High Growth Startups Pitch For Investment On Completion Of Prep4Seed Programme
- Furthr
- May 20
- 2 min read
16 May 2025 -- The first 12-week Prep4Seed Programme of 2025 culminated today at the Investor Pitch Day where seven startups pitched to an audience of Angel Investors & VCs. The programme, delivered by the four Irish Business Innovation Centres (BICs), in collaboration with Enterprise Ireland, prepares startup clients for seed investment bringing participants through the investor readiness process quickly and effectively. The Irish BICs are AxisBIC, Furthr, Propelor & WestBIC.
The 7 Irish based early-stage companies pitching for investment were from a variety of industry sectors including: Climate Tech, Life Sciences, FinTech, Digital Tech, Food and Sustainability.
The pitching Companies were: Nibbed, Shoden, Solas Sodas, Somatech, Tao Climate, The Focus Collective and Xtricate Medical.
Carol Gibbons, Head of Entrepreneurship, Regions & Local, Enterprise Ireland said: “One week on from the success of celebrating over 150 innovative emerging start-ups at the Enterprise Ireland Start-up Day 2025, it is encouraging to see this new cohort of early stage companies coming through the Prep4Seed programme. The calibre of talent and innovation demonstrated by the 7 start-ups spread across a range of sectors that are pitching today is testament to the vibrancy of the start-up eco-system across Ireland. Enterprise Ireland is delighted to support and partner with the Irish BICs to support these start-ups to thrive and influence the future of global business.”
Somatech, awarded the One to Watch Award, are specialising in fungal solid-state fermentation, leveraging low-cost technology to transform locally sourced, plant-based feedstocks into high-value, 100% natural ingredients.
Nibbed, who took home the Best Pitch Award, are redefining the hot drinks space with pure hot cacao—a nourishing, energising coffee alternative.
Commenting on their award Tony Callaghan, founder, Somatech said “We are delighted to receive the One to Watch Award. The Prep4Seed program has been immensely beneficial, helping us refine our investor proposition and pitch. It provided invaluable insights across all areas of business, enabling us to sharpen our strategy and prepare for the next stage of growth."
Participants attended five Masterclasses run by the Irish BICs and tailored one-to-one meetings with experienced BIC consultants which covered a broad range of areas including Sales & Marketing, Financial Modelling, Market Validation, Pitching & Investment and Company Foundation. Participants were also brought through intensive investor pitch preparation sessions and trial pitches preparing them for today’s Investor Day.
To date 76 startups have participated in the 12-week Prep4Seed investor-ready programme delivered nationally by the Irish BICs: AxisBIC, Furthr, Propelor and WestBIC in collaboration with Enterprise Ireland.
