Liverpool Science Park News & Press

"Students leaving university should cast off old-fashioned ideas about what constitutes a graduate job and instead consider starting a business,"

Universities Minister David Willetts said last year. With a fifth of all recent graduates currently out of work - the highest unemployment rate for university leavers in over a decade - many recent graduates are doing just that. Andy Jones, 22, graduated from Liverpool John Moores University in 2010 with a degree in E-Business Technology and Management.

Disappointed at what the job market had to offer, starting his own company seemed like the obvious solution. "I realised that I could make more money and probably have more fun working for myself so I decided to set up a web solutions company and I haven't looked back," Andy revealed.

Yooka was founded in October 2010 to provide economical solutions to smaller companies that need a professional brand, website and image, but perhaps can't afford to go to some of the bigger web development companies. The business quickly attracted clients across a broad range of sectors, including the fiercely competitive construction and transport industries. And with this growth came the need for professional premises to house the growing business. "It was really important for me to have a professional 'shop front' in the city centre, and when I saw LSP's Starter Pods they were perfect for the stage my business is at," Andy said.

Yooka moved into one of Liverpool Science's Park's new contemporary Starter Pods in February 2011. The pods provide young businesses with small furnished IT-ready private offices, and access to meeting rooms and communal areas.

"It was daunting to start a business straight out of university, but doing it in a community like the Science Park makes it feel less daunting somehow. What's more, you constantly bump into interesting people and potential business leads, even in the kitchen while making coffee! It's also reassuring to know that if my business takes off quicker than anticipated, I can just move to bigger offices within the Park without any hassle."

Andy has big plans for Yooka and hopes to expand the business into a full service company offering web design, SEO, print, PR and marketing and copy writing. He also has plans to establish a commercial photography business.

With five of the six Starter Pods already occupied by young startup businesses, it seems the minister's words of wisdom may have struck a chord.