Bank backs new social network

Tarnowski has spent the past three months pursuing the cash. “We got £102,500,” he says. “It’s exactly the same amount that we raised from investors.”

The money is due to land in his bank account next Friday. But Tarnowski notes: “There’s still some paperwork to deal with and, to be quite honest, I’m still haggling over the interest rate because I think I can get better.”

Brave New Talent connects graduates with employers, Facebook-style. Graduates can search for companies that interest them and can follow what they’re doing through the site. If that business has signed up to Brave New Talent, then students can connect to them.

The alpha site was launched on 21 January (Barack Obama’s inauguration day. “We love symbolism,” says Tarnowski). The business is now getting in touch with some 2,000 pre-registration users, promoting the site at universities and offering companies a free trial period. Tarnowski says: “We’re looking for really innovative companies who we can say to ‘we have the right model to bring the innovation that’s been lacking in the recruitment market’.”

Tarnowski counts himself lucky to have struck upon such a novel idea. “Most start-ups are constantly having their business model put down, with people saying that it won’t work. They have to constantly deal with rejection,” he says.

“We rarely get people putting the business model down or not buying into it. It’s picked up a lot of momentum, even though we’re still in the very early stages. I’ve been very lucky in that way: it’s rare to have an idea that’s truly disruptive.”

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