When I heard about the UK's first open-access factory, offering "pay-as-you go accessibility" so entrepreneurs and makers can access state-of-the-art light industrial equipment I was intrigued.
Originally established in 2012, its co-founders call it the "missing link for solopreneurs and SMEs seeking to bridge the gap between start-up and producing at scale."
And when I learned it was a social enterprise, with sustainability "designed in" – well, we had to get its co-founders in for a radio interview. They've gone from strength to strength, moving to a brilliant, award-winning facility, the UK’s largest open-access factory which they say is "crafted by makers for makers."
In this episode, Arnaud Nichols and Al Parra, BLOQS co-founders, cover:
• What they mean by a pay-as-you-go, open access factory
• Who uses it (there are currently 700 active members and they're really diverse) and what people create
• How collaboration and access to shared facilities means makers and small businesses can use equipment at a much lower cost, and with a lower individual and collective environmental footprint
• How BLOQS has both contributed to regeneration n the London Borough of Enfield, and benefited from regeneration match funding investment
• Why being a social enterprise enables purpose and mission alignment, with everyone sharing common goals
• Their own backgrounds and transferable skills
• Plans for the future with big ambition to build more BLOQS
It was a pleasure hearing from Al and Arnaud and I hope you'll find the interview as fascinating as I did. Do check out the BLOQS website here: https://bloqslondon.com
This is episode #391 of the Business Live radio show, for curious entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs. Thanks for listening to the programme and to Sheffield Live! for broadcasting us on DAB and FM radio.