Launch: Our on-campus business incubation centre

Find out more about Launch on Twitter @UoSLaunch

START UP YOUR BUSINESS

At the University of Salford, no ambition is too big. If you’ve got a business idea of your own, our Careers and Enterprise team can help bring it to life through funding awards and business start-up support, and we’ve recently launched a brand new business incubation centre on campus to help.

For any students that have a brilliant business idea but are unsure of the next steps, or for those thinking of going freelance, we can help turn ideas into reality and provide support through all the vital steps of setting up in business.

We can provide you with free hot-desking office space in the heart of Peel Park campus, where you will have access to a networking lounge to grab a coffee and make those all important business connections.

The Launch incubator also offers a wide range of support to make the venture of creating a business less daunting. In partnership with the Business Growth Hub we offer a six month support programme including workshops on specific aspects of building a business, as well as mentorship from experienced professionals and subject specific drop in sessions, delivered by staff from the Salford Business School. You will also have access to grants for vital start-up essentials such as software, insurances, licences, basic equipment, training or attendance at trade fairs.

Azeem Amir, 20, from Rochdale, has been blind since birth; he has no sight in his right eye but light perception in his left, and he admits his opportunities were limited growing up. That hasn’t stopped him though, with the 20-year-old following his passions to play football from a grassroots level to becoming a member of the England squad, all in just a few years. While studying on his degree BSc Business Management with Sport, Azeem took part in the Launch programme with his business Learn with ESS.

Learn with ESS is an initiative that uses education, sport and speaking (ESS) based activities to provide a unique and interactive team building experience whilst addressing stigmatised issues surrounding disability. Learn with ESS aims to change and reshape perceptions within society towards a more unified future for all.

Azeem represented the University of Salford in 2020 at Santander’s first ever Santander Emerging Entrepreneurs event, competing with 82 other start-ups for grant funding on their Santander Universities business programme. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Azeem has successfully launched Learn with ESS and has actively been engaging with schools to teach children and young people about disability within sports, alongside his MSc in Digital Business. Find out more about Azeem’s business at

learnwithess.com