Tag Archives: Entrepreneurs

News

Diversity game-changers MSDUK announce Awards Finalists

The 18 finalists for the MSDUK Awards have been announced. From one of the largest consulting firms in the world to start-up entrepreneurs, the MSDUK Awards champion those businesses working hard to make supply chains both inclusive and competitive.

Some of the largest and most influential purchasing organisations in the UK, both public and private, will be recognised for their steadfast commitment to inclusive procurement and opening their supply chains. The doors they help open for small and minority-owned businesses and make a lasting impact on these growing businesses. Meanwhile, ethnic minority businesses across the UK will be recognised for innovation, growth and entrepreneurship.

Talking about being shortlisted as a finalist, Krystle Sands, Supplier Diversity Program Lead, EMEA, Meta said, “At Meta, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are top priorities for our business, and we take our dedication to diversity a step further. Our supplier diversity mission is to help diverse-owned companies do business with Meta, and with the people and communities that Meta connects. We work on building programs to support and expand the diversity of our suppliers and help other companies and organizations understand the impact of and grow their DEI efforts. Being selected as a finalist in the Emerging Corporate Supplier Diversity award is recognition of our team’s efforts to make an impact in the UK and around the globe.”

Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones MBE, aka The Black Farmer, and a finalist said, “Young people in the UK from ethnic minorities often struggle to open the right doors. MSDUK is doing brilliant work to level the playing field in the UK and Europe and, for example, helping to guide young entrepreneurs and to understand how to work with large corporates. But also helps larger corporates develop their own diverse supply chains. This scheme is the first step in bringing much-needed change to improve diversity in supply chains.”

Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones MBE, aka The Black Farmer, overcame many obstacles to realise his dream of owning a farm at the age of 40 and now wants young people from diverse backgrounds to consider farming as a career.

Sherry Vaswani, Group Chief Executive Officer, Xalient and finalist in three categories added, “MSDUK does a first-class job in shining a light on ethnic minority-led businesses that may have something unique to offer given their diversity – innovation for example.  Their work in helping open doors for young entrepreneurs and guiding them on how to succeed with large corporates is much needed and brings a whole new approach to improving the diversity in supply chains.”

Mayank Shah, Founder & CEO of Minority Supplier Development UK (MSDUK), looks back on the progression of MSDUK over the last 16 years and says,

“It’s great to see how far we have progressed and even more so to see how supplier diversity has now taken centre stage in corporate procurement strategies 2022 has seen over 100 global and British companies join MSDUK and opening up business opportunities for ethnic minority businesses. Supplier diversity programmes help address the issue of economic inequality and encourage entrepreneurship in under-represented communities.”

The winner of each award category will be announced at the prestigious MSDUK Business Awards ceremony on the second day of the MSDUK Conference, taking place in London on 8th September 2022. To buy tickets https://www.msdukconference.co.uk/

James Lloyd, Procurement Director, CBRE and finalist in the established corporate supplier diversity programme category said, “At CBRE, we build and maintain strong, diverse supplier relationships for an equitable and inclusive supply chain. These relationships are important in creating winning outcomes for our clients, employees and shareholders. Furthermore, engaging with diverse partners supports businesses in our community and strengthens our equitable and inclusive supply chain. We are very proud to be selected as a finalist in the Established Corporate Supplier Diversity category of the MSDUK Awards. It is a wonderful recognition for our team and the partners we work with up and down the supply chain to deliver these outcomes.”

Meet the finalists

You can find out more about the awards and MSDUK at https://www.msduk.org.uk/news/finalists-announced-msduk-awards-2022

Entrepreneur of the year

The Black Farmer, Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones Xalient Holdings Ltd, Sherry Vaswani

ISA Support Services Ltd, Sunny Araf             The Glass Company Ltd, Sanmukh Bawa

 Business Woman of the Year

Creative Nature, Julianne Ponan        Xalient Holdings Ltd, Sherry Vaswani

Nistad Limited, Ada JabaruBrand       Xposure UK Ltd T/A BX Merchandise, Sarah Sayed

High Growth Business of the Year

Xalient Holdings Ltd, Sherry Vaswani                         BAP Pharma Ltd, Daniel De Brett

ZR Consultants Ltd (ZRC), Zeshan Raja

Excellence in Emerging Corporate Supplier Diversity Programme

Meta Platforms (Previously known as Facebook)      Unilever UK Ltd

Diageo

Excellence in Established Corporate Supplier Diversity Programme

CBRE                                                   EY

Accenture                                            Cummins Ltd

MSDUK is proud to champion the best of British EMBs and work with progressive global corporations that understand the value of supply chain inclusion and diversity.

