Mak Tok’s journey from market stall to Dragon-backed business
The nerves, the pitching, the deep-breath-and-relax networking – there’s plenty to love about The Pitch events. But nothing beats watching Pitch startups go from strength to strength over the next few years. Since making it to The Pitch Final in 2017, Mak Tok founder Will Chew has been busy. Mak Tok’s artisan Malaysian chilli pastes […]
The Pitch 2020 People’s Choice winner Punk Money is tackling an archaic financial system
The Pitch 2020 People’s Choice winner was never really in doubt. When Punk Money finished their pitch – filmed in a graffitied underpass – questions flooded in from people watching online. Ewan Dickie had the idea for a community-driven lending platform while working as a contractor in open banking. He found the financial system archaic […]
How Terrible Merch survived the live music shutdown and won The Pitch 2020
As this strange and difficult year draws to a close, it feels good to finally have something to celebrate – in this case, The Pitch 2020 winner Terrible Merch. Live music was one of the industries hit hardest by coronavirus. Tours were abruptly cancelled at the start of the year and many artists had less […]
How startups can make the most of Instagram
Instagram is one of the fastest growing social media platforms in the world. The blend between personal and brand posts is virtually seamless – over 200 million people visit a business profile on a daily basis. There’s a common misconception that Instagram only works for companies with attractive products. And while hospitality, fashion and beauty […]
How to write an effective elevator pitch
Pitching your startup in less than two minutes is always a challenge. There are hundreds of things you could cover in an elevator pitch, so it’s important to understand what your audience needs to know and what could be left for a follow-up email or investment pitch deck. Whether you’re pitching for investment, clients or […]
Meet The Pitch finalists for 2019!
The wait is over… it’s time to meet The Pitch 2019 finalists! After receiving almost 400 applications to this year’s competition, we took 200 startups to boot camps in Bristol, London and Manchester. The standard was phenomenal, with ideas ranging from on-demand lawyers to genetically personalised nutrition shakes to non-invasive treatments for Parkinson’s. Each startup […]
A long shot: How Grind grew on instinct and reaction
David Abrahamovitch is the founder of Grind, a thriving café business at the heart of London’s coffee scene. Since opening up their first café in Shoreditch in 2011, Grind has expanded across the city and added cocktails and food to their menus. With a wealth of experience on creating a great culture and building a […]
The Pitch winner proving simplicity can scale
Oddbox won over the judges at The Pitch 2018 with their market-approved wonky veg subscription service. We’re delighted to announce that co-founder (and pitching champion!) Emilie Vanpoperinghe will be joining the founders of Crowdcube and Jimmy’s Iced Coffee on The Pitch 2019 judging panel. Oddbox has been on a phenomenal growth trajectory since successfully raising […]
Runway East is building a coworking empire for startups
Natasha Guerra founded startup coworking space Runway East in 2014. It hosts over 2,000 people, with four locations in London and Bristol. Runway East has been home to some of the most exciting startups in the UK in the last five years. Software company Streetbees grew from four staff to 80 in the space. Fabrily, […]
Early-stage startup? Here’s how to prepare for your first investment raise
Raising investment can feel like you’re picking your way through crocodile-infested waters, one careful move at a time. It’s not enough to simply select the best route. You have to engineer every step, carefully checking internal and external factors as you go. Have I understood what they’re looking for? Am I asking for the right […]
