🔒 iomart Acquisition, £500k from NZTC, New FinTech Scotland Challenge, New PE Fund
Plus a Scottish entrepreneur won UK Business Woman of the year.
Here's your Campfire for the 7th of October, 2024.
💼 This issue of Campfire is sponsored by Geovation Scotland. If you’re building in land, property, and location technologies, learn about their new cohort and read more about what Geovation Scotland can offer below.
🌊 Updates
☁️ Glasgow-based cloud computing firm iomart Group plc has acquired Atech Support (managed Microsoft security services), for £57 million to “strengthen its cloud service offerings”. SBN DGT
💰 The Net Zero Technology Centre (NZTC) has awarded £500K to three UK electrolyser developers as part of its 2024 competition to improve electrolyser efficiency for green hydrogen production: Clyde Hydrogen Systems, Aqsorption Ltd, and Latent Drive. This initiative supports NZTC’s Energy Hubs project, which “aims to scale Scotland’s hydrogen production and position the country as a major exporter of green hydrogen to Europe”. DGT
💡 FinTech Scotland, and other industry collaborators have launched an innovation challenge aimed at improving consumer outcomes through data and technology. Collaborators include NatWest, Lloyds, PwC, Barclays. Fintech firms globally are invited to apply by October 25, 2024, with successful applicants eligible for a £50,000 grant. DGT
🚀 New (rebranded) PE fund: Puma Private Equity (growth-equity PE) is expanding into Scotland and rebranding as Puma Growth Partners. The new Edinburgh team will focus on investing in sectors like fintech, AI, and energy transition. They recently invested in Aveni's Series A round. SFN TS DGT
🏆 Scottish entrepreneur Katrina Hutchinson-O'Neill of Join Talent won Business Woman of the Year at the 2024 Enterprise Vision Awards, which celebrated female entrepreneurs from across the UK. The event highlighted the achievements of women in business, including Katrina’s success in growing her business to £20m in four years. Full List Here (TS)
📣 Asks & Offers
🚨Start to Scale by Shepherd and Wedderburn is offering eligible subscribers of Campfire exclusive access to their ‘Start to Scale Hub’ which helps companies create template legal agreements in minutes for free. To learn more and request access click here.
📢 Una Watch is hiring! Una Watch, an innovative start-up focused on creating a unique, modular, repairable, and upgradeable GPS running watch, is hiring a Digital Marketing Manager. As they prepare for their Kickstarter launch in early 2025, they’re looking for someone to lead their digital marketing efforts. Interested candidates should send their CV and cover letter to admin@unawatch.com. For more details, click here.
🥃 Are you a problem-solver driven by curiosity and a passion for your work? Do you thrive on deep, meaningful conversations and value fostering long-lasting relationships? Do you love whisky? If so, we invite you to become a founding member of Dram & Discourse. Learn more here
🦅 Barclays Eagle Labs launched their new Eagle Labs Academy, funded by the UK Government. The Academy provides access to free learning content and entrepreneurship training from different sources. Aiming for those starting their journey to those wanting to scale. Aside from the content, Eagle Labs has partnerships and access opportunities with the Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology, and their Demo Directory. Find out more here.
👭 Interested in connecting with possible co-founders? Fill in your listing on Cofounder Curious today! Connect with others for possible cofounder matching here.
👷Are you hiring? Send us a blurb and we’ll include it in the next newsletter!
✍️ Want to write something for Campfire? Have an opinion you'd like to share? get in touch!
A Proptech Ideathon: Who, what, where, when, and why?
In partnership with Geovation Scotland
Let's say you're working in the property sector and have an idea on how to improve the sector or services provided. What do you do? Why, you come along to the Geovation Scotland/BE-ST event, Future of Proptech in Scotland Chapter 2 Ideation where you'll be working with other industry experts to break down the problem and think about creative solutions as a collective.
📆 Date: 29th October
🕤 Time: 09:30
📍Location: Edinburgh
What is Proptech?
It can be a challenging term to define, because while it stands for property technology, proptech can often sit at the centre of many other sectors. Legal tech, AI, Cleantech, Govtech, Fintech can and often do intersect with property, land, and anything to do with what takes place on it.
Often because the challenges within proptech can be immense, understanding the problems, and combining that investigation and knowledge with those who know how to innovate, brainstorm, and iterate fast is super valuable. Enter: the Ideathon.
What's an Ideathon?
