Successful SEED competition at Venturefest 2015

The competition offers an opportunity to show off imaginative ideas and win support from businesses. The 13 were invited to pitch their ideas to a judging panel made up of local business people. The finalists were also able to take part in Venturefest 2015 at York Racecourse and set up their stands at the regional business event.

Darrell Hooper, Phoenix Business and Innovation Manager, who ran the competition, said: “The feedback we’ve received has been really good. Lots of people came along and all the competition teams got a lot out of it including networking opportunities and inspiration to further their business ideas.”

The SEED competition was open to all York St John University students and graduates (up to five years) and the top prize included more than £8,000 worth of business support including design, sales and legal services and training. The runner up and ‘one to watch’ also secured £3,000 worth of support.

On the judging panel were Mat Lazenby (from LazenbyBrown), Jon Stearne (Exactis Print), Mark Bates (Whitewall Services), Matthew Morton (Morton Legal) and Mark Fordyce.

The competition was won by David Young, from InterACT, and his Theremin Bollards which are interactive sound sculptures. The bollards use technology to pick up a person’s distance and create a sound relevant to that measurement. The former Music Composition student has already had success exhibiting his sculptures and entered the competition to help him develop the design to be used as a therapy device.

Philip Crooks was runner up and Andrew Truglia was judged the ‘one to watch’ by the panel.

Philip is a current Product Design student who had designed a desk that can be personalised to the user. While English Language and Linguistics student Andrew who had ideas for a new sausage business.

Other York St John activities at the event, of which the University was a silver sponsor, included a Masterclass in Digital Marketing run by David Norris Head of Department: Leadership, Accounting and Marketing at the University’s Business School.