A number of Strathclyde Business School students and graduates have got through to the final round of the Converge Challenge. Their business ideas are Revive, Smoove, Palm Present and Pick Protection. Revive and Smoove are through in the Social Enterprise category, Palm Present in the KickStart category and Pick Protection in the Converge Challenge category.
The next phase will be judged by an external expert panel of judges drawn from across the business community, creating a diverse panel of expert who run, influence, evaluate, research and write about entrepreneurial and business ventures. There are three winning categories for the Converge Challenge 2015: Converge Challenge Award, KickStart Award and Social Enterprise Award.
The external judging panel will meet in early September to review and consider all business plans. For the Converge Challenge the judging panel will select the top 6 to progress through to the investor pitch stage. The six Converge Challenge finalists will be required to deliver a ten-minute investor pitch to this same panel on the 29th September 2015. The venue is Strathclyde’s Technology and Innovation Centre, Glasgow. They will then attend the Awards Dinner which takes place that evening at the Barony Hall, University of Strathclyde from 6pm where the winners will be announced in each of the categories.
Revive have a double reason to celebrate as they have now officially launched their product, conceived as an idea while studying at the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship. As a result of their idea, they were selected to take part in the Values and Ventures international business plan competition in the USA.
The launch night for Revive’s product took place on August 20 in Glasgow. Made from used coffee beans, the recycled beans are sold on as natural plant food.