18 September 2018

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The Big House at Nottingham Trent University (NTU), the Knowledge Transfer Network (KTN) and Derby Quad’s Mainframe jointly present the opportunity for Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire-based businesses to compete for a chance to pitch to investors looking to support the creative and tech businesses of the future.


Digital businesses get a chance to compete to pitch for investment as part of the Investment Readiness series

Businesses innovating with new or existing technology will compete for a place on the Elevator Showcase on 7th November 2018 where they will pitch to angel investors, equity funders and venture capitalists. The event brings together Mercia Technologies, The Foresight Group, Minerva Business Angel Network, Edge Investment, Accelerated Digital Ventures, Shadow Foundr and Enterprise Loans. Each investor has a different focus so we encourage ambitious businesses at different stages in their life cycle to apply.

"This is a fantastic opportunity for tech businesses to secure the investment that they need. At the very least participants will have the chance to understand the pitch process, better define their offering and get constructive and practical feedback to improve their chances of securing investment in the future. Only six businesses will be selected to get in front of our panel of investors. They will really need to prove themselves and we are offering the support to help them do that."
Kate Ling
Project Manager at NTU’s Business School

Those businesses that want to understand the investor journey better and improve their investment readiness are encouraged to join the accompanying two full-day workshops taking place in October. Led by the Knowledge Transfer Network, the sessions will help innovative tech businesses prepare an investment pitch and compete for a place on the showcase. Participants will find out more about the investment ecosystem, develop a toolkit and practice their pitch with peers and professionals so they can compete for a place on the showcase. The sessions will also include an overview of the investor perspective by Richard Blakesey of Capital Pilot.

"Equity finance is widely accepted as an important ingredient for businesses with potential for high growth. The Midlands is home to exciting and high growth businesses and its important to highlight these investment opportunities by bringing these kinds of events to the East Midlands for early stage businesses and the investment community."
Charlotte Thompson
Access to Funding & Finance at the Knowledge Transfer Network
"It is great to be working on a project which joins up the D2N2 growth hub areas. Derby is a top rated area for tech businesses and employment in high tech industries. With a renowned history and heritage of innovation, ideas and technology with companies such as Rolls Royce, Toyota and Bombardier, this is an excellent opportunity for early stage Derby businesses to secure investment to follow in their footsteps."
Hana York
Marketing Manager from Mainframe at Derby Quad

In addition, later in the year, NTU Business School will also be running the new Big House Accelerator. This bespoke programme will accelerate the growth of ambitious, tech SMEs based in Nottinghamshire or Derbyshire. Around ten businesses will receive exclusive support tailored to their specific business needs. The programme will run from late 2018 to mid-2019.

For more details about events and free business support available to businesses in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire through The Big House project, visit www.bighouse.org.uk.