It&t Opportunity
The Age
Tuesday September 7, 1999
LEADING venture capitalist Roger Allen is setting up a business incubator in Melbourne.
His incubator, which is not part of the Allen and Buckeridge venture capital fund, but will have close ties, will be in a Fitzroy building, which until recently housed the Tolarno Galleries.
Buckeridge was unavailable for comment.
The $1.04 million building, which is also expected to house Melbourne offices for the Sydney-based venture capital fund Allen and Buckeridge, is being fitted out for hi-tech firms and is expected to open within a month.
New incubator manager Helen Lacy said she expected about 12 companies with from one to four people to occupy the open-plan offices initially.
They would be seed funding-level companies from across the IT&T sector she said, working in an ``entrepreneurial" environment based on Allen's observations of Silicon Valley startups.
The incubator is seeking funds from the State Government's ``Innovation in Industry" program, and has expressed interest in the Federal Government's BITS funding for business incubators.
Allen, who is from Melbourne, could see a need for another Melbourne incubator and sees it as a way to ``give back" to the local industry.
Although the funds for the tenants are expected to come from private interests and ``business angels" with money and expertise to give, Lacy said tenants would have to meet ``Allen and Buckeridge standards" to get a spot in the new centre.
Lacy said a gallery component would be maintained on the site for a while. Tolarno Galleries will reopen in Flinders Lane in October.
© 1999 The Age
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