intu Accelerate seeks start-ups

Shopping centre owner intu is on the hunt for start-ups to work with as part of its new innovation programme, intu Accelerate. The incubation programme aims to develop young businesses with innovative ideas that will help shape tomorrow’s retail and leisure market. During the 10-week programme, start-ups will receive mentorship from intu’s senior leadership and experts from across the business and tech worlds. They will also be able to pilot and test their products as well as have access to central London office space and exposure to potential investors. David Fischel, intu chief executive, said: “We’re looking for the smartest minds out there and the best talent we can find. We’re looking for businesses to work together with us to help achieve our purpose of making our customers smile and helping our retailers flourish. “We have a history of spotting and introducing new ideas to the UK and through intu Accelerate we want to add a new level of drive and dynamism to the evolution of our shopping centre business, whether physical or digital. We’re also hoping to identify start-ups for potential investment, which in turn will help us deliver a healthy return.” Start-ups should apply to one of intu Accelerate’s four categories Enhanced retail services: our retail services need to be as responsive and agile as possible. If your idea can juggle with predictive maintenance, knit together aspects of customer services, optimize waste management or looks at facilities management in a different way, we want to hear from you. The future of shopping: we create compelling experiences for our customers on and off line. We know customers’ needs are changing and that new technologies and an innovative approach can help to meet and exceed these. If you know how to make our customers gasp with delight while they spend their valuable free time with us, then apply. Boost retailer productivity: helping our retailers flourish is key, so anything we can do to support and boost their productivity and sales is a must. If you’ve got a standout idea that makes it as easy as possible for our retailers to sell and the customers to buy, all while having a great time, we want to know about it! Wildcard: we like looking for the new, creating something different and looking at things differently, so we had to include an open category for those who like to think out of the box. That’s what the wildcard is all about. intu Accelerate is being run in partnership with innovation specialists L Marks, which work with some of the UK’s best-known brands, including John Lewis, International Airlines Group and EDF Energy. intu chairman Stuart Marks said: “The retail sector is changing rapidly and has become one of the most exciting and dynamic industries to work in. I know there’s room for some game-changing innovations here; tech that really will make a difference to the retail experience. This is an incredible opportunity for start-ups to partner with intu and gain true validation for their product. I am very excited that L Marks is on board to help find the next generation of retail innovators.” To send feedback, e-mail amber.rolt@egi.co.uk or tweet @AmberRoltEG or @estatesgazette