The largest Supplier Diversity Conference in the UK & Europe showcases the best of Supplier Diversity Programmes and Ethnic Minority Businesses.

MSDUK is proud to champion the best of British EMBs and work with progressive global corporations that understand the value of supply chain inclusion and diversity.

The largest Supplier Diversity Conference in the UK & Europe showcases the best of Supplier Diversity Programmes and Ethnic Minority Businesses.

ESG/CSR, News

Barclays and Unreasonable’s Impact Squared initiative supercharges entrepreneurs driving positive social change for millions of people around the world

Initiative receives honorable mention in Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas Awards

Tapping into the power of the Unreasonable community, project teams were formed across regions and industries to meet the unprecedented challenges posed by the pandemic – and the results are changing lives all over the world

London/New York, 22 June 2022: Today’s biggest sustainability challenges cannot be solved alone. Barclays and Unreasonable launched the Impact Squared initiative to encourage entrepreneurs to identify and then implement new partnerships within the Unreasonable community and collaborate on solutions to address system issues exacerbated by COVID-19.

In total eight collaborations were identified across a broad range of ventures. These project teams are working on initiatives as diverse as fostering inclusive workforces, enhancing healthcare access, and addressing climate change. Grants were provided to support their work and so far their services have impacted lives in 54 countries including the U.K., U.S. and India – creating jobs and providing vital improvements in areas such as healthcare, solar power and recyclables. Each grant provided by Impact Squared has allowed companies to overcome the continued fallout from COVID on their businesses and make a significant and positive impact on millions of people all over the world.

The power of the Unreasonable community first shined in the Unreasonable Impact COVID-19 Initiative launched at the start of the pandemic in 2020 – where over 20 grants were given to companies within the Unreasonable community to support their efforts in addressing the pandemic. These companies were using their businesses to rescue millions of pounds of food, distribute hundreds of thousands of units of PPE, and manufacture millions of virus test kits.

Inspired by the entrepreneurs’ individual innovations, the Impact Squared initiative wanted to take it further and catalyse greater impact by tapping into the power of the Unreasonable community that includes over 300 companies.

Projects have been delivered at the heart of communities and include:

The India Rural Access Coalition: improving healthcare

Frontier Markets Consulting, Vitargent and EduBridge formed a coalition to build healthcare resilience in rural communities, distributing COVID prevention products and boosting the vaccination effort. So far it has been able to reach 4,234 households, training 17 master trainers and 132 rural entrepreneurs. More than 32,375 people have benefited from its awareness outreach program.

“The Unreasonable grant has helped accelerate the efforts of the coalition. Due to the grant, the field workers and entrepreneurs are able to get enhanced training with EduBridge. It has helped us to go wide and deep in our community outreach, strengthening our community relations and creating a long-standing impact,” said Ajaita Shah, Founder & CEO, Frontier Markets

Biolite Energy and Angaza: bringing energy to Africa

This initiative aims to bring clean, solar energy to 120,000 people across sub-Saharan Africa and has already delivered 2,200 solar home systems in the Democratic Republic of Congo, helping more than 12,000 people gain access to energy.

“This grant has allowed our partnership to scale beyond our core products (hardware and PAYG software) into products that will help accelerate the scaling pace of our distributors and therefore the scale of impact of our collective work. We anticipate we can help more than 50,000 people gain first access to energy over the next two to three years,” said Jonathan Cedar, Founder & CEO BioLite

Unreasonable Mom CEO Campaign: helping working mothers reach their potential

Three “mom led” companies – Kuli Kuli Inc, Sylvatex, and Uncommon Cacao – collaborated on a campaign to help working mothers reach their potential and urge employers to adopt more family-friendly policies. Founders Lisa Curtis, Emily Stone and Virginia Irwin Klausmeier worked with researchers from four universities to survey over 1,000 working mothers and found that one in four had no time for self-care practices such as walking or exercise – and half survived on less than six hours’ sleep.

“The grant has enabled us to gain valuable campaign and media experience, as well as connect us to a broader network of mom-owned businesses. We’ve already formed partnerships with parenting groups and 29 female-founded brands who are donating prizes for the SuperMoms,” said Lisa Curtis, Founder and CEO, Kuli Kuli.

