Sandbox, a new Dubai-based start-up program, is founder-focused, honing in on wellness in a notoriously stressful ecosystem.
The 12-month program that targets early-stage start-ups offers nascent companies in-kind services including mentorship, access to workshops, a subsidized license set-up fee and over $150,000 of perks and credits from partners, as well as legal and financial diagnostics.
But the focus on wellbeing of those in its ecosystem is what sets Sandbox apart. Nine out of 10 start-ups fail, and the high-stakes, stressful environment pushes many entrepreneurs to the edge. Founders are twice as likely to develop depression, and typically endure higher stress levels when compared to the general population, according to a report on the mental health of Middle East entrepreneurs.
“We believe that long-term, founder-centric programs are essential to develop a sustainable ecosystem,” said Julien Plouzeau, Senior Investment and Portfolio Manager at Dtec Ventures, the venture capital arm of Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority that focuses on early-stage companies.
“Being a start-up founder is incredibly stressful. This comes with a burden of high expectations, financial uncertainties and it can feel like everything is on the line, all the time. Unsurprisingly, this can lead to a deteriorated mental health. We are openly addressing this issue and building a support system for our founders, centered on proactive care and on developing healthy habits,” he said.
The Sandbox team designed a flexible structure that accommodates the reality of what it takes to be a start-up founder, offering a-la-carte workshops, one-on-one mentoring, renowned keynote speakers, and community events. Focused on six main pillars – product development, traction, scaling, financial diagnostics, wellbeing, and legal support.
A gaping hole
Sandbox has targets local MVP to seed-stage companies that are looking to raise institutional funds within the next 12 months, citing a gaping hole in the market.
The UAE’s ecosystem is rapidly evolving, but it is still young, and it’s hard for start-ups to reach early stage venture capital. In the first half of 2021, 54 percent of venture capital in the Middle East and North Africa region was poured into 4 percent of deals – all later-stage transactions, start-up data platform Magnitt found. Funding reached a record $1.2 billion, but only 2 percent was used to finance deals below $500,000.
Julien Plouzeau, Senior Investment and Portfolio Manager at Dtec Ventures.
“The lack of programs creates a bottleneck that often leads to missed opportunities for a variety of stakeholders within our ecosystem,” Dtec Ventures’ Julien said.
Looking to minimize missed opportunities, Sandbox start-ups will gain access to Dubai Technology Entrepreneur Campus’ entire award-winning ecosystem and co-working space, where they can connect with VCs, angel investors, and family offices.
“And of course, Dtec Ventures will evaluate the participants in priority for our own investment deal flow,” Julien said.
On the hunt for high potential
The program is targeting “high-potential” tech start-ups, Julien said.
Asked to define what Sandbox is looking for, Julien said “We want to help start-ups find the right audience, gain traction, and reach product-market fit.
“But we want to see some signals that this company can be a success story. And we look for founders who are customer centric and who are absolutely obsessed with finding a solution to the problem they care about.”
The Sandbox team designed a flexible structure that accommodates the reality of what it takes to be a start-up founder, offering a-la-carte workshops, one-on-one mentoring, renowned keynote speakers, and community events.
Additionally, he said start-ups should have a large addressable market.
“It needs to be a solution that can scale” he said. The first intake begins in January 2022, so interested start-ups should begin applying now.
A testing environment
Over the 12 months start-ups in the Sandbox program will have the space and the time – something two to three month programs don’t offer – to experiment.
“A sandbox is a testing environment, and that’s exactly what we want to have. You can iterate your product, test your solution against the reality of the market, and everything is meant for you to find the right format for you to grow and scale,” he said.
They’ll also get hands-on help from experts and ex-entrepreneurs.
“I’m an ex-entrepreneur. So I’ve been through all the typical ups and downs, and I clearly understand which support I wish I had at that time,” Julien said. “And our team consists of ex-entrepreneurs, so we understand the journey and how it changes, and so we said let’s do something. And it’s just not about the investors or the program organizers, it’s the founders that get the credit.”
To find out more or apply, visit.
Follow us on
