Ninchanese
This week, we wanted to share some good news with you guys: we are incubated! We’ve talked a bit about Ninchanese on the blog, created a landing page to help you wait but we haven’t told you much about what we have been doing behind closed doors. Well, now that we have some great news to share with you, it’s time to tell you a bit more about what we’ve been up to.
First, there was a cat that wanted to teach Chinese
For a while, we were focused on developing our idea, on writing down our project and pondering whether our cat was cute enough to conquer your hearts and teach you something at the same time (we’ve decided it is). We also did a lot of research on foreign language acquisition, memory, Chinese, learning styles, gamification and more (and still are!). Using all this, we and our team started to work on an MVP, which we’ll be taking to the next level soon. And then, something changed.
Then there was a building where we are incubated
We’re not saying that we’re done working. Au contraire, there’s even more to be done now than before. But at least, we’ve found a fantastic place to build our company and the best Chinese learning tool ever : the Imaginarium @ the Plaine Images. We, the Nincha Team, were selected to be part of their second class of incubated projects. They liked our approach and how we’re planning on making life easier for Chinese learners around the world and we’re glad they did.
Encouraging digital creativity and innovation: Plaine Images
A cluster for digital creativity and innovation, the Plaine Images is Lille’s hub for everything image-related and digitally innovative: TV channels, video games, web and media agencies, serious games… This bustling and buzzing complex now houses over 600 employees and is ready to help many more companies grow. So much in fact, that in early 2012, the Plaine Images started powering an incubator, which we are now part of.
This beautifully renovated former textile factory is now our home.
The Plaine Images Imaginarium incubator
Housed in a former textile factory that was completely renovated, our incubator’s only a year old but we’ve heard very good things about it. And so far, we’ve been liking what we see : mentorship, easy access to facilities and resources, great meetings and conferences that give us access to top-notch industry mentors…and a pretty cool office space.
What we especially like about this incubator is the spirit of collaboration it emphasizes. Whether it is with other fellow incubated projects, more mature startups, science labs that will be housed here starting mid-2013, artists and local communities, cooperation is strongly encouraged here. It’s also nice to know that being here will help us enjoy the perks of the North’s region well-developed innovation and digital network!
Time to get serious !
We only moved in last Friday so this is still very fresh and we’ll probably have more to tell you a few weeks in. But for now, we just wanted to let you know we’re very happy to have been accepted and are looking forward to growing in this incubator. This is where all our hard work (past and future) will pay off!
It’s also time to thank our hard-working team (thank you Xue and Mick!) and all the people who have been and continue to support us. We are very grateful for all the time and effort you’ve dedicated to us so far. Let’s keep growing together!
If you’re ever in the area, feel free to drop by and say hi!
Have a great week
The Nincha Team
Ninchanese is a new platform where you’ll have a blast learning Chinese! We’re still working on it for now, so sign up to try the beta for free when we launch! Check out our trailer and stay in touch with us on Facebook, Twitter, Google + and Weibo.