Daniel Epstein, Founder and CEO, Unreasonable Group: “We at Unreasonable have always focussed on collaborative advantage rather than competitive advantage because we know that results are magnified by working together.

The results of our Impact Squared initiative illustrate that idea so beautifully. I’m so proud of the way the companies have used their collective power to change lives around the world. And we are delighted the initiative has been recognised by Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas Awards in the Pandemic Response Category.”

Paul Compton, Global Head of the Corporate and Investment Bank and President of Barclays Bank PLC: “Impact Squared is truly unique. It’s enabling pioneering entrepreneurs from across the globe to focus their talent, collaborate and share ideas with each other, and respond faster to address the ongoing impacts of the pandemic. We know that the collective potential of these ventures has the power to change the world.”

News, North of England

How one couple started a side hustle with just £10 and both quit their jobs

One day when watching BBC’s The Apprentice with their family, an entrepreneurial young couple from Scunthorpe, Kevin Blackburn and Kylie Thomas, then 25, decided they wanted to have some fun doing their own family apprenticeship game. Little did they know at the time, this would transform their lives. 

The couple, who’ve been together since they were 17, took what they learnt from the success of the challenge and set up a side business alongside their hairdressing and engineering careers. Within 12 months, they’d turned it in to a six-figure business and decided to quit their jobs to manage and grow their business, which later became known as Systemise Fulfilment. 

The duo – now both 33 years old – have grown the business significantly, to the point where they now operate internationally and employ 21 members of staff. They also run a training programme which has helped over 4,000 people follow in their footsteps and build their own businesses.

The family challenge, which ultimately led to their success, was similar to the BBC shows’ challenge where candidates are tasked with making money by buying and selling. 

Kevin Blackburn, Director at Systemise Fulfilment explained: “We made a family challenge to spend £10 and turn it into profit. We headed to our local charity shop and bought around eight second-hand porcelain birds for 75p each and sold them on eBay for £8-12 each. This quickly turned our initial £10 investment into £60-70. It was like a lightbulb moment going off for us when we realised – if we could source hundreds or thousands of these birds, we could make a huge profit”. 

Initially, the couple began selling on eBay but soon found having to queue up at the Post Office every day wasn’t an efficient way to work. So they found a solution to their problems in the form of Fulfilment by Amazon. 

In their first year, the savvy entrepreneurs also began purchasing popular Monsters Inc teddy bears from Tesco for £12.50 each and re-selling them online for £28.00. In their second month of buying and selling, they made £15,000 and by Christmas that year had made £130,000. 

Explaining how they achieved continued success, Kevin added: “We used insights from Amazon to analyse the volume of specific products being sold, their sales rank and other information available for each product listing. This allowed us to make strategic decisions based on information already out in the public domain.

“We always talk about our core values, one of which is ‘massive action’ which means we focus on the here and now. We’re committed to being open and transparent in all aspects of our business with our team and customers, we want to help our team build long, rewarding careers with us. We’re always looking to optimise our services so they’re the best they can be, from improving efficiencies to quality control and ensuring our pricing is as simplified as possible, so there are no confusing pricing tiers for customers.

“The ultimate key to our success though has been our belief in what we’re trying to achieve. We’re doing this for our family, we wanted a better life, a better work-life balance than we had in our previous careers, we wanted to be at home more with our young children, not working overtime and weekends and this really has changed ours and our families lives for the better – that goes way beyond just financial benefits”. 

Now, the couple ship a wide range of items including beauty, food, toys and seasonal products and work with over 250 businesses to support their fulfilment needs. Kevin also started a YouTube channel in 2016, documenting their business success story and how they’ve got to where they are now, which now has over 9,000 subscribers.

Leadership, Mental Health, News

The Soke launches Founders Development Programme to provide knowledge & skills to company founders

Mental health and wellness clinic The Soke today announces the launch of its Founders Development Programme, a first-of-its-kind course which has been designed to provide vital knowledge, understanding and skills to founders at the helms of fast growth businesses.

Partnering with founders and investors, the programme will be delivered by a multidisciplinary team of psychiatrists, psychologists, therapists, senior leadership coaches and media experts, to support founders in developing successful, sustainable leadership.

