Sir Tom Hunter has called for the Scottish Government’s new ten year economic strategy to “free” entrepreneurs from “unnecessary bureaucracy” to let entrepreneurs grow.
In an column in The Times, Hunter called for the government to offer more “efficient access to funding” and to create a landscape where politicians supported entrepreneurs.
He argued: “We are all in this together; for Scotland’s future we need to step up and deliver more champions like TVSquared.”
Hunter also called for the Scottish Government to “scale Scottish Edge, as it works” as he alluded to the recent $160m sale of TVSquared to Innovid.
Smeaton was an early winner of Scottish Edge — a competition aimed at identifying and supporting entrepreneurial talent — and the £50,000 grant let him buy a round-the-world ticket to listen and learn.
He claimed when the company was initially funded founder Calum Smeaton “stuck his neck out” and used his own cash to fund the venture for six months.
Hunter explained that TV analytics at the time “was nascent", but "Smeaton went for it", building a global business trading in 75 countries with headquarters in Edinburgh.
He explained that TVsquared succeeded because of the “quality of its people”. Hunter went on to argue that the “the talent pipeline for Scotland needs to be addressed urgently and education made fit for purpose”.
Tom Hunter’s investment arm West Coast Capital is a shareholder in TVSquared.
He wrote: “Having an experienced board helps you to accelerate growth, minimise mistakes and access funding more efficiently. On funding, the public sector needs to step up. Scottish Enterprise — an equity investor in TVSquared — needs to adjust dynamically to up its game.
“They need to minimise their processes, procedures and accelerate delivery. Let Adrian Gillespie, the new chief executive, do that with the entrepreneurial community freed from the shackles of government.”
Hunter explained that there needed to be more done in supporting businesses arguing that “start-ups are great, but the economic dial only moves if you drive growth”.
“We have the capacity to deliver, but we need an economic — and educational — strategy which aligns with that ambition. Having travelled the world, I can say Scotland has something unique we can capitalise on. All of those who succeed are 100% willing to support and give back to those on that journey, he wrote.
“We need a ten-year strategy that frees entrepreneurs from unnecessary bureaucracy, offers efficient access to funding, support that’s ‘been there and done it’.
Don't miss the latest headlines with our twice-daily newsletter - sign up here for free.
