A kick-start for start-ups

In an exclusive preview, MyBusiness.co.uk looks at the new services offered to budding entrepreneurs by the British Library's Business & Intellectual Property Centre.

One of the biggest challenges facing aspiring entrepreneurs and innovators is finding the information they need to take their ideas to market. In response to this, the British Library has opened the Business & Intellectual Property Centre in its flagship building at St Pancras, London.

The Centre is an information hub for business and innovation, staffed by information experts who can guide users through the vast range of printed and online information - most of it free of charge and not available via the internet. The Centre's service offering includes market research reports, trade journals, government statistics and patent searching databases.

Adding to the offering

On Monday 5 September the British Library will become the UK's principal resource for information on patents, innovation and intellectual property as the London search room of the UK Patent Office moves into the Business & Intellectual Property Centre.

The move adds the Patent Office's unique range of searchable databases of patent files to the resources of the Centre. The Library already provides free access to the world's largest collection of market research reports and a comprehensive range of online subscription databases. By incorporating the resources of the Patent Office, the Centre will offer researchers, SMEs and entrepreneurs an unrivalled one-stop-shop for the latest information on patents, markets, marketing and business.

Combined with the Business & Intellectual Property Centre's market research collections, these resources offer aspiring entrepreneurs and innovators everything they need from the initial development of a product or service to the stage of taking their ideas to the market.

These developments build on the British Library's continuing expansion of its range of free and priced services for entrepreneurs. Last month the Library launched a package of services tailored for business start-ups, including options for novelty searches, market reports and business listings.

How can the Business & Intellectual Property Centre support you?

Protect your ideas

Intellectual Property can be a minefield involving a significant waste of time and money. The British Library Library's extensive resources can help you protect your idea and confirm if someone else has already applied to patent an idea similar to yours. The Business & Intellectual Property Centre has the world's most comprehensive collection of patent specifications and literature on patents, trade marks, designs and copyright, which it complements with extensive online search tools and advice on using them.

The Library also runs regular free intellectual property searching workshops. They offer a highly practical introduction to finding information on patents and trademarks and designs as well as understanding how these systems work. Soon to be added to the workshop calendar are copyright clinics. For further information visit: www.bl.uk/collections/patents/clinic.html

Develop your business or marketing plan

The Centre can supply practical information at the start of your venture to help you write your business plan. Using the COBRA (Complete Business Reference Adviser) database, the Centre's information experts can provide guidance to anyone involved in starting up, running or developing a business. They can also help you develop your marketing plan with information on market size, potential customers, competition and future trends.

In the 12 months since it opened, over 25,000 business people have used the Centre. Users also have access to the Library's extensive arts and sciences collections, including images and sound recordings.

Imtaz Khaliq, London's first female bespoke tailor - one of the UK's leading lights in the new couture tailoring movement and an avid user of the Library's Business & Intellectual Property Centre resources - said: "The Business & Intellectual Property Centre provided me with on-site access to a treasure trove of a research collection and offers users from the creative industries an intoxicating mix of inspiration and information under one roof."

Or as Karan Bilimoria CBE, DL Founder and Chief Executive of Cobra Beer Ltd puts it: "As a businessman I know the importance of easy access to accurate and up-to-date information that can be used by SMEs to develop a business plan and make informed business decisions. The growth of Cobra Beer has demonstrated that SMEs are a major driving force in the economy. The British Library's Business & Intellectual Property Centre is an excellent example of an initiative that will enable fledgling businesses to grow and prosper and I hope will quickly become the first place to visit for budding entrepreneurs."