The Programme has been designed in response to research from Harvard Business School which listed the most important skills for founders of fast growth businesses. These included: choosing co-founders, appointing key talent, splitting equity, recruiting advisors, and managing a board (88 per cent), as well as setting and communicating vision, managing culture, ethical dilemmas, and cross-functional conflict (82 per cent).

The Founders Development Programme will include the following core modules, as well as others designed to teach and embed good leadership practices:

  • Psychological assessment
  • Leadership vs Management
  • Practicing emotional and social intelligence
  • Communication
  • Conflict management
  • Creating and sustaining corporate culture
  • Exerting influence
  • Training and delegation
  • The pro-active model for decision making
  • Key relationship mapping
  • Skills needed for the board and investors
  • Financial knowledge for non-financial people
  • Media training
  • Systemic psychotherapy

Maryam Meddin, founder & CEO of The Soke, comments:

“Whilst many founders may believe that they naturally possess the necessary characteristics for successful leadership, the reality is that few come to
the fundraising table with the array of skills needed to successfully lead an organisation from inception to growth and beyond. This is particularly the case when founders are required to run a company not purely to satisfy their own ambition but to meet the expectations of investors and other stakeholders.

“The conflict between a founder’s passions and creativity and their obligation to deliver on stakeholders expectations can be the cause of destabilising dilemmas and must be addressed through early training and support. We are therefore excited to launch The Founders Development Programme, a first-of-its-kind, multi-disciplinary course to provide knowledge, understanding and skills to founders, equipping them with the tools to lead their companies to successful and sustainable growth.”

Marketing, PR and SEO, Mental Health, News

International Mental Health Day: A deeper connection with Entrepreneurs today

Written by Mahima Tamang Shrestha – Co-founder & Director, PurpleTree PR

A typical image of an entrepreneur is perpetually tired and stressed, slumped over a laptop in an office accompanied by computer screens and business files, where the entrepreneur frequently neglects mental health. Dr Michael Freeman, a psychologist who works primarily with mental health difficulties and sickness in trade and entrepreneurship, found that 49 per cent of the entrepreneurs surveyed had one or more mental health issues throughout their lives. 

As an entrepreneur for just over a year, the past year has been rewarding and traumatising in many ways. There were days when I’ve seen myself falling, crushing my confidence, and there were times when I felt confident and on top of the world. I have developed ways to address my anxiety and live a conscious life. Among many approaches, the 1st step I took was accepting my anxious thoughts and not ignoring mental health. Hence, at PurpleTree PR, we strongly believe in advocating discussing mental health concerns to help reduce its stigma. 

 

A deeper connection with Entrepreneurs today.

As entrepreneurs, we tend to devote more time to our business, neglecting our personal lives in all situations. Today, however, we have evolved and have learned how to handle things differently as new-age entrepreneurs. We know that a corporate network is necessary, but so is a network of support. Along with assembling a team to assist us with business duties, we also form a support network of individuals who can look after our general health. 

Recently, PurpleTree PR approached four young entrepreneurs across Australia, Europe, and India to know about their thoughts and views on mental health, and was amazed to see the importance they give to work-life balance.

 

As a business owner, are there any conscious efforts you make for self-growth and maintaining mental peace?

Steven Blom, Co-founder Taxi Butler, Amsterdam, says, “Every day I follow affirmations that are empowering me to keep positive mental health/peace. I exercise weekly and eat plant-based to avoid eating animals for 2 minutes of pleasure. I read personal self-growth books and watch clips online that expand my awareness and consciousness.”

Maddie, Co-founder, Glad U Came, India, said, “I believe that every day is a learning process, and I make some conscious efforts to balance it all. I have a rule for myself wherein I don’t work after 8 pm, and I suggest everyone do the same. I know how important it is to have a work-life balance and how, if not maintained, it can affect your mental health.”

However, it is all about taking small steps towards your peace of mind, says Shaun de Vries, Founder and Director of Open Pantry Co. Australia. “I like to read books that broaden my mind, I meditate as much as I can, and I find being a podcast host gives me a great perspective. “

 

What do you prefer doing when you are not working?

“Spending time with those I love the most, going to restaurants and cafes, watching footy and shopping at markets, especially food ones!” said Shaun. 

When it comes to extracurricular, Steve Devlin, Founder, Director of iRise Drink Australia, has everything covered under his umbrella, as he says. “I live to run in the mountains, spend time with my partner, travel, and meditate. I love movement, and I feel negativity has a hard time sticking to something that moves a lot. I don’t prescribe to these late-night early mornings most help books suggest. An early start is fine but hit the hay early too.”

