Festival of Entrepreneurs Session

Document

How to get a Start-Up Loan: What founders need to know

Chloe Fenn

Startup Lead, Virgin StartUp

Sean Duffy

Founder, Orb Drinks

Mario Cerda Cornejo

Founder, The Mexican Coffee Company

Alex Chisnall

Host, Screw It Just Do It


FOE 2025 Funding Sessions

Getting angel investment: How early-stage founders earn investor backing

Nell Daly

Founder, Revenge Capital

Lesley Thomas

Host, Let’s Talk Money and More Podcast

How lenders think: Preparing your business for £100k–£1m debt finance

Daniel New

Strategy Analyst, Funding Circle UK

Surb Kaur

Corporate Sales Manager, Together

Sebastian Jowett

Co-Head of Unsecured Finance, Swoop Funding

Ciaran Burke

Co-founder & COO, Swoop Funding

Decoding private investment: VCs, family offices and more

Rupert West

Managing Director, Puma Growth Partners

Jeroen Sibia

Senior Investment Manager, Foresight

Isabelle O'Keeffe

Venture Partner, Mercuri

Ian Hawkins

Head of Content, Swoop Funding

Understanding debt finance: What type of loan is right for your business?

Nick Baker

Chief Commercial Officer, Allica Bank

Paul Warrington

Senior Relationship Director, Lloyds Banking Group

Oliver Dean

Director, Monet Money

Ciaran Burke

Co-founder & COO, Swoop Funding

Scale through acquisition: Why acquisition is the best strategy

Clive Margetts

Co-Founder, Acquisition Masters

Charlie Norton

Founder, VAMOS Business Transfer

Steve Lawrence

CEO, Uncomplicated Group

Gary Lennon

Co-Founder, BizBritain

Scale through acquisition: Finding, funding, closing deals and taking over

Clive Margetts

Co-Founder, Acquisition Masters

Charlie Norton

Founder, VAMOS Business Transfer

Steve Lawrence

CEO, Uncomplicated Group

Oksana Howard

Head of Corporate and M&A, Blaser Mills Law

Gary Lennon

Co-Founder, BizBritain

Equity-Ready: How to Prepare Your Business for First-Time Outside Investment

Graham Rowan

Founder, Inside Investor Relations

Rupert Lyle

Fund Principal, Future Planet Capital

Damon Bonser

Co-founder, British Design Fund

Jimmy Rippon

Global Head of Search, Swoop Funding

Unlocking R&D tax relief: using pure maths to maximise your claim

Sheena Ramchurn

Advisor, RDA

Adline Bragg

Advisor, RDA

Trevor Jenkins

Host, Not Just Crew

Grant Funding Unlocked: Where to Find It and How to Win It

Johann Huber

Founder, Mango Hammock

John Edward Clarke

Group CEO, Capti Innovation

Ciaran Burke

Co-founder & COO, Swoop Funding

Jimmy Rippon

Global Head of Search, Swoop Funding


FOE 2025 Funding Sessions (Day 2)

Start Strong: How to Use a Start-Up Loan to Launch and Grow

Anthony Turner

Director of Credit & Lending, SULC

Gary Lennon

Co-Founder, BizBritain

Getting Angel Investment: How Early-Stage Founders Earn Investor Backing

Ben Cooper

Co-Founder, Angel Investors Bristol

Stepan Galaev

Founder, Enterprise Investment Systems

Ian Hawkins

Head of Content, Swoop Funding

Beyond the bank: new ways for SMEs to access growth funding

Justin Parr

Chief Credit Officer, Treyd

Gokce Yucealpan

Chief Commercial Officer, Treyd

Scott Simpkin

Head of Sales, Iwoca

Ciaran Burke

Co-founder & COO, Swoop Funding

Rejected? What to do next if investors say no

Ciaran Burke

Co-founder & COO, Swoop Funding

Andrea Reynolds

Co-founder & CEO, Swoop Funding

Ian Hawkins

Head of Content, Swoop Funding

Debt or equity? How to choose the right funding for your growth

Graham Rowan

Founder, Inside Investor Relations

Rajeev Saxena

CEO, Velocity

Jonathan Day

Investment Manager, The FSE Group

Ian Hawkins

Head of Content, Swoop Funding

Funded by growth: how revenue-based finance works (and when to use it)

Richard Morley

Partner & Broker Management, YouLend

Luke Bowmar

Head of Commercial, Juice

Ciaran Burke

Co-founder & COO, Swoop Funding

Get funded: practical strategies for female founders raising capital

Patrycja Maksymowicz

Founder & CEO, Sclr Labs

Andrea Reynolds

Co-founder & CEO, Swoop Funding

Nicola Gunby

Co-Founder, Cliq

Charlotte Forsberg

Chief Marketing Officer, Swoop Funding

Think like a CFO: how to structure and run your raise the right way

Mike Woodcock

Fractional CFO, The CFO Centre

Michael Blakeley

Founder, Entrepreneurs Collective

Nail the pitch: how to tell your story, win trust, and raise capital

Kostas Mavroulakis

Founder & CEO, Empact Ventures

Kaffy Oxley-Rice

Founder, Voice Confident

Michael Blakeley

Founder, Entrepreneurs Collective