwall, said:

“This is a really exciting time for Cornwall, and ambitious, thriving businesses are transforming the way in which the region is viewed. This event celebrated all the people making this happen, in a place that enables businesses to grow with its fantastic connectivity, attracting world class talent who are looking to match an exciting and ambitious career with an incredible place to live.”

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The Crowdfunder party was teeming with successful local businesses and talking to Kim Conchie, Chief Executive of Cornwall Chamber of Commerce, the enthusiasm for the future of the region was palpable.

“The 21st Century is Cornwall’s time to shine. The Duchy now has excellent broadband and physical infrastructure, a really innovative and creative culture, a skilled and progressive workforce and the best work/life balance anywhere in Europe. The ability to combine achievement and enjoyment in Cornwall makes it simply the best place to be in business.”

Thriving businesses are transforming the way Cornwall is viewed
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Tom Atkinson is a Digital Producer & Photographer at R3Digital and Reviews & Dept. Editor at Tech Trends. Connect on LinkedIn and follow him on Twitter @R3Digital

The post Crowdfunding Comes to Cornwall appeared first on Tech Trends.

Only one in eight people in the world have access to a motorised vehicle. The OX is looking to change that.

Imagine an affordable, flatpack, utility vehicle, purpose-designed for use in all manner of difficult terrain and flexible enough to perform a multitude of humanitarian tasks. Designed by partners The Norman Trust, The Global Vehicle Trust and Gordon Murray Design, the OX is set to change the face of transport in the areas of the world where this is most needed.

“You go out to Africa, the third world and most people don’t have mobility, access to transport, it’s shocking. The OX is practical but also a great vehicle to drive,” says Frank Coppuck, Technical Director at GMD

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The vehicle is designed to be as capable and flexible as possible in difficult conditions so features generous approach and departure angles and a high clearance. Each wheel of the two-wheel drive system is independently suspended to allow for the roughest of trails and the OX is also light, with marine grade plywood used wherever possible to ensure minimal fuel consumption. The prototype OX I saw was fitted with a 2.2Ltr petrol engine but this can be swapped out easily to an engine suited to the available local fuel supply. River crossings or flooded roads are no problem as the air intake is 1m off the ground, but make sure you take your swimming trunks if you go that deep!

The vehicle is designed to be capable and flexible in difficult conditions
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Across the developing world, and Africa in particular, there is an intense need for improved transport both for everyday living as well as emergencies. Even though 15% of the world’s population lives in Africa, there has never been a vehicle specifically designed and manufactured in volume to meet the rigours of the continent. Food, water, medicine, schools and transport are dependent for their daily needs on unreliable vehicles and uncertain availability. The vehicles that are available are often designed for quite different purposes, are too heavy, too complicated and unsuited to local conditions.

Frank went on to explain that the OX is designed to be as simple as possible to fix as facilities to repair and modify vehicles are basic or non-existent in Africa. No on-board computers here and the literal nuts and bolts are all standard, universal sizes that basic tool kits can deal with. It is designed for an everyday person to be able to fix and repair and features some cunning bits of design to allow for dealing with common problems.

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Changing lives through a revolution in all-terrain mobility”
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The air intake filter is simply a chunk of plastic foam that can easily be removed, the dust banged out and replaced in seconds while the windscreen is made of three identical plastic panels that can be swapped around if one is broken or cracked by flying stones. Simplicity is the name of the game here, and the entire top half of the vehicle is modular, to enable conversion to whatever purpose the user needs, be it a portable school, a water transport or an ambulance.

The OX is a highly unconventional ‘flat-pack’ all-terrain light truck,  which will benefit people living in remote villages and townships across Africa and other parts of the developing world.

• A vehicle that will provide mobility for rural areas in developing countries with poor infrastructure
• Lightweight, rugged and durable to maximise payload for goods and people
• Capable of operating in adverse terrain and hostile conditions
• Low cost, designed for simple maintenance with fewer parts
• Designed for self-assembly using simple procedures and instructions
• Supplied fully assembled or flat-packed for easy shipping and local assembly

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The Ox was conceived by one of the UK’s leading philanthropists, Sir Torquil Norman, who is recognised for his charitable work with disadvantaged young people through his charity The Norman Trust. To take the idea off the drawing board Professor Gordon Murray, designer of the McLaren F1 supercar, jumped on-board and threw some of the design team from his automotive technology company GMD behind the project on a not-for-profit basis.

“Sir Torquil came with the concept and said this is what I’d like to achieve, Gordon loved it and this is the result!” enthused Coppuck

The Trust and GMD have spent approximately £3 million bringing the OX to the working prototype stage. Preliminary engineering design, extensive component selection, benchmarking and testing was undertaken by GMD to increase confidence that the OX will cope with all of the environments that it is likely to be put to work in. The prototyping stage of the OX development has seen three versions built: XP1, XP2 and XP3.

“This is proof of concept. Now we need to get it into production, to get it from 95% bulletproof to the 100% stage. We want them to be so robust, so durable, we want them to last forever.” Coppuck explained

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The next stage is further engineering improvements and updates followed by testing on the ground in Africa. To fund this The Norman Trust and The Global Vehicle Trust are seeking £450,000 via a Crowdfunder.co.uk campaign. Check out the video below to hear Sir Torquil and Professor Gordon Murray discuss their passion for the OX and the benefits it could bring to developing countries.

The next stage will be to test it on the ground in Africa
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Ox to Africa from H28 on Vimeo.

“I think I can quite honestly say the OX is the best thing I have designed; it certainly was the hardest challenge. There’s nothing else like it on the planet.” Concludes Professor Gordon Murray.

Millions of people around the world who don’t have access to mobility.
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Tom Atkinson is a Digital Producer & Photographer at R3Digital and Reviews & Dept. Editor at Tech Trends. Connect on LinkedIn and follow him on Twitter @R3Digital

The post This Crowdfunded Flatpack Vehicle Wants to Democratise Motoring appeared first on Tech Trends.