Steven, however, shares one of my favourite hobbies and favourite off-duty pass time, as he says, “I recently started growing vegetables on our patio, and there is something soothing about placing your hands in the earth, planting seeds, watering and growing vegetables and fruits from scratch.”

 

Do you have designated working hours to give time to your personal life?

“Generally speaking, yes, however business is business, there are plenty of times when you need to work outside your normal hours to get work done. I feel this is important in business, particularly startup life, to take your mindset from 9-5 to entrepreneurial. That and it feels rewarding going beyond for your entire venture.” said Steve.

 

What do you suggest to maintain a balance between a healthy work culture and personal life?

And I think we found a point of agreement as-.

Maddie says, “I believe work-life balance is an important aspect of healthy work culture. It is vital to take a break and switch everything off.”

“Personally, for me, taking the weekend off has been amazing. I’m currently working a full-time job alongside my startup, and I’ve even started finishing early Friday and making the weekend almost three days long. Going on Monday to work is so much easier. There’s no dread, rather you look forward to it.” said Steve. 

Shaun prefers to write journals, and he says ‘I journal daily to understand thoughts, be as flexible as possible and learn to say no. You don’t have to be everything to everyone.” 

When we dream about work-life balance, Steven shares his work goals as he says, “I think I work way too much, but at the same time; I love working and do not experience it as work but as a way to be connected to myself and others = life.”

 

Is there a message you would like to share with our next generation of young entrepreneurs on mental health? 

 As we live in this competitive business environment across all sectors, this question comes as a ray of hope to those starting their ventures. Considering every industry of personal and professional life, our leaders shared some words of wisdom.

” Have a small circle of friends in which to trust their advice, listen to yourself first to understand how you are feeling, Journal and meditate, and see a counsellor regularly to talk through your challenges,” said Shaun.

But what about the inner strength? Is what people asked, to this, Steve said

“Meditate. Learn it well. It’s the greatest tool in your arsenal, and it stays with you lifelong no matter what. It’s a rent-free mansion with a jacuzzi on the beach that you can visit anytime you want.” And to this, Maddie adds, “Take good care of your mind as you do for your body because mental health is as important as your physical health. Think about it because if you don’t take care of your mental health, you won’t care for your business. “

Mental Health and optimism is important, but so is having the right attitude towards yourself and your work. “We become successful when we know WHO we are, and therefore, the journey of becoming stable mentally is the journey to success and not the other way around; that we become happy when we have the money in our bank account. We have to grow ourselves mentally, emotionally, energetically and spiritually, and that growth results in success.” Steven agrees as he makes his point.

With this and many others, we now know that a good entrepreneur can maintain a positive attitude in the face of hardship and think clearly despite dire circumstances beyond their control. On this International Mental Health Day, let’s take an oath to spread awareness about the significance of mental health and support people who need it. 

About the Author

With most of Mahima’s professional experience spanning various startups and MNC’s across India, Australia & Germany, Mahima co-founded PurpleTree PR, an Australian boutique PR agency in September 2020 to support new and growing businesses. The vision of PurpleTree PR is to work with small and medium enterprises and help them grow their brand organically by narrating their story to the world through sustainable, affordable and holistic Public Relations & Communications solutions.

Mahima thoroughly enjoys telling stories in the form of topical articles and short anecdotes and is passionate about travelling, cycling and music. She used to be a member of a local rock band back in the days, is a trained Indian Classical Kathak dancer and practices mindful meditation. She is a big advocate for mental health and wellness and a frequent contributor to publications like Inside Small Business and the Nepalese Voice Australia.

Marketing, PR and SEO, News

What’s required to develop a successful brand for your Food or Beverage product?

Written by Richard Horwell, Brand Relations

However tasty your product you need to focus on the fact that 90% of a first-time purchase is based on the branding; it’s why a consumer will pick your product over their regular choice or over your competition.

But don’t confuse design with branding. Branding is the message you want to give your target consumer – and that message should be ‘BUY ME’.

Let’s look at what is required to develop your brand and get your message across.

 

Ask Questions

 

To get your branding right, you need to ask yourself and others some questions:

1/ Where will this product sell and what brands will sit alongside it? How will my product stand out?