Unstop defines it as "an event where participants from diverse background come up with innovative ideas and unique strategies to solve a specific real-world problem."
In this session the following topics will be looked at:
Carbon Capture / Green Homes
Retrofit Technologies
Conveyancing Process
Planning Process – streamlining
Smart Cities
It's kind of like a hackathon, but instead of technical prototypes, it's ideas and strategies that are the outcome of intense and focused collaboration. No laptops required!
As Alex Gordon, Start-up Community Engagement Manager for Geovation Scotland puts it: "We need those who are working in the sector who understand the pain points, the problems. If you are working in property or construction and have always thought ‘there should be an app for that’, or if you are working in tech but look at the property sector and think ‘surely there should be more innovation and opportunities’ then come along!"
What can I expect?
Ideathons are a great way to rapidly generate new ideas and strategies around a specific issue. It's the quality, knowledge, and experience of the people in the room that make ideathons so useful.
You can expect a fun and exciting experience of brainstorming and collaborating with others who really understand the sector just like you. It's a great opportunity to network, and who knows, you might even find your next co-founder!
If you're interested or work in property, construction, built environment, carbon capture, conveyancing, planning processes, smart cities, or other areas of proptech, this event is for you.
Bring your thinking caps and get ready to deep dive into what the future of proptech could look like.
What will the day be like?
After introductions and sharing of observed problems and challenges in the property sector, small groups will then work through those problems, developing strategies drawn from the communal expertise in the room. At the end of the session, 3 solutions will be selected and presented back to the wider group.
Fiona McDonald, Digital Impact Manager at BE-ST explains, "We want to facilitate the meeting of the minds, and support discussions in a manner that will create action, in addition to opportunities for exploration and exploitation."
The Proptech Ideathon will take place at 9:30am on October 29th in Edinburgh.
More details and registration can be found here.
📅 Events
📢 29/10, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Transatlantic M&A: Sold in the USA!: What are the secrets to start-up success and a successful exit to US buyers? Join Shepherd and Wedderburn’s Stephen Trombala as he unpacks that question and chairs an enlightening panel discussion with leading minds who have been there and done it. How did our panellists start their businesses? When did they realise they were onto something? How did they finance their growth? What steps did they take to position their businesses and how did they run their processes? What were their highs, lows and takeaways?
Panel:
Stephen Trombala, Corporate Partner, Shepherd and Wedderburn
Varun Nair (CTO of That Works and former CTO of TwoBigEars, sold to Facebook)
Calum Smeaton (Former CEO of TV Squared, sold to Innovid)
Chris Wright (founder and former CTO of DeltaDNA (sold to Unity Software)
🌱 08/10, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Intro to Life Sciences Tech Scaleup Support: Are you a founder or professional in the Life Sciences Tech sector, eager to scale up your startup and bring your groundbreaking software solutions or innovative products to market? Join us for an online event crafted exclusively for the brightest minds in the Highlands and Islands! MORE INFO
💼 09/10, 09:00 🗺️ Aberdeen: Planned Maintenance & Asset Management: Learn to think lean as we support you through the development of a continuous improvement plan aligned with energy transition priorities. MORE INFO
🌈 09/10, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Heads Together: Social Innovations in Mental Wellness: At this event, we will explore how our personal and professional mental health is supported by charities, social enterprises, and campaigns with a population with healthy wellbeing at its heart. MORE INFO
🚀 09/10, 18:00 🗺️ Online: 4 Steps to Build a Brand that Turns Heads: Brian Button of Your Business Needs a Brand joins us to walk through the steps the best brands in the world take to identify their unique value proposition, as well as build out the full scope of their brand experience. He’s here to help you and your startup do the same. MORE INFO
🎤 10/10, 10:00 🗺️ Dundee: Pitch Perfect Presentation Skills: This will be a full day programme from 10:00 till 16:00 with a talk and workshop from Greg Summers on pitching and public speaking and a chance for people to present their practice pitches in the afternoon. MORE INFO
🤝 11/10, 09:30 🗺️ Online: Online Coworking Session - Week 3: This event is designed to foster accountability and provide a sense of community as participants work together towards their goals. Whether you're a freelancer, entrepreneur, or remote worker, this virtual coworking session offers a platform to share ideas, seek advice, and celebrate achievements. MORE INFO'
