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Female business owners offered £18,000 business boost with Virgin StartUp and Fiverr

August 21, 2024

Female founders looking to scale their business are being given the chance to win £18,000 in business support as part of a competition that will see them pitch in front of a live audience to an experienced all-female investor-panel, including Holly Branson.

The Female Founders Competition is a collaboration between freelance marketplace Fiverr and not-for-profit Virgin StartUp. Any UK-based female founder can enter and four finalists will be paired up with a top female business mentor for six weeks and given £3,000 in Fiverr credits to build their business ideas. This year’s mentors include Julie Waddell, the founder of Moorish Dips; Elsie Rutterford, founder of vegan skincare brand, BYBI Beauty; Raissa de Haas, co-founder of Double Dutch premium mixers and Sarah Welsch, co-founder of sex wellness brand, Hanx.

The final four will then present their business growth plan in-front of an all-female judging panel in London on 13 November where one winner will receive an additional £15,000 in Fiverr credits and a year’s free membership to Virgin StartUp’s new digital Community – an online home for entrepreneurs who want to connect with likeminded founders and access 1:1 mentoring, courses and more.

Holly Branson, Chief Purpose and Vision Officer, Virgin Group comments: “I’m thrilled to be involved in this year’s competition as a judge. Championing female founders is something we’re really passionate about at Virgin StartUp and this competition is a fantastic opportunity for female founders to connect, access valuable mentorship and receive financial support so they can take their business to the next level. I can’t wait to meet the finalists and hear more about their journeys so far and their dreams to build successful businesses that will fuel the UK entrepreneurial economy for years to come!”

More than 700 female founders entered the competition last year, which was won by Anna Moynihan, the co-founder of TaskHer, an online booking platform for tradeswomen including plumbers, electricians and heating and gas engineers. Anna set-up the business in 2021 with her husband Paul after they noticed firsthand the gender bias in the trade industry while having work done on their home.

Speaking about how the Female Founders competition supported her business, Anna comments: “It’s been an exciting year for TaskHer. The competition prize has proved invaluable when growing our business, giving us the opportunity to do things like experiment with AI, re-design our website, up our SEO game, improve our product user experience and create a library of content for our paid socials. Being able to hand projects to freelancers with specialist skills has massively freed up our time meaning we can focus on other areas of our business. We’re now raising seed funding for TaskHer’s next growth phase and we know we will be able to rely on freelancers to support us in both our fundraise and growth.”

Gali Arnon, Chief Business Officer, Fiverr commented: “Following the success of last year’s The Female Founders Competition, we are thrilled to be partnering with Virgin StartUp again and couldn’t be prouder to help shine a light on some of the UK’s most innovative and forward thinking female entrepreneurs. By giving them access to some of the best freelance talent available, this year’s winner will be able to elevate their offering. I’m excited to hear more about the finalists’ journeys and what they plan to do with the financial boost if they are successful.”