Big news for founders: SeedLegals has acquired The Pitch, the UK’s largest pitching competition for early-stage entrepreneurs.
Since 2008, The Pitch has been connecting startup founders with active investors through its flagship programme, offering participants guidance and support as they refine their pitches to present to a panel of experts.
Now with SeedLegals – the UK’s #1 closer of funding rounds – at the helm, startups can expect greater exposure, boosting both their brand reach and their chances of securing investment.
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Meet The Pitch, the UK’s largest pitching competition
The Pitch is the UK’s largest pitching competition on a mission to help early-stage entrepreneurs build confidence, hone their pitch and get investment-ready. Since its beginnings in Bristol, it’s evolved into a nationwide programme designed to set startup founders up for success.
At events across London, Edinburgh, Manchester, Glasgow, Bristol, Brighton and Birmingham, founders have 90 seconds to pitch their idea, team and traction, equipped with nothing but a microphone – no slides or decks allowed.
With 1,500+ applications and thousands of views online in previous years, The Pitch has a reputation for giving up-and-coming startups the recognition they deserve, and shows no sign of slowing down any time soon.
The Pitch builds founders’ confidence and gives them the skills and connections they need to raise investment. We built a truly meritocratic platform and ran events across the country to help make seed funding available to everyone.
– Chris Goodfellow, The Pitch Founder
Why The Pitch?
The Pitch is more than a pitching competition: it’s a platform that gives early-stage startup founders the space they need to hone their pitch and prepare for investment.
Through a programme built on bolstering the skills and connections entrepreneurs need to succeed, founders have the unique opportunity to pitch to seed investors, gain exposure and get the market feedback pivotal in the early stages of a startup. Even without taking the top prize, no one leaves empty handed.
Perhaps most importantly, The Pitch is free to enter. Money is often tight for new ventures, and with other pitching competitions charging an entry fee, it’s easy for many to get left behind. By taking a founder-first approach, The Pitch makes fundraising accessible for those without the cashflow behind them, allowing them to focus on what matters most.
Together, these factors are what made The Pitch so appealing to SeedLegals CEO Anthony Rose. “At SeedLegals our customers love how we help them get investment-ready and close their funding round, but they keep asking us how they find investors. So, when we came across The Pitch – a platform that connects you with investors – it was a natural win-win.”
We’re delighted to acquire The Pitch, and are excited to create pitch competitions that connect founders and investors.
– Anthony Rose, SeedLegals CEO and Co-Founder
How it works
Here’s how founders go from applicant to award winner with The Pitch.
Stage 1: Submit your application
To be in with a chance of winning, founders first need to apply online.
As part of this application, each venture must outline what their startup does, any achievements to date and the shape of their business potential. They must also:
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- Be a UK or Irish limited company
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- Have less than 250 full time employees
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- Have been trading for less than 7 years
After carefully assessing each submission, our judges select the top 50 applicants to proceed to the next round.
Stage 2: Online pitching workshop
At the semi-final stage competitors attend an online workshop with a pitching coach, where they’ll be offered feedback on their pitch, and tips on how to improve before taking the stage.
Stage 3: Regional event
With 90 seconds on the clock, founders must present a polished pitch to investors and industry experts in a live event. Each pitch is rated on the following criteria:
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- Idea
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- Proof of traction
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- Team
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- The pitch itself
At the end of each regional event we share the judges’ feedback with competitors, add the scores to our leaderboard and crown a regional winner, with a People’s Choice winner chosen by the audience in the room announced on social media the next day.
Stage 4: The Pitch Final
Wrapping up the programme is The Pitch Final, where the UK’s top 10 fledgling founders take the floor in London, pitching to a panel of industry-leading investors one last time.
After a winner is announced, the competition transforms into a startup social event where the networking magic happens. Founders can meet and mingle with investors, journalists and other entrepreneurs over a glass of red (or two).
The Pitch, powered by SeedLegals: a milestone moment for early-stage startups
Powered by SeedLegals, The Pitch is set to connect founders with more investors than ever, while continuing to build a supportive community of alumni and entrepreneurs.
Then, when interest turns into investment, SeedLegals is on hand to support founders through this exciting next stage.
SeedLegals has supported The Pitch for the last five years, so we know the team has the method and capability to build on the competition’s 17-year legacy. With SeedLegals running and promoting events, future competitors will get access to a much bigger community and network of investors, and the opportunity to tell the world about their startup.
– Chris Goodfellow, The Pitch Founder
Get ready for your next raise today
The Pitch puts you in front of investors. SeedLegals makes sure the rest runs smoothly.
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