Preparing for investment dragons

Entrepreneurs need presentation skills to win investment

A business competition designed to attract investors and encourage them to finance entrepreneurs' ideas has doubled the money on offer this year.

The East of England Development Agency (EEDA) launched Running the Gauntlet, an investment competition and education programme with a £2m prize fund.

Entrepreneurs in Beds, Cambs, Herts, Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk are invited to enter to win a share of the cash.

More than 800 firms have benefited from the competition in the past two years.

Entrepreneurs enter the contest through a questionnaire which helps to identify if their businesses are capable of winning investment finance in a setting based on the BBC programme Dragons' Den.

'Acting quickly'

This year, entrants will also undergo a business education programme designed to help them build a business plan to attract investment.

The contest is supported by start up finance specialist CREATE, investment company Low Carbon Accelerator, venture capital experts NW Brown Group and Scottish Equity Partners.

They will form the "Dragons' Den" panel of experts who will interview entrepreneurs bidding for a share of the prize fund.

Richard Ellis, EEDA's chairman, said: "The East of England is fortunate in having one of the country's highest concentrations of entrepreneurs.

"The diverse interests of our four investors, who span a wide range of sectors from green energy and IT to healthcare and biotechnology, should inspire widespread interest from innovators across the region."

Chairman of the panel of investors, who will interview the successful candidates, Doug Richard, said: "Being entrepreneurial involves being agile, acting quickly and being prepared to work harder than the competition.

"There is a 'readiness gap' among entrepreneurs at the moment, in other words there are not enough businesses ready for investment or for the scrutiny this entails."