Before embarking on design, stakeholders need to have objectives in mind and an idea as to what sort of business incubator is appropriate. This may emerge from consideration of readiness, or be the reason why a business incubator is being considered in the first place. Despite differences all incubators share common characteristics and models are best considered in terms of adapting common principles and good practices to a particular culture and situation. This article gives an introduction to the types of business incubator that exist globally, noting that incubators will vary between countries and regions depending on the local conditions, culture and the range of other business development services available