Gold Coast Hub looks to pick up new start-ups after manager Little Tokyo Two exits start-up scene

Gold Coast Hub will look to snap up start-ups let down by the collapse of space manager Little Tokyo Two.

GOLD Coast Hub will look to snap-up start-ups let down by the collapse of space manager Little Tokyo Two.

The Jock Fairweather-run business, which was announced as the manager of the GC Hub in 2017, was placed into voluntary liquidation last week.

Mr Fairweather, whose business had multiple sites in Brisbane, complained of increased competition in the co-working space and new members undercutting LT2 on price.

LT2 described itself as a small business incubator for people “looking to build sustainable and profitable companies from ideation (sic) to scalability”.

Entrepreneur Jock Fairweather has placed his business Little Tokyo Two into voluntary liquidation. (AAP image, John Gass)

GC Hub signed a five-year contract in August last year for the business to provide two staff members, one to manage the Robina property and one to help start-ups grow by connecting them to the relevant people and services for things such as intellectual property protection.

GC Hub chair Danny Maher said the collapse of the Brisbane company had little impact on the hub, with the two LT2 employees, Nicole Buhl and Sam Coen, since engaged directly by the hub.

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He said the pair had worked closely with hub CEO Sharon Hunneybell and the removal of LT2 meant there were “no walls” between the hub and the companies based there.

“We could only work in things that came under the LT2 contract but not the other stuff we wanted to do,” he said.

Sharon Hunneybell and Danny Maher launched the Gold Coast Hub in 2017. Picture: Jerad Williams

“These walls have come down.”

It is understood the contract was worth $1.5 million over the five-year period underwritten by Maher and was terminated last week.

Mr Maher said LT2 was not on the lease for the 36 Laver Drive premises nor did it have access to the government funding provided to the hub nor members’ funds.

“There was never any financial or operational risk to the hub,” Mr Maher said.

He said he was sorry LT2 had gone, however there was a positive side for the GC Hub.

Mr Maher said there were hundreds of Gold Coast businesses working out of LT2-managed co-spaces in Brisbane that could now come back to the Coast.

The PC building at 36 Laver Drive, Robina.

“We are offering them space with no sign-up fees or minimum contract,” he said.

“If they have paid LT2 anything we are offering to deliver that to them for free.”

The Bulletin spoke to a number of businesses based at the Hub, none of which said they were left out of pocket by the closure of LT2.

However, they did complain of LT2 failing to deliver meetings designed to help companies with strategy.

Dervla Loughnane, who runs mental health service Virtual Psychologist, said the mentoring meetings set up by LT2 were disappointing.

“I do not think they were effective in setting up those services,” she said.

“They were a bit hit and miss.

“The idea was there but they did not have the dedication and commitment they sold themselves as giving.”

Mr Fairweather did not return calls yesterday.

The three-level PC building at 36 Laver Drive is currently being offered by Robina Group in an expressions-of-interest campaign closing on April 17.

The hub has a five-year lease on 1822sq m over three levels.

Originally published as Gold Coast Hub looks to pick up new start-ups after manager Little Tokyo Two exits start-up scene