RICH LIST - DO YOU HAVE A BILLION DOLLAR IDEA INSIDE YOU?

Billion dollar ideas. We’d all like to have one so why are they so hard to come by?

If you have an early stage business – or an ingenious idea for one – that you think has the potential to become a commercial success, consider applying for the Somerset Entrepreneurs Bootcamps and you could be on your way to joining the ranks of the billion dollar business legends above sooner than you think.

They needn’t be: your ‘eureka!’ moment could strike at any time. Indeed, most of the time, inspiration strikes in the most humble of ways and, more often than not, by sheer accident.

This is certainly the case for the people that came up with some of the World’s most famous billion dollar business ideas.

What do wheelbarrows, geometry, hippies and a walk in the forest have in common? They sparked fantastic business ideas simply by seeing problems and recognising potential solutions.

The wheelbarrow? It inspired the technology behind the biro for Marcel Bich. Originally invented by Hungarian Laszlo Biro, the idea behind using a ball pointed pen was immediately adopted by the RAF (it’s a bit difficult to use fountain pens in flight). However when the initial concepts went on sale in the US, thousands were returned for not working properly. The Frenchman’s second attempt came after observing how his wheelbarrow worked and the result was the legendary product that it is today, with 57 Bic biros sold every second.

Meanwhile the Rubik’s Cube arose from creative thinking by another Hungarian, Erno Rubik, who was trying to think of a way to explain 3D geometry to his students. The result: the best-selling toy in the world with 350 billion sales clocked-up to date. Did you know that there are 43 quintillion ways to solve the cube and it can be done in less than 5 seconds?

Hippies? Think Smiley, the world’s number 1 emoji. Originally drawn in just ten minutes by a graphic artist for an American insurance company, the editor of a French newspaper picked up the concept, using it to highlight good news stories. After copyrighting the design in 100 countries, the clever Frenchman’s idea boomed during 1970s hippy culture and today the happy smiley face realises revenue of $130billion per annum – unsurprising since emojis have become the mainstay of mobile digital communication today.

The walk in the forest spawned Velcro (think of those annoying sticky burrs that attach themselves to you whether you like it or not). The inspiration was there and the timing was perfect: the resulting product was used during the space race to hold down items floating around rockets in zero gravity. The rest, as they say, is history.

There’s more on these, and other, wonderful stories of billion dollar ideas in BBC business presenter Aaron Heslehurst’s fabulously fun video series.

Whilst there are myriad articles on the secret to finding your billion dollar business idea – see, for example, these articles on Entrepreneur.com, BusinessNewsDaily  FitSmallBusiness and WikiHow.com – it’s actually really quite simple. It all comes down to seeing the world differently. Training your brain to find the pain, if you like. All around us, there are problems that people want solved – all you have to do is see them.

Somerset Entrepreneur Bootcamps are open to anyone with an early stage business - or an ingenious idea for one. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been in business before or not. All you need is enthusiasm, ambition, energy and an innovative idea for a business.

At these exciting, highly interactive days, you’ll work with experts well used to turning high potential business concepts into commercial successes on the world stage. You’ll receive coaching and practical tips on key aspects of growing a business including:

• Making a compelling business case, worthy of investment.
• Effective communications – presenting, pitching ideas and negotiating.
• Team building for growth and success.
• Creating value through supply chains, networks and open innovation.

Following this, you’ll have access to a full range of support to help you move forward.

For your chance to attend our bootcamp, simply complete this form and tell us about your business idea.