South West’s first-ever National StartUp Awards finalists revealed

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The South West’s most exciting new businesses have been shortlisted as part of a brand new awards programme.

The StartUp Awards National Series has been launched to recognise the booming startup scene across the UK which has accelerated since the pandemic began. In 2020, when most of the world was shutting down, more than 400,000 startups were set up in Britain, with similar increases seen in other European countries.

This marked boost in newfound entrepreneurship is mirrored by a huge 2,500 applications which have been received in response to the Startup Awards National Series’ first ever call for entries.

The South West startups that made the shortlist are a true snapshot of the future economy, with a collective turnover of over £19m and employing 397 people between them. Of the region’s great passion for entrepreneurship, one finalist said: “The South West region has an attitude of no fear; the region is buzzing with creativity, technology and a real pride in collaboration.

“The rich culture and dynamic art scene here helps with inspiring the work that it does, and it is great that we are starting to see other areas of the UK outside of the capital grow with new business ventures.”

The cohort of finalists announced today will be considered for the regional prizes by a panel of seasoned judges with experience founding or supporting entrepreneurial ventures. This includes South West-based Tom Ball, founder of DeskLodge, Jon Simon, co-founder and CEO of Pieminister, and Ellie Webb, founder of non-alcoholic beverage company Caleno.

Supported nationally by BT, EY, Dell & Intel, the programme will celebrate the achievements of the amazing individuals across the UK who have turned an idea into an opportunity and taken the risk to launch a new product or service.

Co-founded by the team behind the Great British Entrepreneur Awards, the new series follows the success of the Wales StartUp Awards, after organisers recognised the exceptional potential in the startup scene across the other British regions.

Professor Dylan Jones-Evans OBE, the creator of the StartUp Awards National Series, said: “New firms are important for generating economic prosperity, employment opportunities and innovation. Since 2016, the Wales StartUp Awards have celebrated this amazing annual contribution to our economy by entrepreneurs and the impact they have on communities across the nation.

“Given the sheer volume of phenomenal startups we’ve heard from since then, as well as the huge post-pandemic shift in people’s desires to take their career in a new direction and set up a business against the odds, we felt it was the right time to take the programme nationwide. We’ve been blown away by the standard of entries from the South West in this first year and truly look forward to crowning the winners.”

The South West final will take place at Propyard in Bristol on 28th June 2022.

This year’s StartUp Awards National Series finalists from the South West are:

