Bristol entrepreneur joins board of property firm
A leading figure from the Bristol business scene has been appointed to the board of a property firm.
Nick Sturge, the founder of the Engine Shed scheme, has been appointed to the board of Mission Street.
He will join the investor and developer of science and innovation in real estate’s board.
Mr Sturge, who is also non-executive director and chair of techSPARK – the not-for-profit network for the tech cluster in Bristol and Bath – will advise on the company’s strategy to deliver the region’s largest commercial innovation hub on Temple Way in Bristol.
The 145,000 sq ft scheme known as Projekt, will be based in the former Bristol Evening Post Building in Old Market.
Utilising 93% of the existing building’s structure, the proposed scheme has been designed to accommodate laboratories , offices and over 7,000 sq ft of shared collaboration space.
Artem Korolev, founder and chief executive of Mission Street, said: “Nick has extensive local experience in nurturing start-ups and has been a key player in helping grow Bristol into the innovation ecosystem that it is today.
“He will provide crucial experience in supporting us in delivering a scheme that can continue that momentum and facilitate the huge growth potential of cutting-edge companies within Bristol.
“Nick’s advice on our Projekt scheme will prove an invaluable resource when it comes to ensuring that the region can continue its trajectory as one of the country’s leading hubs for R&D and innovation by addressing the mismatch in high-quality lab infrastructure.”
Prior to founding Engine Shed, Mr Sturge built SETsquared Bristol start-up incubator, which actively supports the strategic development and growth of 170 companies in the biotech, fintech and wider tech sectors.
He said: “Having worked for the last 18 years in supporting and growing Bristol’s innovation ecosystem, it is evident that we simply can’t scale up Bristol’s innovation start-ups and scale-ups without having the appropriate infrastructure and real estate.
“Projekt provides a uniquely flexible space where we will be able to engage corporates, SMEs, academia and other institutions to take the Bristol & Bath economy to the next level.”