DF Start

We enable you to start an idea and launch a startup, through a series of courses, mentoring and funding opportunities. Our Start programme has been created by designers - so it's different to most business focused learning - aimed at founders who value design & designers who want to start projects but lack the knowledge to do so. With our support, you can get your idea pitch ready & investable. 

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Design the Future
Design the Future

You can Design Change by creating a startup that helps tackle global issues and make impact.

Choose Yourself
Choose Yourself

Learn an alternative career path and enable other streams of income (yes! your startup can pay you). Be in control of your time & fulfil your potential.

Designer Friendly
Designer Friendly

Start is created by designers, for founders that value design & designers looking to start projects.

Masterclass

Spark

Get pitch ready

Design Driven

Become a successful founder

  • Design your idea
  • Learn what investors want
  • Create a winning deck
  • Priority access to get funding
  • Access to our community of founders
Register Interest
More Info
Start your idea
& get funded
By designers for founders

We’ve debunked the business speak and simplified the numbers making things design led, friendly and accessible.

More than a course

As well as the learning, you will gain priority access to funding and exclusive access to our community of founders.

What ideas?

We want to see amazing ideas. Whether you have a product, an App or Web 3 idea you can turn it into a business become a creator.

Who you are

You are a founder who values design or a practicing designer. We also invite ideas from anybody who works in the design industry.

Let’s Design Change

Sustainable Cities
Sustainable Cities
Health & Wellbeing
Health & Wellbeing
Quality Education
Quality Education
Climate Action
Climate Action
Clean Energy
Clean Energy
Work & the Economy
Work & the Economy
Life in the Seas
Life in the Seas
Life on Land
Life on Land
Sustainable Food
Sustainable Food
People Equality
People Equality
Politics & Peace
Politics & Peace
Zero Hunger & Poverty
Zero Hunger & Poverty

Your Curator

Alex Tuppen

Progamme Director

• 20 years as a design & branding consultancy
• Lectures in Design & Business at DMU
• Co-founder of ethical & natural skincare co.
• Experience in creating winning pitches
• Brilliant orator and communicator

Early bird offer

Course soon.  More Info

£150
£0

Free for limited period.

  • Guided Masterclass
  • Priority access to funding
  • Access to our community
  • £150 from Q2 2023
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Get More with
Membership
Additional Courses

As well as our get pitch ready course, we’ll be creating other courses to help you start your idea, such as Web3 for founders coming in 2023.

Opportunity to pitch

Once you’ve got a decent pitch document and meet the criteria, we can introduce you to our investors for a chance to raise up to £500k

One to one mentoring

We provide direct mentoring designed to help with pitch training, SEIS documentation & advice to succeed.

In Future

You could qualify for pre-seed funding (£15k). You can also attend talks from luminaries and pitching events.

One-to-one
support
Guided Support

We offer a bespoke one to one service to help manifest your idea and get pitch ready with our one to one guidance.

How many Sessions

We recommend booking one session to start with and then following up with others.

How it works

We provide a 3 x 50 mins sessions on Zoom, designed to help you shape an your idea & make it investable

Cost

For a limited time we have a special price of just £30.00. Additional sessions are charged on case by case basis.

Design Your Future

With our help you can choose yourself and be 21st century design driven founder

Buy Course

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