🥂 14/10, 18:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Startup Founders Meetup - October 2024: Each month, we'll have a combination of tactical fireside chats with experienced entrepreneurs and plenty of opportunities to network with other founders, potential cofounders, and investors. MORE INFO
📅 14/10, 18:30 🗺️ Inverness: Inverness Tech Meetup: No matter your experience level or intentions, please book a ticket as places are limited. MORE INFO
🦅 15/10, 10:00 🗺️ Aberdeen: Eagle Has landed - Barclays Eagle labs October Drop in Clinic: Drop in and let’s have an open discussion about your business goals and ambition and learn more about how your ecosystem manager here at Eagle Labs can support you and your business here at One Tech Hub. MORE INFO
🎯 15/10, 18:00 🗺️ Online: Flip Your Switch for Success: Author and leadership coach Dr. Teri Baydar joins us once again to take a deep dive into the world of uncertainty, personal and professional leadership, and how to best understand our mind and how to "Flip the Switch" as we work toward fulfillment and success. MORE INFO
🌱 17/10, 12:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Brussels Sprouts New Ideas: Cultivating Social Impact in the EU Soil: Join us for this session, where Flanders Investment & Trade, part of the Embassy of Belgium, invites social enterprises to deepen their roots in the European market. This event is a unique opportunity for socially-driven organisations to gain insights into UK-EU dynamics and explore avenues for meaningful engagement within the European community, particularly in the vibrant region of Flanders, Belgium. MORE INFO
🔗 17/10, 17:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Blockchain Scotland Meetup: Welcome to the Monthly Blockchain Scotland Meetup at the Bayes Centre in Edinburgh. The event takes place at the ground floor in G.03. MORE INFO
📢 17/10, 18:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Founders Live Edinburgh: Bring your friends and co-workers, grab some food and drink, get to know your local entrepreneurs and vote for the next big thing. With city leader Matthew Cameron. MORE INFO
🌟 18/10, 10:30 🗺️ Sirling: Stirling Science Festival - Game Design Workshop: In this workshop games composer & hobbyist game maker Luci Holland will teach the basics of using Bitsy, and guide you to make your own short game & artwork. MORE INFO
🎉 22/10, 17:00 🗺️ Stirling: CodeBase Black History Month Celebration: This event is set to be an inspiring evening, showcasing the achievements and insights of successful Black leaders from various industries. MORE INFO
🤝 22/10, 18:00 🗺️ Glasgow: Third Sector Lab and CodeBase: Digital Trustees Matchmaking Event: The informal matchmaking event to get more digital, data and design professionals on third sector boards. MORE INFO
🎯 22/10, 18:00 🗺️ Glasgow: Third Sector Lab and CodeBase: Digital Trustees Matchmaking Event: A Digital Trustee is a volunteer with experience in digital, data or design who sits on the Board of a third sector organisation. They provide guidance to the organisation around how they can best make use of digital as well as insight into best digital practices. MORE INFO
💼 23/10, 13:30 🗺️ Stirling: Central Scotland Office Hours: This event is designed for Central Scotland founders and Techscaler members seeking personalized 1:1 expert advice on legal, accounting, product development, and sales, or help with challenges in their startup journey. It’s also a chance to learn more about the Techscaler program and the various education courses we offer. MORE INFO
🍺 23/30, 18:00 🗺️ Glasgow: Glasgow- Small99's People, Planet, Pint™: Sustainability Meetup: Pop down to your local People Planet Pint meetup to find more about what's going on locally with sustainability and how you can get involved. MORE INFO
💻 23/10, 18:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Organisational and People Development Meetup: This is really for anyone who is interested in people, team, leadership and organizational development and who wants to be share their interest with others. MORE INFO
🚀 24/10, 08:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Digital Transformation Summit 2024: DT2024 will contextualise the key technology trends and industry disruption amidst a backdrop of significant socio-economic upheaval. The event will also consider the role of technology leaders in driving positive transformation, exploring how we can help support operations, drive innovation, overcome challenges, and deliver tangible business benefits. MORE INFO
💼 24/10, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Business & Finance for PMs: Join us on 24th October for an enlightening session on business skills for product people and financial modelling. We’re thrilled to welcome two incredible speakers, Dr. Viktoria Korzhova (VP Product & COO, Product People) and Rebecca Mortimer (Senior Product Manager, BBC Maestro), who will be sharing their unique insights and experiences on this topic. MORE INFO
