

Entrepreneurial students and graduates have been successful in securing start-up funding to set up in business, courtesy of Santander Universities UK, as part of the University’s Venture Programme.
The funding, through Santander’s Excellence in Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Awards, was awarded to six businesses who have participated in the Venture Programme, to support start-up costs or to contribute towards business expansion activities. The awards were announced during the very first virtual The Venture Pitch 2020 event which took place recently.
The Venture Programme equips students and graduates with the skills and knowledge to start up a business or build their freelance career. It is comprised of nine modules which cover different aspects of starting up a business. These are Setting Up; Sales and Marketing; Business Responsibility; Finance and Funding; Enterprise Skills; Business Planning; Legal Matters; Online Marketing; and one-to-one business advice surgeries.
Accessible to students from all disciplines and levels of study, Venture consists of a unique blend of content from industry partners to support individuals at different stages of their entrepreneurial journey. Venture offers different interventions, from one-to-one tailored advice to interactive group activity through a series of 53 events delivered throughout the academic year.
Students and graduates who had been involved in the Venture Programme over the year had the opportunity to apply. Shortlisted candidates attended a full day of workshops, around the theme ‘Your First Year in Business’, followed by the pitch day itself.
Judged by Mike Skinner, RTC North; Leon Stowell, Ellis and Co. Chartered Accountants and Business Advisors; Robert Simmonds, Santander Universities; Andrew Davey, INDUSTRY Chester Coworking; Hems de Winter, Hems de Winter Consulting; Louise Hope, motivational speaker; and Jennifer Kennedy, Membership Director of the North Wales and West Cheshire Chamber of Commerce, participants were asked to deliver a five-minute pitch outlining their business idea and model.
Six businesses were then awarded a share of £5,900 start-up funding through the Santander Excellence in Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Scholarship. Various other business support prizes were also awarded during the event. The University would like to acknowledge the kind support and sponsorship offered by INDUSTRY Coworking, Forresters IP and the West Cheshire and North Wales Chamber of Commerce.
The following people/businesses were successful with their pitches:
The following awards were also made:
Kirsty Badrock, Venture Programme Co-ordinator within the Careers and Employability – Student Futures team, said: “The Venture Pitch 2020 showcased a fantastic amount of entrepreneurial spirit and talent from across the University. It was an incredibly inspiring, positive, fun few days where the students and graduates showed real commitment and passion in pursuing their business ideas. This was the first time that the event has been held virtually and those pitching certainly rose to the challenge! I would like to thank our Venture partners and Santander Universities for their continued support.”
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