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Innovation Studio : Business Incubator

Industry-engagement and our strong maker culture puts collaboration at the heart of everything we do.

Students presenting ideas and working on live briefs in the Innovation Studio, one pointing to post-it notes and the others surrounding a table.

Business Incubator

Our free, three-month Business Incubator is designed to support the growth of early-stage creative projects.

The Business Incubator is ideal for individuals or small teams in the very early stages of their entrepreneurial journey who are pre-trade, offering them the chance to test and grow their ideas without the financial burden typically associated with starting a business.

Applications for the next intake are now open – please submit by the deadline of 13 April 2026.

The Incubator will run for 10 weeks, from Wednesday 17 June until Wednesday 26 August 2026.

Apply to the AUB Business Incubator

Programme location

The Business Incubator will be delivered at:

The AUB Innovation Studio
7 Fern Barrow, Wallisdown
Poole
BH12 5HH
United Kingdom

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What's included?

The Business Incubator supports aspiring creative entrepreneurs by providing a structured and supportive environment where you can refine your ideas, develop prototypes, and launch products or services without the stress of having to pay for desk space.

Our three-month structured incubation period to focus on developing your business (package worth up to £5,000) includes:

  • Desk space including Wi-Fi and printing facilities.
  • Regular one-to-one coaching and support: Access to Innovation Studio team, who provide ongoing feedback and strategic guidance.
  • Participation in our monthly Innovation Exchange, which is a forum to share current challenges with fellow entrepreneurs and hear from industry practitioners.
  • Exposure and networking: Opportunities to present progress to potential investors, partners, and customers at the end of the incubation period or at industry events.
  • Access to low-cost prototyping facilities with technical support.

What do previous participants say?

The AUB Innovation Studio Incubator has been instrumental in sharpening both the commercial model and clarity of the offer. Through mentorship, challenge, and community, I’ve refined pricing, strengthened the strategic direction toward partnerships, and built greater confidence in scaling the business. The programme has stretched me to think bigger, communicate clearer and build smarter.

Dave Bowerman, SimGAIm®

Support from Arts University Bournemouth and the Innovation Studio Incubator has been invaluable: incubation space, user-testing with students, technical mentoring and introductions to industry contacts helped us refine the scanning UX, validate accuracy with real pattern pieces, and design classroom-friendly workflows. That collaboration proved the concept in teaching environments and shaped our roadmap for future features and pilot programmes.

Jason Jiang, TechThread

The Innovation Studio helped me turn that experimentation into a business. The one-to-one sessions kept me focused, challenged my thinking and helped me understand how to structure, price and grow the studio properly. That accountability made a huge difference in getting the business off the ground and has opened doors to clients, international teaching and mentoring roles, industry talks and cross-sector collaborations. It has also fast-tracked the growth of STUDIOOFNEW from a personal experiment into a functioning studio working across multiple industries.

Holly New, STUDIOOFNEW

The AUB Innovation Studio Incubator played a pivotal role in accelerating [my] progress. Through structured mentorship and access to experienced advisors, I refined Thymos’ positioning and developed a clearer roadmap for growth. The programme provided strategic guidance while connecting me to a wider entrepreneurial ecosystem, reinforcing Thymos’ commercial potential and its capacity to deliver meaningful social impact.

Laura Meehan, Thymos

Eligibility criteria

1. Applications can come from individuals or teams with a maximum of two co-founders, one of whom must have a 'Dorset connection' (student, alumni, faculty, staff of one of the Universities or resident of the region).

2. You must be motivated and determined to start a creative business and be able to demonstrate why you'd benefit from being part of the AUB Business Incubator.

3. Participants must commit to regular sessions in person at the AUB Innovation Studio (in agreement with the Studio team).

4. You must have the right to set up a business in the UK but you don't need to have formally registered your business or obtained a UTR number to apply for the Incubator.

Apply to the AUB Business Incubator

Explore the Innovation Studio

Innovation Studio, photographed by Richard Bryant. Photo of an exterior wall with two reverse-L shaped windows and three semi-circle panels visible. A person walks past towards the right.

Overview

The Innovation Studio operates as a lab for creative technologies, a nucleus for start-ups and enterprises and an industry engagement hub.

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Residency

A Residency at AUB's Innovation Studio gives you and your business the chance to connect and collaborate in our co-working space.

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Associate membership

Our Associate Programme offers membership of our Innovation Studio to regional businesses seeking research and development support.

Innovation Studio, photographed by Richard Bryant. Photo of an interior space, with several people sat working at tables. A rectangle-shaped railing is in the middle of the room.

Creative Technologies

The Innovation Studio features state-of-the-art equipment and digital resources, and the latest manufacturing technology.

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Events and workshops

A series of workshops and lectures for industry professionals to develop innovation and creative capabilities.

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Projects

Take a look at some of our recent collaborative projects with external partners and businesses

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Recruit AUB Talent

Whether you’re hiring, mentoring, or collaborating on a project, we make it easy to access new ideas, fresh thinking and practical skills.