2/ What is my brand message? For example, is it based on health, functionality, spoiling yourself or great taste?

3/ Will my consumer be able to read the messages on the packaging from a distance, without picking it up?

4/ Does my brand look premium enough for the selling price?

5/ Why should a consumer buy my brand instead of their regular choice?

Getting the answers to these questions is the first step to creating brilliant branding.

 

Include something consumers already know

If you are attempting to break new ground with an idea or base ingredient then you need to add something to the mix that the consumer knows.

For example, we have just developed a drink based on the Stinging Nettle called Emunity. To help consumers to try this we’ve added ingredients and flavours they recognise, like gooseberry, cucumber and wild strawberry.

The key is making the messaging easy to understand and include elements that consumers can grasp instantly.

 

It’s all about them

Many consumers want to try something different, but that doesn’t mean they have all day to stand around in-store or go online to research every product. They need to be drawn to a brand that relates to them.

So, make sure your message conveys this. Always focus on them, not you.

 

Point of Difference 

In order to have any chance of success in today’s market you must have a point of difference. This should be very clear in your branding and messaging on the packaging.

Think about what makes your brand different. Make a list of these points and then pick the MOST important ones. Highlight these on the packaging. The less important ones still need to be on there, but they can go on areas the consumer will read once they pick the product up.

 

How minimal?

Minimalism has become a trend with many designs jumping on the bandwagon. However, be careful not to be too minimal. Find the right balance between doing too much or too little. You also don’t want to waffle; let your branding do the talking.

For example, FYX is a new collagen drink we’ve been working on. The recipe, branding and messaging has been designed to speak to sports people rather than beauty fans, so the messaging highlights the recovery and muscle repair benefits of collagen. This is delivered in a clean, no-fuss style. Minimalist, but also balanced – so the consumer can quickly understand what the drink is about.

 

A name that is relevant

Start by researching your chosen brand name and make sure it is RELEVANT to your product and your audience. Be clever with your brand name, find something that is simple but conveys your product’s message, not just a name that sounds cool to you and your family.

For example, we worked with Can’O Water, which is a brand that has reducing plastic waste at its heart. They chose a simple, ‘does what it says on the tin’ name – after all it is water in a can, so why beat about the bush? They were ahead of their time and agile enough to adapt to the demands of their target consumer; they now make their cans reusable with close caps.

 

Values

Consumers want brands to be transparent and they want to understand the brand’s heritage and values. Is the product certified to be Vegan, Fairtrade or Organic? Which of these will resonate with your target audience? More recently consumers are looking for certifications like ‘B Corporation’, which commends businesses that give as much consideration to their social and environmental impact as they do to their financial returns.

Wanting to buy from companies with matching values is an opportunity for new, indie brands as established companies can’t adapt quickly.

 

In summary

Successful branding speaks directly to your target audience. It will educate them about your product and draws them in to make a purchase. With the right branding in place your food or drink product will be off to an excellent start.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Richard Horwell is the owner of Brand Relations, a specialist food and drink marketing and branding company based in London. Over the last 13 years, Brand Relations has been behind the launch and development of over 100 brands in the UK. Richard has also built up and sold companies of his own in the Food and Beverage sector. He has over 30 years’ experience in marketing FMCG brands around the world, having lived and worked in the UK, USA, Australia and the Middle East.

 

News

Three quarters of UK startups confident about the next 12 months, Angel Investment Network survey finds

Despite seeing growth significantly impacted during the pandemic, the vast majority of UK startups are now confident about the next 12 months. This was a key finding of a survey of startup opinion, conducted by Angel Investment Network (AIN), the UK’s largest online angel investment platform.

In the largest study it has ever conducted, AIN surveyed the views of 645 UK startups 18 months after the pandemic first hit. Despite 59% seeing growth negatively impacted, nearly three quarters are now optimistic about the next 12 months (72%), with 42% very optimistic  – up from 23% when a similar survey was conducted at the start of the pandemic. Of those who have raised in the past year, 54% reported being negatively impacted with investors pulling out. Meanwhile 68% reported delaying fundraising as a result of COVID.

AIN has seen surging growth on its platform with connections between entrepreneurs and investors up by 23% since the start of the year. Meanwhile revenues have increased by 40% to a new record, indicating the huge pent up demand from startups now seeking funding.

