Orega Announces #StartMeUp Pitch Competition Winners

• Serviced office company Orega has chosen two winners for its #StartMeUp Pitch competition in Liverpool and Aberdeen.
• Each winner receives six months’ free office space worth £10,000.
• The competition follows on from Orega’s first #StartMeUp Pitch, which took place in Orega MediaCityUK earlier this year.

Serviced office provider Orega has announced the winners of its second and third #StartMeUp Pitch competitions – social media growth agency Social Burst in Liverpool and ingredient-checking app LiberEat in Aberdeen.

Following the success of their first competition in Manchester earlier in 2017, Orega’s next #StartMeUp Pitch asked local businesses in Liverpool and Aberdeen to submit short business pitches online, with the finalists making it through to pitch face-to-face in early December.

In Liverpool, Social Burst’s founder and director Alex Lloyd and fellow directors Scott Evans and Dave Tompkins impressed the Liverpool judging panel with their social media growth service. They beat the two other finalists – Kinicho and Kin Probate – to the big prize, thanks to the scalability of their business.

In Aberdeen, LiberEat’s founder, Barry Leaper faced tough competition, pitching his app-based business against four other finalists – The Gin Room Scotland, Almascore, The Property Angel and Maisie-Jane.com.

Leaper’s innovative app makes it easier for people with food restrictions to eat out at restaurants, cook at home and shop at the supermarket, whether they have food allergies, are vegan/vegetarian or need to avoid certain foods for religious reasons.

Each winner receives six months’ free office space worth £10,000 in prestigious Orega locations, with Social Burst moving into 20 Chapel Street in Liverpool and LiberEat setting up in Aberdeen’s Silver Fin building.

Orega’s managing director, Zach Douglas, explained the inspiration behind the competition: “We wanted to connect with the local business community in the areas where we have new Orega locations.

“I know personally how hard it is to take your business to the next level so giving these aspiring companies the opportunity to have office space in a great location along with the additional professional support from our teams seemed the best way to do this.

“The process has been a fantastic journey, and we were blown away by the amount of talented business owners in both Liverpool and Aberdeen.”

Alex Lloyd of Social Burst said: “The whole process has helped us shape the direction of our business. It was great to be able to pitch in front of established business owners, and we were very happy to win. This is going to propel our company forward in 2018.”

Leaper said: “It was really great to win the competition, especially against a very strong group of entrepreneurs. Orega Aberdeen will be a great place to take LiberEat to the next level.

“For anyone looking to enter future #StartMeUp Pitches with Orega, just go for it! It was a really great experience, and we have learnt a lot about our business in the process.”