Biotech startups pitch for supporters at Alderley Park

Business founders from across the North West and Midlands came together at the Alderley Park biosciences hub this week in the latest installment of Pitch@Palace On Tour.

The Cheshire event gave entrepreneurs working in biotech the chance to pitch their ideas to potential supporters, including CEOs, mentors, key business partners and investors.

Three finalists chosen from the competing businesses will now attend a bootcamp event at Cambridge University later this month, before joining other UK finalists in March as they pitch to the Duke of York and several hundred people in business

Memrica Prompt, a digital memory tool to help people living with brain injuries and conditions such as early dementia, was one of the winners of the Alderley Park round, as was Promedstem, a company developing a stem cell product to improve the healing outcomes of those recovering from surgical reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament found in the knee.

Exyo Design, which creates medical aid devices such as posture walkers, was the third business to progress to the final.

Richard Heggie, the head of high growth and entrepreneurs at Barclays, which is a partner of the Pitch@Palace event, said: “We are pleased to support such a fantastic initiative which provides a unique platform for a whole range of innovative businesses.

“Our aim at Barclays is to help and support ambitious businesses and their founders at all stages of growth, particularly during scale up.”

The founder of Memrica Prompt, Mary Matthews, said she is delighted to have won a place at the Pitch@Palace bootcamp, given the strength of the pitches from the other competing startups.

She continued: “[Pitch@Palace] is a fantastic initiative to help start ups like mine raise their profile with influential business leaders and supporters, who can really accelerate the company’s success.

“I am really looking forward to bootcamp to gain valuable insights and feedback and perfect my pitch to secure a place at the final event at St James’s Palace.”