For the startups surveyed, the biggest challenge going forward is raising investment (85%), followed by product development (27%), hiring/recruiting the right talent (25%) and ongoing COVID issues (19%). Consumer confidence was a concern for 15% of respondents and Brexit remains an issue for 8% of respondents.

Strategies to mitigate

There were a variety of strategies to deal with the challenges of stalled investment as a result of COVID. Many have focused on building the pipeline and networking, holding off on marketing and launch plans delaying new hires and choosing to bootstrap instead. Only a quarter had let staff go.

The top strategies have been:

  • Focused more on networking instead (45%)

  • Delayed marketing (35%)

  • Held off making hires (35%)

  • Held off launch plans (29%)

  • Bootstrapped instead (28%)

  • Had to let staff go (24%)

  • Pulled back from R&D (22%)

  • Used furlough scheme (16%)

The research identifies a very different approach in raising investment in the Covid era. For those who have raised, 75% of respondents have only met one out of four investors in person as a result of the restrictions.

According to Mike Lebus, founder of AIN: “Startups by nature have an optimistic mindset but the last 18 months have been enough to challenge anyone. It is therefore very encouraging that our survey reveals a picture of battle-tested startups, having weathered the storm and remaining hugely positive about the next 12 months. After the stalled growth due to the pandemic, there is huge pent up demand for fundraising and we are seeing a record number of connections on our platform. Many have used the time wisely, building up their networks and bootstrapping their businesses as far as they can go to get investment ready.”

News

Five UK start-ups shortlisted for inaugural TTI Global Impact Awards

Awards ceremony featuring top DJs takes place 17 August 2021

Five innovative UK start-ups have been shortlisted for the Top Tier Impact (TTI) Group’s inaugural Global Impact Awards, celebrating entrepreneurs around the world at the cutting edge of sustainability and positive impact.

The UK Shortlisted companies are:

  • Wefarm – a small scale farmer-to-farmer community
  • Library of Things – the items and tools renting platform
  • Recycleye – AI and automation to close the loop on waste
  • BFB Labs – digital therapeutics to improve children’s mental health
  • Beam – empowerment, retraining and career matching for homeless people

The first awards of their kind globally, the TTI Global Impact Awards recognise the most innovative companies delivering sustainability for net-zero emissions and equality across eight categories: agriculture and food, consumer and retail, financial services, education and media, energy and environment, healthcare and wellbeing, sustainable cities and real estate, diversity and inclusion.

The awards are now open for public voting until 4 August 2021. The award ceremony will take place in an immersive virtual environment featuring rooftops and personal avatars on 17 August 2021. It will include special guest speakers, curated networking and performances by Burning Man DJ Goldcap and electro house DJ Sander Kleinenberg. Tickets are available on a first-come-first-serve basis.

The public’s favourite three sustainability trendsetters in each category will go forward to the expert panel of judges, which includes Billy Zane, impact investor and Hollywood actor, Melchior de Muralt, microfinance pioneer and founder of the multibillion dollar asset manager BlueOrchard, Katharine Hayhoe, climate scientist named one of Time’s 100 most influential people, and Arizona Muse, model and sustainability consultant.

Alessa Berg, TTI Founder and CEO, said: “From producing energy from thin air, empowering labour, turning waste into resources, detecting wildfires and improving youth mental health, it’s been incredible to see the talented entrepreneurs working tirelessly to reset the path of our planet.

“We received hundreds of entries from 45 countries, all dedicated to building a sustainable and fair paradigm across economic sectors. Our ceremony will bring together world-leading impact investors and famous personalities with global impact start-ups for an evening of celebration. These are the companies that are going to address the most important and pressing environmental and social issues of our time.”

The awards are supported by family offices such as Swedish Formica Capital, along with companies such as sustainable data centre developer TerraScale and Singapore property pioneer CDL.

With partners including the World Economic Forum and United Nations, Top Tier Impact is a global ecosystem of investors, entrepreneurs and professionals focused on solving the most critical issues of our time. With over 500 members across 40 countries, its mission is to accelerate the adoption of best practices in impact and sustainability in the running of companies.

News

Students in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire to be beamed into their future careers using virtual reality

In a move set to bring post-school career choices to life following the pandemic, every key stage four state school pupil in the Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire area will be given access to a virtual reality careers platform via their school.

