As an agency we’re lucky to be involved with a great business incubator/accelerator initiative based in the South West called The Seed. A collaboration of six businesses which together will provide one young, up and coming food or drink business with a range of services from marketing, brand planning, PR + social media (that’s our role!), financial guidance, publishing and business mentoring.

On Wednesday this week I attended the first round of judging to find a worthy winner of this year’s Seed Fund and how fascinating it was. Not only was I inspired by my fellow judges, who are all very successful and experts in their fields, but all the 2014 entrants had something special to offer.

What was equally fascinating, and is always the cornerstone of what underpins a strong PR campaign for a start-up business or young, growing brand, were the wide ranging reasons that have led people to take the plunge and start their own business – more often than not involving huge personal risk and financial uncertainty. The entrepreneurial mind set was  captivating and after interesting debate and discussion we have reached a shortlist of four great businesses who we will meet at the next judging stage.

All will be revealed in the next few days but suffice to say – this year’s broad range of entrants has certainly got my taste buds going: chilli jams, chutneys, gluten free cake, vitamin water, nut snacks, curries, pizzas, cake mixes, herbal teas, potted fish and mushrooms to name a few.
Follow: @TheSeedSW