Earlier this month, the annual MSc Entrepreneurship Pitch Day took place on Level 50 of One Canada Square and showcased the incredible projects and startups that our students have been working on. Competing for a range of cash prizes which will then be invested into their businesses to accelerate growth, our students pitched their business ideas to a range of experts, angel investors and VC representatives.

On the day, we welcomed guests from within UCL and the wider business community to give our students a platform to present their ideas to an audience of experts in a variety of industries and develop essential entrepreneurial skills such as raising funds, pitching and networking techniques. 

We were also joined by Guest Speaker Suzy Ferreira, Founder and CEO of Dinie, who shared the story behind Dinie and her entrepreneurial experiences so far. A serial entrepreneur, Suzy launched Dinie in 2019 to revolutionise online merchant financing in Latin America.

Suzy also joined our judging panel, alongside Justin Seghers, an Associate at Pact VC, Daria Sopelkina, Founder and CEO of Tumchi and Paul Herman, CEO of Bluebox Corporate Finance. We were delighted to welcome such an incredible panel to One Canada Square.

This year’s Pitch Day event was also a joint initiative, celebrating not only our students and their achievements, but also the launch of the second edition of Entrepreneurial Finance. Co-authored by MSc Entrepreneurship Programme Director Simon Hulme, Lecturer Mauricio Pettinato Lucio and Business Consultant Chris Drew, Entrepreneurial Finance is an essential guide for aspiring entrepreneurs.

The event was sponsored by the Engineers in Business Fellowship (EIBF), a registered charity that promotes the importance and value of business education for engineers in order to improve lives and the UK and global economies. 

our winners

There were three prizes, two awarded by the judging panel for Best Pitch and Best Idea and the Best Showcase was the people’s choice award where attendees voted by investing UCL dollars which were then replaced with a real cheque for £1,500. 

Best Pitch

Taking home the Best Pitch prize was Breezy, a smart cleaning start-up replacing risky and labour-intensive cleaning with smart drone technology that safely cleans high and hard-to-reach areas. Founder Berk Yasar Yavuz impressed our judging panel with a demo of his product, which showcased the ease of Berk’s design and technology.

Best Idea

With so many brilliant ideas from our entrepreneurs, it was hard for the judges to select just one winner. However, Tally Bevis earned the Best Idea Award after impressing our panel with Acorn Higher Ed, a recruitment marketing tech start-up. Acorn Higher Ed aims to revolutionise university recruitment with an innovative approach to enrolment strategy and allows institutions to reach prospective students where they spend time - social media.

Best Showcase

Finally, Alvin Ho took home the Best Showcase Award in celebration of Clique, his fashiontech start-up. Clique is the first discovery and booking platform designed for emerging designers to be seen, sourced and styled. Stylists instantly match with garments that fit their brief, while designers gain visibility, access to exclusive job listings, and connect with career-defining opportunities.

Find out more about UCL School of Management’s MSc Entrepreneurship programme