Putting a sustainable spin on laundry, Oxwash, the UK-based startup backed by Twitter Co-founder Biz Stone has raised £2.08m ($3M) in seed expansion investment, to clean up the traditional and environmentally costly washing and dry cleaning sector with its space-age technology.
Closing the skills gap in organisations and industries around the world has a key role to play in our pandemic recovery. Factors such as geography, poor infrastructure, financial hardship and a lack of public resources are preventing many from accessing training that could transform their futures. Yet recent research shows that if digitally lagging sectors—such as manufacturing, mining, healthcare and education—double their use of digital tools, Europe alone could add €2.5 trillion to its GDP by 2025.
According to government data, SMEs made up over 99% of the total business population at the start of 2020 – and this is the reason why thriving SMEs remain the backbone of rebuilding our economy. Across the UK, SMEs are getting back on their feet, employing workers and providing important services which fuel our local economies.
UnderPinned has hit its funding target of over £500k within an hour of going live on crowdfunding platform Crowdcube. Having quadrupled their community and launched accelerator programme with day one profitability since their last round, they’re raising to amplify marketing and further enter US & European markets.
According to MoneySuperMarket, around 22% of the UK’s two million freelancers are busy delivering essential business support. As more companies embrace hybrid working models, recruiting external consultants can complement the skills of in-house staff. Here Ashmita Das, CEO of Kolabtree, the freelance platform for scientists, explains how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can integrate freelancers successfully.
ReLondon is set to convene leaders and innovators from across the capital and beyond for the fourth Circular Economy Week (#CEweekLDN), which took place 14th – 18th June. The week showcased some of London’s most promising circular economy approaches to inspire action and encourage organisations and individuals to waste less and reuse, repair, share and recycle more. The aim is to promote polices, practices and behaviours that can accelerate the growth of the circular economy and place it firmly on the agenda for the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in November.
A technology hub has launched two unique business incubation programmes in response to post-COVID needs by building a peer powered community and bringing world-class innovation and growth opportunities to the region’s most promising entrepreneurs.
Insurtech startup Urban Jungle, famous for its £5 per month renters insurance, has announced the launch of its new Building and Contents insurance product – targeted at younger homeowners, who it says have been ‘ignored’ by the big insurance companies.
Do you believe the next generation of tech giants will be European? At Scale-Up Europe, we do. That’s why, a few days ago, our group of stakeholders from across the world of European technology innovation presented a shared ambition for the continent to house 10 technology companies valued more than €100bn by 2030.
A major new resource to showcase the opportunities for investing in the UK creative industries sector is being unveiled at a National launch event on 21st June.
The UK’s National Health Service has been designed primarily by men, for men. Even in 2021, the majority of those in senior leadership positions (63%) are male, a startling figure when you consider that almost 80% of the NHS workforce are female.
Israeli agritech startup, Edete Precision Technologies for Agriculture, which has thus far focused on developing a technological solution for artificial pollination of insect-pollinated crops such as almonds, is expanding its services to wind-pollinated crops. They will start with pistachios, one of the world’s fastest growing crops.
Starting over with a new business idea or career path is never easy, but sometimes it is absolutely necessary (this applies to other things in life as well). I have started over multiple times. I quit a stable job in HR to start my own business. People called me crazy, but I followed my dreams and persevered. It was anything but easy, but it brought me to where I am today and I wouldn’t change that for the world.
Over the tumultuous year we’ve just faced, productivity has been challenged in ways most had never considered. The strain of financial, career and health uncertainty has been a formidable foe for employees and employers alike. As we celebrate World Productivity Day this year, we do so with the learnings of the past 12 months under our belt.
Environment-savvy small firms have been stirred into action by the pandemic and propelled saving the planet to the top of their agenda. And business owners now see sustainability as a critical issue and want to take action as lockdown restrictions ease.
Eleven startup companies from Bristol’s world-leading tech scene have been shortlisted to pitch and demo their innovative products at SETsquared Bristol’s flagship Tech-Xpo 2021 event on 30 June.
Black Tech Fest calls on businesses to take further action to ensure greater awareness and racial parity for Black people working within tech.
To help catalyse London’s green recovery from the pandemic, ReLondon today launched a support package to help small and medium enterprises (SMEs) reap the financial and environmental benefits of the circular economy.
Launching this month, British brand The Good Level offers high quality, full spectrum CBD oils, balms and jellies all made with UK-grown hemp. Born of the founders’ frustration in trying to find consistently high-quality CBD products for themselves, The Good Level’s range of cold-pressed CBD products offer a natural choice to support daily mental and physical wellbeing.
If office space providers are to survive the shift to greater flexible working, they need to keep up with the increasing demand from businesses for shorter, flexible contracts. Long term, restrictive office commitments no longer appeal to SMEs, who are increasingly looking for complete flexibility in their requirements, to scale up and down as required, and remain agile.
