In an exciting development for UWE Bristol’s Launch Space incubator, three graduate entrepreneurs have been awarded funding from Innovate UK to develop their business ideas. The Innovate UK Unlocking Potential Award is a two-strand pilot competition designed to unearth and empower today’s untapped innovators and businesses, aiming to foster diverse talent across the UK. The awards offer financial support ranging from £5,000 for living expenses to up to £50,000 for business development.
Launch Space has guided hundreds of early-stage tech founders towards success. Catering to a diverse group of individuals, from recent graduates and first-time founders to seasoned entrepreneurs and businesses exploring new technologies, Launch Space continues to establish itself as a crucial player in the development of innovative ideas and ventures within the West of England tech start-up ecosystem.
The recipients of the award, Olivia Coy of Remedy, Gerald Lee of Mach D Trading, and Alex Montgomery of 50 Ways to Cook, have each been awarded £15,000. This financial boost is set to accelerate the development and scaling of their unique business ideas.
Olivia Coy, the force behind Remedy, highlighted the critical role of Launch Space in refining her application, stating, “The Launch Space support was instrumental in providing valuable feedback that helped strengthen my pitch and articulate the unique value proposition of my idea.” Remedy aims to enhance health literacy and quality of life for individuals with long-term conditions through its AI-powered, multi-platform medication management software.
Coy expressed her gratitude and excitement about the award, adding, “Winning fills me with a sense of validation and excitement for the journey ahead. It affirms that our vision for Remedy resonates with others and reinforces our commitment to making a meaningful impact in the healthcare industry.” Olivia is planning to use the funding to further develop Remedy’s platform, enhance user experience, and scale operations.
Gerald Lee of Mach D Trading shared his enthusiasm, crediting Launch Space for its pivotal role in his growth as a founder and entrepreneur. “Launch Space has allowed me to develop my business and MVP concepts, whether it was improving my pitch deck or refining my tech stack, Mark and Aimee have been invaluable to my growth as a founder and as an entrepreneur.” With a vision to make crypto trading safer, Lee emphasized the importance of understanding the target audience’s pain points and tailoring solutions to meet those needs.
The funding will support the creation of a community-focused on addressing these crucial issues in the crypto trading space. Feeling ecstatic about winning the award, Gerald commented: “We are excited that the UK Government believes in our goal to create a safer environment for everyone to enter the crypto trading space.”
Alex Montgomery’s 50 Ways to Cook aims to impact society positively through food education. Montgomery reflected on how Launch Space transformed his lockdown project into a viable business, fostering his entrepreneurial skills and ideas. He comments: “The Launch Space accelerator programme surrounded myself with other entrepreneurs and really helped to develop my entrepreneurial skillset and develop my ideas with weekly expert workshops and mentoring. I received a lot of support from other cohort members and staff when writing my application which helped tremendously.”
Thrilled about receiving the award, Alex states: “I am over the moon about winning this award. To have backing and support from Innovate UK has really helped my confidence as an entrepreneur and it feels great to know other people are supportive of my idea and want to see it succeed”. The award will help Alex enable the improvement of innovative workshops and food education services, including the acquisition of equipment to enhance sensory food education.
During August and September 2023, the UWE Bristol incubation team delivered more than 30 hours of training and one-to-ones to support those applying for the grant funding. Senior Enterprise & Innovation Manager, Aimeé Skinner, worked with all three entrepreneurs and she commented “We are so pleased to see multiple UWE-graduate award winners this year – these awards validate the innovative ideas and huge potential of the recipients, as well as highlighting the pivotal role incubators play in nurturing early-stage ventures”.
Stephanie Jay recently joined the Launch Space team as Enterprise & Innovation Manager. Jay commented: “It’s exciting to be joining at a time when there are multiple grant award winners in the space – I am looking forward to working with them as they develop their ideas and grow.”
Located within the £16m University Enterprise Zone on Frenchay Campus, Launch Space has become a beacon of support for aspiring entrepreneurs and early-stage businesses.
For further information about Launch Space please visit the website or email launchspace@uwe.ac.uk