In this week’s SME Focus an entrepreneur who made money from competitive computer gaming explains how he has harnessed the technology to create novel marketing tools.

Name:

Ritchie Duncan.

Age:

45.

What is your business called?

Augmentic Visualisations.

Where is it based?

Dundee.

What does it produce, what services does it offer? We are a next generation software development company specialising in augmented and virtual reality solutions for marketing and training. We use video game technology to create our products, which gives them the ability to be highly interactive and fun.

Whom does it sell to?

Clients such as John Lewis are using the technology to add value to their local newspaper marketing activity.

We are currently working with one of the world’s largest oil and gas suppliers to create innovative virtual experiences to help them be more productive and safer in their day to day operations.

Grassicks of Perth, the car dealer, understood that the clients it wants to target are more tech savvy and wanted a way to engage with them. The app we developed allows users to choose a car from a selection and then customise it. They can also drive the car around a track that appears on their table/floor in Augmented Reality.

Angus Council wanted to boost tourism and used our technology to take potential visitors to Angus on a virtual reality tour of the main attractions of the region which would in turn lead to more people physically visiting the area.

What is its turnover?

While we have been trading for some 18 months, it took a year to solidify business model and gain clients. We have just secured a host of clients which will see our turnover increase to £1 million, which we’re really proud of.

How many employees?

Five: two artists, two coders and me. We aim to expand the team to 10 within the foreseeable future.

When was it formed?

The company was registered in July 2013 but did not start trading until February 2014.

Why did you take the plunge?

Video game technology is impacting the world in ways we would never have thought 20 years ago and can now be used for a huge range of ideas. My dissertation on using video games technology as a tool for serious applications led me to set up our company to explore the new ways it could be used. I wanted to find out how this technology could improve our lives. Seeing a gap in the marketplace for our ideas was a major factor in us setting up.

What were you doing before you took the plunge?

I’ve always enjoyed playing video games to a competitive level and was a member of a team of eight players that won around $100,000 over a five year period. We came 2nd in a million dollar winner takes all contest but 2nd place just doesn’t cut it in a thing like that. Basically, it paid for my hobby and a bit more and allowed me to have an interest and make some really good friends.

When I left the RAF I decided to do something that interested me. I studied a BA (Hons) in Game Design and Production Management at Abertay University. This is where our team met as we created professional projects as part of our degrees.

Before I attended University I was an aircraft engineer. I served for nine years in the RAF on front line aircrafts and then seven years in the MoD carrying out bay maintenance of aircraft components.

How did you raise the start-up funding?

Friends, family, visa card and savings.

What was your biggest break?

Creating a successful network is everything for a small business such as ourselves. Gaining mentorship for the team has allowed us to tender for bigger projects, which has given us a massive boost. Being able to discuss ideas with experienced business people is a great help when it’s all new to you.

Currently we are being mentored by Paul Walton who is one of the team that created the MSN network.

What was your worst moment?

As with many small businesses we have had lots of ups and downs, but losing out on a public tender due to inexperience in how to pitch for such as contract was a difficult thing for the team at the time.

What do you most enjoy about running the business?

Working together on the projects we create and meeting clients. Showing people what the technology can do can lead to ideas that we would never have come to alone.

What do you least enjoy?

The paperwork.

What are your ambitions for the firm?

With external help we are currently in the process of growing our marketing application business. We aim to employ a skilled sales team to massively increase our uptake. We are currently in talks with one of the UK’s largest home retailers with regards to creating an innovative marketing tool. We are also in talks with oil and gas producers about how our technology could help their business increase productivity, while reducing their overall costs. We hope that in the very near future we will start to create our own next generation asset management tool for industries such as this.

What are your top priorities?

To expand our international client list; to further develop our IP; to obtain innovation funding and/or investment; to expand our knowledge about running our business and accessing our markets; to take more ‘me’ time.

What could the Westminster and/or Scottish governments do that would help?

A lot of the funding available was less focussed on newer businesses and more on furthering established business so we would like to see a change in who can access government funding.

We did however have great support from Business Gateway in Dundee. Our adviser Michelle Shepherd gave us fantastic advice and helped us put together a business plan that was detailed enough to get us started successfully. She also assisted us in implementing a growth strategy which has been invaluable as we secure bigger contracts.

What was the most valuable lesson that you learned?

Patience is a virtue that I don’t possess in great amounts so I’ve had to learn to be very patient in business.

How do you relax?

Relaxing while running a company is a difficult thing to do but I still play a fair amount of video games. I play ice hockey for a local team and enjoy skiing and snowboarding. My five-year-old daughter is a keen figure skater, so I tend to spend a lot of time at the ice rink in Dundee drinking coffee to keep me warm.