Launch Your Career, a company that is rebelling against the cliché of boring, irrelevant careers advice, is providing all secondary schools in the area with access to its careers guidance platform. The scheme will run from Autumn 2021 for a period of 12 months and schools will also receive 25 free cardboard VR headsets each, interactive games, career skills tasks such as CV writing and succeeding in interviews, plus worksheets and much more.

Working in conjunction with D2N2, the region’s local enterprise partnership, students in their GCSE years will use Launch Your Career to conduct a short personality quiz and then explore what careers might suit them via virtual reality.

The system is capable of taking students on virtual reality tours of local employers and further and higher education institutions. They can visit the lecture halls and workshops of the local college or peek inside the doors of a business they think would suit them.

Greg Parker, career-led learning director at Launch Your Career, said: “You can’t be what you can’t see. We need to show young people all the exciting career options that are out there, otherwise they will simply limit their dreams to what their mum or dad did or what they saw on TV.

“We want to drive the growth of this dynamic region following the pandemic and immersing children in a virtual reality world where they can literally walk through alternative career pathways is exactly what is needed to inspire our future workforce.”

Dan Heffernan, careers and young people lead at D2N2, said: “We have higher than average levels of unemployment among 16 to 25-year-olds across our region. At the same time, there are around 63,000 vacancies with employers in our area and apprenticeship opportunities are going unfilled.  

“Using innovative technology like virtual reality will help to bridge this gap by raising awareness, raising aspirations and bringing to life all the amazing opportunities available to young people.”

The system can also be used via a standard web browser so students can access the information they need whether or not they have access to a VR headset.

D2N2 and Launch Your Career are encouraging local employers to have their businesses featured in the virtual reality workspace to expose students to suitable careers options close to home. Any businesses interested should visit www.launchyourcareer.com/employer

Schools in the region can sign up for the activation programme at www.launchyourcareer.com/register

Launch Your Career aims to level up the careers path. Every young person should know the opportunities available to have a world-class start in life, regardless of where they are born. Built on engagement, gamification and fun, Launch Your Career immerses young people in their career journey. With a VR headset, students are absorbed in a quest to find out about jobs that interest them and what they need to do to secure them. It’s the perfect tool to revitalise careers advice.

Launch Your Career is the brainchild of digital innovation experts Dev Clever.

Awards, News

Calling all BAME start-ups and entrepreneurs – ‘National Innovation Challenge’ offers £150k in prizes for ‘Better ideas for a better world’.

INNOVATIVE businesses from Ethnic Minority backgrounds have the chance to present their big ideas in front of global brands and investors through the Innovation Challenge in its fifth edition, which aims to help promote fairness and diversity to level up the corporate playing field.

In this year’s Innovation Challenge ‘Better Ideas for a Better World’ (aligned to UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), BAME start-ups and entrepreneurs will compete for prizes worth over £150k.  The Innovation Challenge aims to spotlight the best innovators across a wide range of sectors and technologies, including AI & Machine Learning, Sustainable Cities and Consumer Health.

Describing his goal for the theme of this year’s Innovation Challenge, MSDUK Founder Mayank Shah said: “We recognise that the last 18 months have been very challenging for businesses, and the innovation challenge is a positive step on the ladder to back to business.  We are setting the bar for this year’s entrants very high because we believe that only through greater supplier diversity can our global partners find innovative solutions to the problems of tomorrow.”

Now in its fifth year, the Innovation Challenge was set up by MSDUK as part of its year-round programme of initiatives designed to fight the underrepresentation of BAME businesses in the global supply chain. Through this challenge, MSDUK breaks down barriers to entry for young start-ups, entrepreneurs and high-growth EMBs from all sectors by providing direct access to a range of highly influential corporate sponsors. Committed to investing in a diverse supply chain, the headline sponsor is Accenture, and other sponsors include GSK, Digital Catapult, Cummins and EY. The prizes are cash injections for the winning idea, business scholarships, and mentoring, which will give the finalists the boost they need to develop their big ideas into successful businesses.

“Like every other business entrepreneur in the 21st Century, the EMBs that succeed will be those that bring about social change through innovative ideas and technologies. After last year’s truly inspiring array of ideas, I am excited to see what the current crop of EMB social entrepreneurs can bring to the table.”

Full details of the challenge, including an entry form, can be found here https://bit.ly/InnovationChallenge-2021

The deadline for entries is 31st June 2021. The finalists chosen by the judges will take part in a live pitching final, to be held in London on the 2nd September 2021.