Futrsm.pl is a tech-for-good platform designed to empower purpose-led entrepreneurs to do marketing better through a series of online tools and affordable expert support. It is an online Saas platform designed to empower purpose-led entrepreneurs to develop and deliver their own marketing strategy through a series of online tools and affordable expert support. The core package focuses on supporting socially-minded businesses that are bringing in a junior marketer as their first marketing hire. Providing a framework for both the company and the new start based on 90 days plans. The two inclusive monthly support sessions with a dedicated marketing expert to provide director-level practical strategic guidance throughout. A helping hand to get community changing businesses the brand presence they deserve.
A woman’s work is never done. This phrase is now more poignant than ever as we grapple with the new realities posed by the current pandemic. It is, however, especially true for successful female entrepreneurs who are left dealing with the struggles of everyday life whilst trying to run a thriving business.
One year on from launch, fit-centric underwear brand, Nudea is reaping the rewards of responding to the challenges of lockdown as well as celebrating new line launches. By disrupting traditional bra fitting through innovation and by modernising the measuring process with custom-designed tools, direct-to-consumer and online-only, Nudea has seen exponential growth during the lockdown period with sales of the brand’s Fit Tape up 500% since March and post-lockdown growth averaging 80% MoM.
When it comes to equity crowdfunding, the go-to platform for any European investor, young company or growth stage business is either Crowdcube, Seedrs, or both. In the first half of 2020, the two platforms topped Beauhurst’s State of UK Crowdfunding report, with similar, impressive performances. Seedrs closed 95 deals and raised £49.7m, while Crowdcube secured 97 deals and generated £48.5m – all throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Code First Girls, the UK social enterprise working to close the gender gap in technology, has today announced it has surpassed its 2017 campaign goal to teach over 20,000 young women how to code in the UK and Ireland. Over the past three years, Code First Girls has become the largest provider of free coding courses for women, having delivered over £14m worth of free technology education. The announcement comes at a critical time to close the IT skills gap, only 19% of those pursuing Computer Science at higher education level are women.
The Purposeful Project, founded and run by serial entrepreneur Simon Squibb, has launched a new initiative to create specialist entrepreneurial hubs in local libraries, with Belsize Community Library forming the first of its kind in the UK.
Saturday 10th October is World Mental Health Day. It arrives during the strangest time we’ll ever likely face in our lives due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Each year’s theme is set by the World Federation for Mental Health, and this year’s is ‘mental health for all’. This encourages us to think of different demographics and communities of people and how they are faced with issues and problems in their lives.
The University of Exeter Business School is involved with a project to automate Gift Aid donations and potentially unlock more than £560m for charities every year.
Wondercise, the advanced smart fitness service, launches globally with Apple Watch and Garmin wearable support, from just 10 cents a day.* Featuring world-first Motion Matching technology complete with on-screen heart rate data, it analyzes your movements and compares them with those of an on-screen trainer in real-time.
WeWALK, the smart cane designed for people who are blind or with low vision which is now in use across 37 markets, has joined Microsoft’s AI for Accessibility programme to accelerate WeWALK’s capability by developing and validating a human behaviour model for visually impaired users.
The Data & Marketing Association (DMA) has published new guidance, ‘DMA Talent: Dyslexia Employer Guide’, created using insights from neurodiversity consultants, brands/employers, and dyslexic employees working across the creative, data and marketing industries.
Fintech startup, Vauban, has announced impressive growth plans to revolutionise alternative investment. Founded in 2018, Vauban brings game-changing technology to a sector where the fax machine is still used for fund allocations.
Collaboration involves people working together to attain a particular goal or to complete an allocated task. Some of the greatest ideas are born through this process. When you think about innovation, it is a collection of ideas either from the past or present.
Evidence suggests street and sexual harassment have worsened during lockdown. The majority of that harassment will go unreported so there will be no response and little can be done to fight it. Something has to change if increased harassment is not going to be part of the ‘new normal’.
The international outlook for R&D is remarkably promising despite strong headwinds, according to research released today by Ayming Group, the business performance consultancy specialising in innovation. Ayming’s second annual International Innovation Barometer (IIB) reveals that R&D departments are being empowered by the creation of innovation ecosystems, new funding methods, and the deployment of technology.
Stream, the creator of enterprise-grade activity feed and chat APIs, recently closed its $15m Series A financing. The funding round was made possible by the startup’s rapid growth amid COVID-19.
Aledia, a French startup that is pioneering a disruptive technology for microLED displays, has closed an €80m first tranche of its €120m D round financing. The company will use the proceeds to complete its product development and create the first-of-its-kind, high-volume 3D microLED manufacturing facility in the Grenoble area for an estimated capex of €40m (excluding equipment).
As with every sector, the sports industry has been greatly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The after effects will no doubt continue to reverberate for some time to come even once we emerge from this global health crisis. However, sport is unique in that it plays a different role to many other activities in life; it provides a space for people to come together for rituals and traditions, often harking back for generations.
Condense Reality, a virtual reality startup developing technology to transform how viewers watch live entertainment and sports, has raised a seed round of more than £800,000, including £220,000 from SFC Capital, the most active seed-stage investor in the UK.
The pandemic has caused significant disruption to communities, businesses and the economy on a scale that has never been experienced before. The economy shrank 20.4% between April and June as ongoing lockdown measures led the country into recession.
