Venturefest South: 5 Remarkable Innovators From Previous Years
By far the best thing about attending Venturefest South is seeing all the wonderfully inventive and inspirational ideas from talented innovators across the South.
Creators and entrepreneurs come together to showcase their different ideas and products; most designed to solve problems across a wide variety of different business sectors. It’s an eye-opening show with something for everyone.
Join us as we look back at some of the more memorable innovations, and inspiring innovators, of the last eight years of Venturefest South. This is certainly not a definitive list, as we could have quite easily filled this article with many more.
B-UDS | Scannetix (Venturefest South 2023)
According to Scannetix’s website, the UK alone sees about 60,000 utility strikes. Staff safety and wellbeing therefore should be paramount for employers, so anything that makes this job easier, and can help to reduce this number, is of considerable importance and value.
Helping utilities and civil contractors reduce the risk of costly, dangerous utility accidents; B-UDS is a device that provides all-round protection for digging and excavating by detecting and avoiding underground assets.
Founder Jamie Tong came up with the concept after witnessing a harrowing utility incident and feeling a need to do more to help prevent them from happening again in the future.
Qwickhose (Venturefest South 2022)
Billing itself as ‘the hose-connector that won’t pop off’, Qwickhose provides a range of premium-grade hosepipe connectors that are super robust, super quick to attach (four easy steps) and serve as a super no-fuss solution for gardeners.
Its patented wing-lock connector grips to hoses like a vice, preventing them from coming off when the water pressure hits high levels (and you getting soaked as a result).
The product has garnered quite a bit of media attention, appearing in Ideal Home, Design Week, and Gardners World Magazine, to name but a few.
SplashMaps (Venturefest South 2022)
Going on an adventure anytime soon? Well, before setting off, rather than pack a map, why not wear one?
That’s the concept behind SplashMaps, which combines an all-weather map with an all-weather scarf. Created from a special recipe of fabrics, the maps are versatile, durable and lightweight.
Like all good innovations, the story behind it is as interesting as the product itself. Co-founder and MD, David Overton, was riding his bike and found himself struggling with a paper map. He then recalled wartime silk escape and evasion maps, and this led to the creation of SplashMaps.
Maverick Aviation (Venturefest South 2021)
When it comes to innovation, the sky really is the limit. Never could this be truer than for Maverick Aviation, who specialise in the design and build of awesome aviation tech.
Their products include a heavy lift Unmanned Autonomous Vehicle (a posh description of a drone), and a patent pending flight control system (a posh description of a jetpack) with a 3 to 5-mile range and 150kg lift capacity.
The latter certainly caught the attention of Venturefest South Chair, Ed Gould, who can be seen here donning said jetpack and trying to do his best Tony Stark impression.
Human Beauty (Venturefest South 2021)
Millie Flemington-Clare is the founder of Human Beauty, and her story is truly inspirational. She was born with a rare condition called Cystinosis, which causes a buildup of an amino acid in human cells.
Growing up, this impacted her confidence, so she used makeup as way to build it back up and this eventually led to her setting up her own e-cosmetics business.
Human Beauty specialise in products that are of high quality and easy to use. They are also tested by a diverse panel, including those with a range of disabilities. This is to ensure they cater for people with different needs.
See more great innovations at Venturefest South 2024
This year’s Venturefest South is gearing up to be another great show, with more great innovators demonstrating amazing products and ideas. For tickets to this year’s event on 14 November, click here
