Welsh ICE CEO Gareth Jones and COO Mandy Weston have acquired ICE Projects in Wales Ltd and Boma Camp Ltd with the aim of bringing the spirit of entrepreneurship to a broader audience.
For the past year, Gareth and Mandy have focused heavily on the two companies which previously operated under ICE Space Makers Ltd – the umbrella organisation that also manages the Welsh Innovation Centre for Enterprise (Welsh ICE) – and will now form a new company to bring the projects together.
Since its founding in 2012, ICE has grown to become the home of over 170 businesses, 400 staff and entrepreneurs, and in 2015 was said to have contributed more than £13.8m to the Welsh economy. With a strong foundation established at ICE, it is now Gareth & Mandy’s wish to focus their efforts on these new ventures, which will support start-up businesses further afield from Caerphilly – the first example of which will be the Business Wales Entrepreneurship Hub in Wrexham.
Welsh ICE will continue to be led by Community Manager Jamie McGowan and the board, headed up by Chairman and Vice-Chairman of ICE Space Makers Ltd, William Record and Anthony Record.
William Record said:
“Gareth Jones and Mandy Weston have long held a strong desire to build on the success of ICE in Caerphilly through supporting the development of new centres, accelerator programmes and the online platform Boma.
“Anthony Record and I, because of our long connection with Caerphilly, are very keen to continue the development of the ICE Campus vision to grow to (at least) 1000 member businesses in Caerphilly in the next ten years.
“Since achieving all these outcomes will require a great degree of focus and commitment; the board agreed that Gareth and Mandy could best move forward through acquiring ICE Projects in Wales Ltd, to service the Wrexham Centre and Boma Camp Ltd, with their new holding company Town Square Spaces Ltd and through this amicable separation, be free to pursue their goals.
“To this end Mandy Weston and Gareth Jones have left the boards of ICE Space Makers Ltd and Innovation Centre for Enterprise in Wales Ltd (Welsh ICE), so that they are able to launch this exciting new enterprise for which we as a board wish them every success.
“Whilst Mandy and Gareth will from the 16th October no longer have any involvement in the Innovation Centre for Enterprise in Wales limited, (Welsh ICE) we will continue our development by focusing on the extensive and ambitious expansion of the Caerphilly Campus, with Jamie McGowan continuing to lead with the support of his excellent team.”
Gareth Jones said:
“ICE has given me five years full of unforgettable experiences. The community in Caerphilly, the talented people who have supported us along the way, and the team here is a real credit to the start-up scene in Wales. I’ve realised personally that I need to be more involved in the process of tackling some of the challenges facing society today – and through Town Square, we hope to make these much more accessible and inclusive for more and more people.”
Mandy Weston said:
“It’s been a real privilege to be involved in the development of the ICE Campus and be a part of its success. To have been a part of a team that has made such a difference to my local community has been unforgettable. I am truly looking forward to what can be achieved next with Gareth and Town Square.”
William continued:
“This will create two stronger organisations from one, each able to focus its resource on the crucial objective of seeing more people achieve their ambitions through entrepreneurship.”