Start-up funding adviser, Hatty Fawcett, wins Enterprise Nation Adviser of the Year 2022

Over the last few months, start-up founders and small business owners across the UK have been voting for the best and brightest business advisers. Never before has the role of an adviser been so important. The last few years have been some of the most challenging in history for start-ups and small businesses. But thanks […]
How to find investors, and impress them

Have you ever wondered what it takes to find and impress investors? Well, who better to ask than leading VCs and angels themselves! Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of facilitating an insightful panel discussion with four investors and founders at an event hosted by SeedLegals and Samaipata. It was a wonderful opportunity to […]
The travel industry tech startup that went from being grounded to accelerating for take-off having secured over £250K investment

Barry Klipp had spent 17 years working in the airline industry so you might imagine how he felt when the covid pandemic grounded planes worldwide. The unexpected outcome of the industry shutting down was that Barry finally had the time to develop a business idea and plan for his tech startup that he’d put on […]
Riding the roller coaster: Motivation for Startup Founders

Let’s face it, running a start-up (or any small business) is a roller-coaster. There are plenty of ups and downs, highs and lows. Maintaining motivation as a startup founder is challenging. You need resilience and persistence to cope when things aren’t going to plan – but also the ability to recognise and celebrate successes when […]
How to get investors “on the hook”

Your business needs investment. You are out there networking and pitching like crazy but despite your best efforts investors remain elusive. It’s a familiar story. How do you get investors “on the hook”? The Allbright Academy which supports female entrepreneurs, approached Hatty Fawcett, Founder of Focused For Business and an AllBright Academy Ambassador, to ask […]
How to find cornerstone investors

In many ways, raising investment is a confidence game. Not only will investors want to get to know the founding team and the business plan so that they have confidence in your abilities, but investors will look for external validation too. They may hold back on committing to investing until they see that someone else […]
How I proved my startup so I could quit my job and feed my passion
Anyone can come up with a “brilliant business idea” but it is quite another thing to put your money where your mouth is, take the plunge, give up your job and commit to making your idea a reality. For many founders of startups, taking the decision to leave your job – and a predictable salary […]
Holidays: A waste of time for founders and business owners?

So the kids have broken up from school and the sunshine has put everyone in holiday mode. Perhaps it even feels like you are the only person left at your desk working! Let’s face it, founders and entrepreneurs are hard workers. Running businesses isn’t easy and we get used to thriving on problem solving and […]
3 things drove our successful crowdfunding campaign – planning, pump-priming and PR” says Matt Dyson, Co-founder and CEO of Rockit

Matt Dyson Co-founder and CEO of Rockit knows what successful crowdfunding takes. He and his team beat their crowdfunding target and overfunded to raise £253,000 in May 2018. It’s been quite a ride. Rockit only launched in October 2017 and to beat their investment target within eight months of trading is testament to the efforts […]