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Six very different local companies have been named Regional Winners in the ‘Best New Start’ and ‘Best Early Stage’ company categories in InterTradeIreland’s Seedcorn Investor Readiness Competition 2018, which has earned them each a prize of €20,000.
Delivering an investment pitch in front of an expert judging panel, they fought off tough competition from other local companies to win the cash prize fund to contribute to their business growth.
New Start Category
DropChef, Dublin
In Association with
DropChef is a subscription-based food delivery service. DropChef allows customers to cook a healthy and delicious dinner in 20-30 minutes and eliminate their food waste, making cooking a healthy dinner simple.
ARQ Asset Solutions Ltd, Cork
The company has developed an inline machinery oil condition sensor for industrial application (power generation turbines, standby generators, mining equipment etc.) that can transmit real-time readings to the ‘cloud’. It can then alert the machinery owner of a potential breakdown in sufficient time to plan a maintenance intervention and eliminate costly downtime/loss of production.
HidraMed Solutions Ltd, Galway
HidraMed Solutions provides Hidradenitis Suppurativa sufferers with unique wound care solutions for adhesive-free dressing retention. HS is a debilitating skin disease affection at least 1% of the general population.
Early Stage Category
InvizBox, Dublin
InvizBox is a cybersecurity company focused on making it easy for people to protect their privacy online. It has a range of products that encrypt all of the traffic before sending data across the internet, much like putting mail into an envelope.
InvizBox has sold to customers in over 60 countries around the world and featured in major journals, including Forbes, Ars Technica and Wired.
Class Medical, Limerick
Class Medical was spun out of the University of Limerick in 2014 to bring the TUC safety valve to market. The TUC safety valve prevents the inadvertent over-inflation of an anchoring balloon of a urology catheter in the urethra (urine passage), addressing a worldwide medical issue. Currently, the firm's principals are exploring sales opportunities within Ireland, the UK and the USA.
Loci Orthopaedics, Galway
Loci Orthopaedics is developing and commercialising a novel orthopaedic implant for the treatment of thumb base joint arthritis. The implant is called the 'InDx' implant and is the first implant designed for use in this joint that fully recreates the natural motions of the joint post-implantation.
All six regional winners will now progress to the grand final of the competition, where they have a chance to increase their winnings to €50,000 or €100,000, if they are named either category or overall winner at the all-island event.
They will pitch to a panel of judges at the all-island final, taking place in Belfast on 22 November 2018, with the overall winner and category winner announced that evening at a gala awards ceremony at St Anne’s Cathedral in Belfast.
Now in its 16th year, Seedcorn is Ireland’s biggest business competition for innovative new start and early stage businesses in any sector. The competition has an overall cash prize fund of €280,000, with participants also benefiting from promotional opportunities, business planning workshops and mentorship support throughout the competition, helping to make each firm’s concept ‘investor-ready’.
Speaking about the regional finalists, Shane O’Hanlon (pictured), Funding for Growth Manager at InterTradeIreland, said: “To get to a regional final, companies have already successfully submitted a visual representation of their business idea and a full business plan, so I’m delighted to offer my congratulations to all those who have reached this crucial stage.”
The competition can be followed on Twitter @iti_seedcorn and by using #ITIseedcorn, as well as on the website www.intertradeireland.com/seedcorn.
