Member Article

Recession encourages regional entrepreneurs

The recession is boosting North East entrepreneurialism according to new research, which indicates that one in five people in the North East are more likely to set up their own business during the downturn.

According to Made in Mind, the recession has forced almost 70% of people to think about what they want to do with their lives. Equally, the decline in available jobs and a sense of having nothing to lose influenced half of those asked.

Matthew Judkins, Made in Mind CEO, said: “Innovation inspires people because the quest for progress is at the very heart of the human race.

“We have a long legacy of innovation in the UK – from Alexander Graham Bell to John Logie Baird, we were instrumental in bringing the television, stereo, radar and telephone to market.”

Young people were found to be particularly entrepreneurial, with more than a quarter asked expressing a desire to create, innovate and invent. Many individuals were also inspired by the region’s scientific and technological heritage.

Matthew continued: “Our research shows that almost half of people in the North East wish they could invent something, and almost a fifth are more likely to set up business during an economic downturn; far from discouraging us, the tough climate is proving no barrier to those who believe they have a really good idea.”

Min-Kyu Choi is one such individual, and in 2009 brought his folding plug concept ‘Mu’ to market. The product quickly became a viral phenomenon, and in 2010 won the much coveted Design Museum, Design of the Year Award.

Choi commented: “I was frustrated by the dimensions of the traditional plug, and felt that the existing unit which dates back to 1947, was out of touch with modern design.

Now Min-Kyu and his business partner Matthew Judkins are set to launch a full range of products in 2012 to cater for universal smartphones, tablets and laptops through their company, Made in Mind.

Judkins added: Now that we’ve launched the Mu USB Adapter, we thought it would be interesting to find out whether there’s a silver lining to the tough economic climate in the UK at the moment, in terms of boosting our creativity and entrepreneurial spirit.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .