Author: Indielab Games

5^th May 2022


Indielab, the well-established and widely acclaimed provider of Accelerator programmes for the UK’s screen sector, has today launched Indielab Games (www.indielabgames.co.uk), a new business dedicated to helping start-ups and small and mid-size games studios to unlock their potential and accelerate growth.

 
While Indielab Games’ core mission is to support the UK’s next generation of games companies by helping them develop their commercial and growth potential, it will also be putting inclusion and diversity at the heart of everything it does and create a real focus on inclusive leadership for the studios that it works with as a means to unlocking long-term creative and commercial success. Specifically, Indielab Games will be creating regional and national programmes that help founders work on the growth of their business – everything from honing value proposition and finance plans to developing effective company culture and exploring the full range of revenue streams available, plus monetisation and investment opportunities. The programmes will be delivered in bespoke modules that can include masterclasses, seminars, coaching and mentoring, one-to-one sessions with industry experts and a range of free legal, accountancy and other professional services support.

 
Indielab Games intends to mirror the impact of the Indielab TV Accelerators which have already enabled the growth of more than 100 independent production companies, helping develop a whole new generation of businesses now playing a vital role in today’s evolving TV ecosystem. These companies include Merman, producers of Catastrophe and Motherland; Minnow Films, producers of Four Days that Shook Britain and SAS: Who Dares Wins; and Spirit Studios, producers of The Stand-Up Sketch Show.

 
Victoria Powell, Indielab’s founder and CEO comments: “Games is the biggest and fastest growing screen industry in the UK but currently lacks some of the highly specialised accelerator support for early-stage businesses that exists in the TV and tech sectors. Indielab Games will not only provide the tools to help and support studios develop their own unique growth paths and access to investment but will also be an additional engine of change in the sector, working with industry-wide stakeholders to create a safe and inclusive games industry for all.

 
“To be truly commercially successful today, just being creative isn’t good enough. You need to marry this with entrepreneurial skills, a diverse culture, and have a forward-thinking understanding of inclusive leadership baked into your DNA. Through our programmes and network of experts, trainers, and mentors we will deliver the appropriate tools, aiming for all our participants to rapidly accelerate their growth and unlock their potential.”


The Indielab Games launch comes on the back of Indielab’s first Games Accelerator, delivered in West Yorkshire, in partnership with Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (the LEP), which supports the growth of the screen sectors in West Yorkshire through The Creative Catalyst. Eleven local studios were selected for the Accelerator, including Archway Interactive, Love Wish, Cooperative Innovations, and HALCYON Palace, with more than half of the cohort being ethnically diverse and/or female led.

 
Following on from this successful initial programme, Indielab Games’ first official Accelerator is Games Export Lab, also delivered in West Yorkshire. The Games Export Lab will help provide games studios in the region with all they need to prepare an export action plan and ready themselves for international business, including an in-depth knowledge of specific local markets and an enhanced understanding of international consumption trends and new technologies.

 
The Games Export Lab is being delivered with supporting modules from UKIE (the association for UK Interactive Entertainment), Game Republic and Yorkshire and Humber Department for International Trade. Applications for the Games Export Lab, which starts at the end of June, have opened this week. Companies can find out how to apply here: https://www.indielabgames.co.uk/games-export-lab-2022

 
Jamie Sefton, MD at Game Republic says: “Indielab Games is a much-needed addition to our industry, and we are delighted to support its inaugural programme. In such a rapidly expanding sector it can be too easy to focus just on the product, especially for new and young businesses. Indielab Games will help studio founders factor in broad-based and enduring business success from out of the starting gates and its meaningful focus on inclusion, diversity and culture will prove invaluable in helping our industry evolve.”

 
Marian Felix from Cooperative Innovations was a participant on the West Yorks Games Accelerator. She adds: “Indielab’s programmes are well thought-out and meticulously planned. I have found the content immensely valuable. Taking time out to really look at and develop your business in the round and then create actionable goals that will have both creative and commercial benefits is a real gift.”


ENDS


About Indielab

Founded in 2015 by senior TV and Tech sector executive and creative industries leader Victoria Powell, Indielab seeks to promote a sustainable and resilient independent screen sector in the UK and has successfully worked with numerous games studios and TV production companies. Indielab’s programmes equip companies with the knowledge, skills and networks needed to unlock their potential and supercharge growth. Through masterclasses, seminars, panel discussions, networking events, trade missions and one-to-one sessions, companies gain valuable insight into, and training in, a range of subjects, including leadership, commercial innovation, business planning, distribution, revenue-stream maximisation, corporate finance, and export and investment readiness.

 
For further information, please contact
Michelle Waldron
[email protected]