Premier Steven Marshall, said that “Lot Fourteen is part of the Liberal Government’s commitment to accelerating the growth of startup businesses and making South Australia the nation’s unrivalled startup capital.”

Since Stone & Chalk’s opening in 2015 and subsequent opening in Melbourne’s Goods Shed North in 2018, Stone & Chalk is now home to 142 startups and have raised $330m in capital. 

“Securing Stone & Chalk as the strategic innovation partner is a huge coup for our state as we forge ahead with our ambition to build the state’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and further develop the culture of entrepreneurship in South Australia”.

Utilising the FIXE (Future Industries eXchange for Entrepreneurship) model, and through the partnership with Stone & Chalk, Lot Fourteen seeks to support startups by creating an entrepreneurial ecosystem in Lot Fourteen. FIXE and Stone & Chalk will be supported by The Office of the South Australian Chief Entrepreneur as well as the newly formed Entrepreneurship Advisory Board. 

With 27 corporate partners to date, Stone & Chalk provides startups with the resources and the community, facilitating the scale up and success of startups. Stone & Chalk provides startups with exposure to customers, capital, expertise, talent, and community, through their efforts to connect startups with other players, such as partners, investors, talented employees, mentors, and the collaborative community as a whole. Skills studios, programs and events also equip startups with necessary skills, as well as facilitating interactions with industry leaders and others in the community. 

Similarly, the FIXE model aims to inspire and support entrepreneurship by providing resources, broadening market access, facilitating knowledge exchange and collaboration, as well as by providing a healthy entrepreneurial ecosystem.

South Australia’s Chief Entrepreneur Jim Whalley said South Australia’s largest startup will provide entrepreneurs, startups and scaling businesses in South Australia’s growing innovation ecosystem access to corporate customers, networks, mentors and investors to take their ideas to commercial success.

“Through our Future Industries eXchange for Entrepreneurship, (FIXE) strategy, we will help create the right culture, improve the capability and mobilise the capital required to make South Australia a global leader in entrepreneurship,” said Mr Whalley.

“The startup hub at Lot Fourteen will help foster and support innovators and entrepreneurs achieve their goals in high growth industries including cybersecurity, defence, space, artificial intelligence, big data analytics, creative industry technologies and robotics,” said Premier Steven Marshall. Minister of Innovation and Skills David Pisoni said that the hub will attract entrepreneurs and startups looking to commercialise products and scale quickly into national and global markets. 

The startup hub will have up to 650 workspaces, and will include conference rooms, event facilities and meeting spaces that aim to promote collaboration. It is set to open in October 2019.

Cover Image: Aerial view of the master plan of Lot Fourteen. (Image: Renewal SA)