B2B Services StartUp

Core PA Services, Founded by Allen & Rosemary Wooding

Flourish CSR, Founded by Louise McCabe & Tara Luckman

Kid-A, Founded by Andrew Silcock

Peregrine Risk Management, Founded by Wayne Britton & James Lawrence

We Are Magic Number, Founded by William Glossop & Liam Dixon

B2C Services StartUp

Bridge Health & Wellbeing, Founded by Paul & Louise O’Connell

North Devon Soap, Founded by Helen Cross

Little Adventures Nursery Group, Founded by Laura & Tom Filer

The Joy Club, Founded by Hannah Thomson

Construction & Building Services StartUp

Modbox, Founded by Alice Macaskie, Adam James & Peter James

MyNestBox, Founded by Henry Crosby

Wellies and Waders, Founded by Andre Crawford

Creative StartUp

Copy & TV, Founded by Claire Hovey

Dirty Jack, Founded by Candela Martos, Matthew Christey & Hayden Brown

Halt Agency, Founded by Chris Cranshaw

Imagineerium, Founded by Channon Wallace & Natasha Mortimer

Sequel Studio, Founded by Martha Murray & Chantelle Oriani

Digital StartUp

MySunshine, Founded by Alice & Kieran Fitzsimons

Purpose 3D, Founded by Adam Tindall & Natalia Tegos

ShopHub, Founded by Steve McCormick

Whoopee!, Founded by Justine Pocock

Loopin, Founded by Lily Veale

Food & Drink StartUp

Lowtide Brewing Co, Founded by Rob Buchinger-Jones & Dave Brown

Sollasa, Founded by Vishal Patel

Take Stock Foods, Founded by Jess Higgins

The Forest Foodie, Founded by Flora Richardson

Global StartUp

EXEAT, Founded by Laura Ward-Ongley

J.LUXE.FIT, Founded by Jordan Tuck

Brand Monkey, Founded by Daniel Waite

Graduate StartUp

Voltric, Founded by Brent Oldfield

Human Beauty, Founded by Millie Flemington-Clare

VIVE, Founded by Maya Raichoora, Ben Wainwright

Green StartUp

Biome Algae, Founded by Angela Mead

Bower Collective, Founded by Nick Torday

Moonie Eco Products UK, Founded by Kia Brooker

bide planet, Founded by Amelia Gammon

Yes Friends, Founded by Sam Mabley

Innovative StartUp

Aspia Space, Founded by Laura Botha

Calyo, Founded by Mihai Caleap

myDATA3, Founded by Helen Tanner

New Motion Labs, Founded by Marcel Fowler, Josh Palmer, Lucas Lobmeyer & Robert Wood

PEEQUAL, Founded by Hazel McShane & Amber Probyn

Manufacturing & Engineering StartUp

Naturbeads, Founded by Giovanna Laudisio

SpaceBands, Founded by Harry Kimberley-Bowen & Ronan Finnegan

Kekolo Treats, Founded by Christian Morris & Millie Pratley

Uncle Chook’s Chicken Salt, Founded by Siân Burton

Mobile & Emerging Technologies StartUp

Reach Industries, Founded by Silas Adekunle

The Kindness of Strangers , Founded by Mathew Neville

xigxag, Founded by Kelli Fairbrother & Mark Chaplin

KEVRI, Founded by Emily Devonald, Natalie Campion & Corin Mynett

Online Retail StartUp

byFoke, Founded by Casey & Dan Gregory

Hope Plants, Founded by Camilla Chapman & Matthew Skinner

Mudchutney, Founded by Ben Stevens

The Vitamist UK, Founded by Tom Wallace

Professional Services StartUp

Pineapple Recruitment, Founded by Marc Linley & Dan Ware

Full Stack Modeller, Founded by Giles Male, Myles Arnott & Kenny Whitelaw Jones

Squarcle Consulting, Founded by Gavin Emmerson & Simon J Perks

Edvantage, Founded by Pete Edwards

Social StartUp

Alliance of Sport, Founded by James Mapstone

BillyChip® CIC, Founded by Jon Hope & Meg Abernethy Hope

The Mazi project, Founded by Melanie Vaxevanakis

Tourism & Leisure StartUp

Naturebreak, Founded by Anthony Rawlins

Cranks and Planks, Founded by Julie & Charlie Pickup

Now & Then, Founded by Mike Robinson

The Gresham Guest House, Founded by Louise Matthews

Rising Star Award

COCO+, Founded by Phil Brown & Neil Fincham-Dukes

Smashtag Social, Founded by Jessica Wicks

Edify Group, Founded by Jonjo Chester

The Good Crowd, Founded by Catherine Coward, Leanne Olivier & Natalie Hartley

Unearth PR, Founded by Georgia Gadsby

WearMyWardrobeOut, Founded by Maria Loria

HUM4NS, Founded by Olly Reid & Darrell Irwin

Human Beauty, Founded by Millie Flemington- Clare

Evolved Creative, Founded by Kelly Smallcombe

Oat Float, Founded by Matt Wilkinson, Sam Holland, Anna Raphael & Renwar Karim

My Little Foodie, Founded by Cherrelle Beckitt

Usertopia, Founded by Noah Abbott & Ant Johnson

SURFMOOSE, Founded by Jan Jordyn

Labl.it, Founded by Sean Larsen, Kyle Wilks & Rhys Wilks

Rural StartUp

Knights MPR, Founded by Jason Knights

Öskuhús, Founded by Oddný Edwards

Tig Tag, Founded by Suzanne Smith & Louise Gilbert

Moo to You, Founded by Mathew & Chrissie Crossman

Young Entrepreneur

Okapia, Founded by Finlay Williams

SpaceBands, Founded by Ronan Finnegan & Harry Kimberley-Bowen

Kekolo Treats, Founded by Christian Morris & Millie Pratley

The Vitamist UK, Founded by Tom Wallace

PEEQUAL LTD, Founded by Hazel McShane & Amber Probyn

Bristol StartUp