We've already helped tens of thousands of individuals to start and grow their business. Learn how with our library of success stories.
We've already helped tens of thousands of individuals to start and grow their business. Read on for the full story on some of our most inspiring loan recipients: why they became their own boss, the challenges they faced and overcame along the way and how a Start Up Loan helped them to achieve their dreams.
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Lifeline24 is a national telecare provider based in Norwich which supplies personal alarms to frail, elderly and disabled people living across the United Kingdom. The business was founded by Simon and his wife Treena after they noticed a gap in the market for an affordable personal alarm service which can be relied upon for excellent customer service. This arose from Simon’s position in a charity which he worked for after leaving the City of London. During his time there he had become frustrated at the amount of red tape and inflexibility of the organization.
Stewart Hilton and his partner Rob White set up Zeal Creative, a promotional marketing company, after becoming frustrated with opportunities while working as part of a larger marketing agency.
Brian Stoneman secured a Start Up Loan of £6,600 in March 2017 to put towards the running of Academy ICT. The business provides IT solutions for schools via a range of different services.
Steve Wileman used funding from the Start Up Loans scheme to help co-found the eLearning consultancy business, Enlighten-Ac. Steve and his business partner Suzanne Edwards have a passion for educational solutions, and, along with their lead content developer Billy, and their technical knowledge they constantly exceed customer expectations. They offer eLearning solutions customised to each of their clients’ visions, which can include everything from course writing to augmented and virtual reality services.
David Sanchez is the founder and owner of Pencil & Fork, a business which provides an innovative approach to learning using food. Pencil & Fork was set up in 2013 and is situated in Worcester Park in Sutton, South London.
In June 2010, whilst researching headphone amplifiers, Garry Wise, spurred on by his passion for both hi-fi and music, decided to build his very own. Shortly after he began the process he decided that he wanted to go one step further and develop his own range of hi-fi components. The opportunity to combine both his passion for music and an interest in UK based manufacturing has been hugely exciting for him. Two years later Kleio was formed, with a simple objective: to design and build high-end audio which makes music enjoyable.
Katie had a genuine interest and passion for art, carpentry and upholstery. To enhance her talents she took a number of relevant courses at Glasgow College in 2013 and 2014 to secure a series of industry-recognised qualifications. This led to her submitting a piece into the Trades House Craftex competition in 2015 and was presented with the Marie Haring Prize for exceptional work and effort. Katie leveraged her customer service experience and years of various work experience to go solo, and launched The Krooked Kat in Perth, Scotland.
Almudena and Claudia, two childhood friends from Southern Spain, set up Bilingual Beats in October 2013. Bilingual Beats provides music language classes to children in London schools and nurseries, as well as hosting parties and family classes.
Jacqueline Hall from Essex decided to set up her own business, DALE Coaching Ltd, after she had been made redundant and turned down from various job interviews. Jacqueline is a self-motivated, strong and determined lady who wanted to offer coaching services in areas such as leadership, executive coaching and youth leadership in and around the Greater London area.
John Otagburuagu founded Black Cowboy Coffee in August 2015. As the name might suggest, the street cafe serves coffee and waffles (as well as smoothies and other foods). As for the black cowboy, well that’s John.
Michaela is truly the definition of an ambitious and hard-working woman. As a single mother with two children she has managed to maintain a part-time job and also start up her own business, Miles & Mia.
Michelle Forsbrey is a keen surfer, skier and swimmer. When she’s not working as a flight attendant she is drawn to the ocean, beach and water; a true Mermaid at heart.
Julian and his business partner, Toni, started their web design company after receiving funding from the Start Up Loans Company. MBJ London offers clients an affordable monthly subscription which provides them with a team of experts to guide them through the preliminary stages of branding, design and beyond.
The Poptata story began in May 2015 with a temporary gazebo set up at London’s Portobello Road market over the weekend. Marco and Luca wanted to share their passion for Fries with Londoners, they knew they would love them.
Georgie Mitchell gave up her job as a university lecturer teaching Child Development and Counselling and used a £7000 Start Up Loan to launch The Nests Little Smallholding, a rare breeds farm in the Ribble Valley, near Burnley, Lancashire.
Joel Griggs grew up fascinated with all things crime related. After spotting some abandoned caves along the Hastings waterfront -caves which turned out to have previously housed everything from hotel generators to druid groups at the turn of the 19th century- he immediately saw their potential.
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