Salih and Ibrahim Ishaq attended the Cultov8 Business Start Up Weekend in Werribee in 2019. They study full time and work part time but they have started the ball rolling to implement their 5 year business vision of opening a gaming café in the western suburbs of Melbourne once they have finished their studies.

 

"We want to provide gamers with a great community space where they can access good internet, high end consoles and equipment they might not have at home. People can visit the café on their own or with mates, pay per hour to game, and catch up with regulars over coffee and food.

We're busy testing prototypes and establishing networks by running ad-hoc gaming tournaments across Melbourne during the school holidays. This gives us an opportunity to figure out what works well and what doesn't. We tend to host our tournaments in community centres as we want to create a strong local community vibe. We’re also running workshops for parents who want to understand gaming better. There is a lot of misconception about gaming in the media, so we use these workshops to look at the facts and answer any questions parents may have.

Cultov8 helped us in so, so many ways! We walked in as two inexperienced 18 and 19 year olds, and walked out filled with ambition and confidence.

 

The networks we established and the support we received were incredible.

 

What we learned was the importance of committing to the idea NOW regardless!

 

So we went ahead and created a business plan, and while our steps are small, they are heading in the right direction towards our 5 year goal."

​