-
Dock & Bay
Dock & Bay was created in 2015 to reinvent the beach towel. The company’s lightweight towels are made from recycled plastic bottles and are quick drying, compact and sand repellent. In 2017, co-founders Andy Jefferies and Ben Muller appeared on the BBC’s Dragons’ Den, securing a £75,000 investment from Deborah Meaden in exchange for a 10% stake. The London-based business has warehouses on three continents and has expanded its eco-friendly product range to include hair wraps, make-up removers, ponchos and more, all using materials made from recycled plastic bottles building on its mission to become a sustainable lifestyle brand. Sales have doubled in two years, reaching £8.4m in 2021.
-
Dear Frances
This fashion brand works with artisan shoemakers in Italy to create luxury footwear for women. It uses sustainable materials and processes, and its high-end collections include an eco-friendly vegan range made from apple waste. Designer Jane Frances co-founded the label in 2016 with her husband, Scott O’Connor, who is chief executive. The London digitally native business sells primarily online via its global website but also partners with luxury retail outlets on four continents. It has raised a total of £2.5m from investors including KSR Ventures.
-
Biscuiteers
Creating hand-iced biscuits to mark any occasion, this bakery sells to customers in 117 countries. Its treats include Mr Men letterbox biscuits, tins of flower-shaped biscuits designed in partnership with the RHS, and a special collection to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee. Biscuiteers trades online and through stockists such as Selfridges, Waitrose and Harvey Nichols. It also offers masterclasses in biscuit icing at its cafes in Belgravia and Notting Hill. Managing director Harriet Hastings founded the firm in 2007 with her husband, Stevie Congdon. The company moved to a new production centre in Wimbledon in 2019, and sales topped £11m last year.
-
Bio&Me
England football captain Harry Kane is one of the investors behind this gut health brand, which raised £1.4m in March. Dr Megan Rossi, a gut health specialist and research fellow at King’s College London, joined forces with chief executive Jon Walsh to launch the business in 2019 with a range of ‘good for the gut’ granolas. They have expanded the brand to mueslis, porridges and live yoghurts, and retail sales hit £2.8m last year. The products are stocked in more than 1,400 stores nationwide, such as Sainsbury’s and Waitrose, and celebrity fans include Davina McCall.
-
Bevvy
This technology start-up unlocks the world of whisky. It has developed proprietary image capturing software that allows mobile phones to scan and identify any bottle of the ‘golden elixir’. The Bevvy app displays a variety of information on the scanned whisky, including an estimated valuation, tasting notes, user ratings and distillery history. Its database stores details of more than 200,000 bottles, and the app is aimed at anyone from novices to collectors and distillery owners. Headquartered on the Isle of Islay, the company was set up in 2021 by leading whisky expert Laurie Black, and entrepreneur Luke Heron, co-founder of medtech firm TestCard.
-
Audoo
This start-up is transforming the way music royalties are paid. The Audoo Audio Meter™ tracks and identifies music played in public places, such as shops, gyms and bars. The data is sent to performing right organisations to ensure that artists are compensated for their work. Musician Ryan Edwards founded the London firm in 2018 after hearing his own top 10 hit being played in a department store. Audoo has since raised more than £14m from investors including Sir Paul McCartney and ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus. This year, it plans to roll out its technology across Europe, North America and the Asia-Pacific region.