🧠 24/10, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Innovation: Past & Present: Delve into the past, present and future of innovation in Edinburgh by joining an inspiring tour organised by Invisible Cities, visiting places like Scottish Design Exchange. MORE INFO
🔥 24/10, 18:00 🗺️ Dundee: Founder's Life Fireside Chat (hybrid): Join us in the Abertay cyberQuarter & online via Zoom for a discussion about the personal and professional challenges of being a startup founder. Lara Findlay, our Head of Regional Engagement, and Ian Martin, CodeBase's Head of Startup Experience, will be discussing topics such as stress, work-life balance and co-founders. MORE INFO
🍺 24/10, 18:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Edinburgh - Small99's People, Planet, Pint™: Sustainability Meetup: Pop down to your local People Planet Pint meetup to find more about what's going on locally with sustainability and how you can get involved. MORE INFO
🤝 25/10, 08:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Coworking Open Day by The Melting Pot: Are you interested in becoming a member of our vibrant community? If so, we invite you to experience working from our friendly and professional shared workspace for an entire day completely free of charge. MORE INFO
💻 25/10, 09:30 🗺️ Online: Online Coworking Session - Week 4: This event is designed to foster accountability and provide a sense of community as participants work together towards their goals. Whether you're a freelancer, entrepreneur, or remote worker, this virtual coworking session offers a platform to share ideas, seek advice, and celebrate achievements. MORE INFO
🚩👷♀️ 29/10, 09:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Future of Proptech in Scotland Chapter 2 Ideation: If you work in property, construction, built environment, proptech or tech this is the event for you. Bring your best thinking hats and get ready for a deep dive into what the future of proptech could look like. MORE INFO
🚩📢 29/10, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Transatlantic M&A: Sold in the USA!: Join Shepherd and Wedderburn’s Stephen Trombala as he leads a panel of entrepreneurs discussing how they started, financed, and grew their businesses, sharing key lessons, highs, and lows from their journeys. MORE INFO
👩🏻💻 29/10, 18:00 🗺️ Dundee: Dundee Data Meetup: Join us for an evening of insights into public sector data use and innovations, featuring two expert speakers from the Scottish Government and DeepMiner. MORE INFO
💡 30/10, 15:30 🗺️ Kirkcaldy: Lightbulb Sessions: Fife Creative Tech Workshop and Meetup: The Lightbulb Sessions are monthly workshops looking at a different aspects of data driven theatre: From exploring what data driven tech is and how you could/should use it, to IP and contracts, from finding and commissioning technologists, to designing inclusivity and accessibility into new tech, to thinking about security and ecologically responsible tech. MORE INFO
🤝 30/10, 18:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Entrepreneurs Social Club (ESC) - October 2024: Skip the talks, presentations and lectures - in favour of going straight to the bar, where real connections are made! MORE INFO
🍺 30/10, 19:00 🗺️ Aberdeen: Aberdeen - Small99's People, Planet, Pint™: Sustainability Meetup: Pop down to your local People Planet Pint meetup to find more about what's going on locally with sustainability and how you can get involved. MORE INFO
👨🏾🦱 31/10, 12:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Scottish Ethnic Minority Talent Summit and festival: The event will bring together new perspectives and deeper insights, focusing on developing talent pipelines and fostering a more inclusive future for Scotland’s economic growth and resilience. MORE INFO
🎃 31/10, 17:00 🗺️ Stirling: CodeBase Stirling Halloween Social: Get ready for a spooktacular evening with CodeBase this Halloween! Whether you're a long-time member or new to the Stirling community, join us for a fun-filled night of food, drinks, and lively conversations. MORE INFO
🎯 Deadlines
🇬🇧 Upcoming Innovate UK deadlines:
Cyber Local Applications close 9 October
Contracts for Innovation: AI tools for education Applications close 9 October
Analysis for Innovators Round 14: Stage 1 EOI Applications close 9 October
Quantum CR&D Demonstrators for Position, Navigation and Timing Applications due 9 October
Contracts for Innovation: International Rail Innovation Challenges Applications close 16 October
Biomedical Catalyst 2024 Round 1: Industry-led R&D Applications close 16 October
Innovate UK Smart grants: July 2024 Applications close 23 October
Innovate UK innovation loans future economy: Round 17 Applications close 30 October
Eureka Globalstars Japan Round 3 Applications close 4 December
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That’s all for this week - have a great one!
Team 🔥 Campfire