At sea safety, the renewables industry, and designing better workwear for women are amongst the award winning businesses at the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) Business Competition 2024.

Top spot went to Keith Wilcox from Dufftown for his business ‘Lodestone Leashes’, which makes paddleboard safety products.

Keith impressed the judges with his patented release technology for paddleboard leashes, which reliably and automatically separates the board from the user if the leash gets caught on a hazard, ultimately preventing drowning. He won the top prize of £1,000, along with a combined legal and accountancy package from sponsors Harper Macleod LLP and Johnston Carmichael.

 Keith said:

“The UHI Business Competition has been a fantastic opportunity. Winning the top prize gives us a huge boost at our early stage. The legal and accounting support will enable us to work on patent licensing, and the prize money will support our next production run. We simply couldn’t do this without this support.  It was great to see how FlyHighland has grown since they won last year, and I’m looking forward to seeing what Lodestone Leashes has achieved by next year.”

The awards ceremony was held on Wednesday, 22nd May, at the UHI Inverness campus. It is organised by CREATE, the Highlands and Islands Hub for Enterprise and Innovation, based at the Centre for Living Sustainability

With funding support from the University Innovation Fund from the Scottish Funding Council, the competition aims to discover and support enterprising people, helping them take their first steps in starting their own business. Since the competition began in 2006, it has awarded £108,000 in prize money. 

This year the competition attracted 78 entries from students across the UHI partnership, as well as entrepreneurs living in the Highlands and Islands, Moray, Perthshire and Argyll. The total prize fund was £8,000, with ten winners each receiving a prize from one of the sponsors. 

The other prize winners were as follows:

• Best Researched Award, £500, sponsored by platinum sponsors
  Benjamin Brimacombe from Aviemore. His business, LamVac, applies technology developed by NASA in the 1960s to wind turbines. The technique involves attaching a vacuum to perforations in the skin of the wind turbine, drawing air closer to the surface and helping the blade cut through the wind more efficiently, increasing energy production by up to six percent.
• Youth Entrepreneurship Award, £500, sponsored by silver sponsors
  Jessica Lake from Inverness. Her idea, ‘Petbank Cafe’ is a place where owners and their pets can have a dining experience together while helping others through their struggles.
  
• Most Innovative Award, £500, sponsored by silver sponsors
  Markelo Rapti, an HNC Computing student at UHI Perth, who is looking to revolutionise renewable energy. His business idea harnesses ambient sound to power the future, converting noise into electricity and offering sustainable solutions for industries, cities, and transportation. 
  
• Best Use of Technology Award, £500, sponsored by Techscaler
  Fernando Nuno Lopez, an HND Forestry student at UHI Inverness. His idea is to provide forestry and geomatic services by combining the use of traditional survey methods with remote sensing, using drone technology and new software that integrates AI and data analytics engines to provide customers with quality services with accurate data.
  
• Best Tech Idea, £1,000, sponsored by Techscaler
  Logan Andrick, a BSc (Hons) Marine Science student at the Scottish Association for Marine Science. His idea is to develop a fully functioning fleet of autonomous surface vehicles capable of capturing marine plastic waste in any ocean or body of water around the world in a carbon-green renewable format. The primary focus will be the five oceanic garbage patches, beginning with the North Atlantic garbage patch.
  
• Best Social Impact Award, £1,000, sponsored by Whyte and Mackay 
  James Macdonald, a postgraduate certificate Sustainable Energy Solutions student at UHI North, West and Hebrides. His company, Energize Highlands, brings renewable power to remote Highland communities while empowering young engineers through work experience. Their innovative approach tackles energy challenges and bridges the gap between education and employment.
  
• Best Engineer Award, £1,000, sponsored by Engineers in Business Fellowship 
  Lily Carmichael, an Engineering Systems student at UHI Moray. Her business idea is to create workwear designed specifically for women so that they can work more comfortably and efficiently.
  
• Best Student Award, £1,000 sponsored by UHI
  Gergana Sirakova studying HND Beauty Therapy at UHI Perth and Miroslav Sirakov, for their mobile gaming van business. Bringing a gaming experience to your doorstep. Perfect for birthdays, corporate events, and more, our unique service caters to all gaming enthusiasts.
  
• Best Commercial Award, £1,000, sponsored by Northern Innovation Hub 
  Stefan Quarry, an eco-entrepreneur based in the Highlands. Highland Domes design and build high-performance, storm-resilient, geodesic greenhouses. Using geodesic technology, which combines triangles, the strongest 2D shape, to make spheres, the strongest 3D shape, they are on their way to producing the strongest and warmest greenhouse in the UK in collaboration with the University of Aberdeen.

Professor Neil Simco, Deputy Principal Academic and Research at UHI, who opened the awards ceremony and presented the best student award, said:

“One of the reasons UHI exists is to make a difference, and we are pleased to support people who have the skills, energy, and commitment to take forward business ideas that make that difference across our regions. This competition shows that whoever you are, wherever you are, and whatever age you’re at, if you want to, you can be entrepreneurial.”

The keynote speaker was Debbie Strang, Director and Chief Operating Officer of SaxaVord Spaceport in Unst, Shetland. She told the finalists:

“Congratulations everybody. It’s fantastic that you have seized this opportunity. Work hard and stay determined, don’t become derailed, keep focused, and remember that people are key. It’s also important to celebrate your achievements. And keep going!”

This year’s judges were Màiri Macdonald, Local Enterprise Manager at the Royal Bank of Scotland; Gillian McGill, Talent Acquisition Manager at Skillfluence and Founders360, Mark Sutherland, Head of Highlands and Islands Regional Engagement for Techscaler and CodeBase, and Rojan Kumar Subramani, co-founder and CEO of DigiTechtive and member of the board of management of UHI Inverness.

The other finalists were: 

• Sandie Gordon, who runs Candles from the Croft, which combines family tradition and community spirit with sustainable practices, offering luxury, handcrafted, home fragrances.  
• Hannah Inglis, a BA (Hons) Business and Management student at UHI Perth and Alison Inglis. Their business ‘Neigh Bother!’ is a free neighbourhood resource-sharing app for car sharing and other resources in local communities. 
• Alishia King, a Social Sciences Level 6 student at UHI Inverness, who has a solution to potholes, cracked and uneven conditions, by using a heated mixture of tar and old tyres and applying it to road surfaces, speed bumps and pavements.
• Camille Hayes, whose business will provide informative and interactive birth and baby preparation workshops to ensure parents and carers have the skills and knowledge to experience a positive journey to parenthood. 
• Helga Scott from North Ronaldsay, who produces seaweed kombucha, a sparkling, fermented handcrafted drink. 
  

Vicki Nairn, UHI Principal and Vice Chancellor said:

“Our region is phenomenally important economically, and this competition has had a huge impact on the entrepreneurial spirit of its people. It has again highlighted the great potential for innovative local business ventures, and I have no doubt that the future is very bright for our winners. Their resourceful ideas and solutions demonstrate the enterprising drive and initiative that we strive to nurture.”