Start-up owners can now apply to become one of several finalists in with a chance of winning a free grant of £2,000 and a mentorship programme with the businessman Simon Lancaster, the staff at SJL Insurance, their suppliers and associates. The chosen finalists from across the country will pitch to a panel of judges and an audience of invited guests at the Houses of Parliament on 3 June 2020.
The judges will include:
- Simon Lancaster, CEO and founder of global insurance broker SJL Insurance which is one of the UK’s largest owner-owned insurance brokers, founder and trustee of the SJL Foundation
- Rachel Elnaugh, Dragon in BBC Dragons Den series 1 and 2, founder of Red Letter Days, co-founder of Source.TV, author, speaker, and business mentor
- Kerry Hopkins, CEO of broadcast PR agency Broadcast Ready, who has experience of PR’ing the world’s largest corporations and start-ups and former national ITV and former BBC TV journalist
- John Auckland, CEO of Tribe First, crowdfunding expert who’s raised over £30m, and Virgin start-up crowdfunding trainer
To enter the competition, entrants need to email foundation@sjlins.co.uk to ask for an application form and submit their completed application form by the closing date of Monday 2 March 2020. All applicants must be available to travel to London on the 3rd of June 2020 for the event, if they are chosen as a successful finalist.