The 22-year-old tech entrepreneur inspiring the next generation of Enfield coders
Kristian Woolhouse moved to North London last year, with plans to fill a year out from university doing what he loves best – running his successful augmented reality start-up business whilst working at local kids coding centre, Code Ninjas. Eight months on and Kristian can’t decide which of the two endeavours brings him more enjoyment and professional satisfaction.
“Originally, I took a part-time job as a Code Sensei at the new Code Ninjas centre on London Road to cover my overheads whilst working towards the launch of the app, called InPlace, that I’ve designed with two friends,” said Kristian. “But I’ve been so inspired by the budding young coders who come along to sessions that I’ll be sad to say goodbye when I go back to university for my final year in September.”
InPlace was created by Kristian and his business partners, Zack Tuff and Andrew Clear, during the first few months of the nationwide lockdown. The smartphone app allows homeowners to place explorable virtual conservatory designs in their gardens or attached to their homes to get a feel of where they would end up and what they would look like in real life.
“The conservatory market is huge right now and yet, even in today’s modern world, homeowners are having to rely on computer drawings to make important, and often costly, decisions,” added Kristian. “A real benefit of the tool is that conservatory companies are able to utilise our software during initial consultations with clients, so we’ve had some major interest from a number of national suppliers.”
Kristian, who is currently taking a year out from studying for a Computer Science degree at the University of Exeter, has been working for Neil Applewhaite – the co-owner of Code Ninjas – since September 2020, just a few months after coming up with the concept for InPlace.
“One of the best things about working at the centre is how supportive the team has been since we launched the app a few weeks ago – I’ve been working flexible hours so that I can concentrate my efforts on the success of the business. I’ve also always been really interested in teaching, so working at Code Ninjas has been a real joy these last few months. I’ve learnt just as much from the students – we call them ninjas – as they have from me! There was nothing quite like Code Ninjas when I was a kid, but I wish there had been. I didn’t fully explore my love for digital technology until I went to university but our ninjas are encouraged to enjoy all that coding and game-building has to offer from as young as five years old. Equipping them with that knowledge has been so rewarding.
“Unfortunately, I won’t be able to return to Code Ninjas once I’ve finished my degree as I’ll be too busy running my business. But I can’t wait to see what my ninjas go on to create in the future – perhaps one or two of them might follow in my footsteps!”
For more information about InPlace, visit https://arc-solutions.co.uk/, or to sign your child up to a free Code Ninjas trial session, visit www.codeninjas.co.uk/enfield-london-uk