Summer Start-Up Boot Camp

Many students have ideas for a business that they would someday love to run, but it can feel overwhelming to know how to start a business from scratch. The Boot Camp helps attendees learn about setting up a business from the ground up over the course of a week. Each day of the Boot Camp focuses on a different key skill for any aspiring entrepreneur, from building a website to outlining how to make sales, which gives participants the confidence and tools to start a business.

The Boot Camp is open to all University of Reading and Henley Business School students and alumni, as well as local budding entrepreneurs. Details of the upcoming 2021 Summer Start-Up Boot Camp are listed below:

15 February 2021 - Henley Summer Start-Up Boot Camp opens for applications

18 June 2021 - Henley Summer Start-Up Boot Camp closes for applications

21-25 June 2021 - Henley Summer Start-Up Boot Camp is held, delivered by the PopUp Business School

The 2020 Summer Start-Up Boot Camp was held online between 22-26 June 2020 and proved to be extremely popular, with over 80 attendees dialing in and to create their businesses. You can read about the 2020 Boot Camp here and see our post-event report on the impact of the Boot Camp here.

This is what attendees of the 2020 Summer Start-Up Boot Camp said about their experience of participating:

"I signed up to this event as I had planned to keep myself busy while staying indoors and I am still amazed at how useful and informative the event was, to the extent that I was sad when it came to the last day of the programme. I found this really useful and helpful." Esosa Oduware, Henley Business School BA Accounting and Management student

"I started the Boot Camp without knowing what to expect. What I learned absolutely blew my mind. The techniques, entrepreneurial mindset and advice that was given to us are priceless. I feel confident and full of energy now to take my business idea to the next level. Thank you to the team, you are outstanding!" Rieke Sproten, University of Reading Postgraduate Food Systems and Food Ed Consortium alumnus

"Thank you for the Boot Camp opportunity, everything was very helpful and I have gained some more inspiration about how to start a business." Georgia Christophi, local resident

The Henley Summer Start-Up Boot Camp is sponsored by Santander Universities.