Inspirational innovators
The London start up scene has an incredible density of young innovators, many of whom share pearls of wisdom and some of the secrets of their success on social media.
These pivotal entrepreneurs and founders are responsible for some of the capital’s most exciting new businesses ranging from cybercrime to flowers, insurance to language teaching. Having served the London tech and start up scene for many years – printing for the likes of WeWork, Boiler Room and Google – we are always excited to see the creative energy still surging out of the capital.
We wanted to take a moment to share a list of the some of the rising stars of London’s tech and startup scene – and we’re sure there will be many more to come.
Mursal Hedayat
As a former refugee from Afghanistan, Hedayat created Chatterbox to ease the issue of refugee integration by offering refugees the change to become language teachers. Through these stepping stones, refugees can begin to rebuild their lives and share their skills and culture with the people of their adopted home.
Follow: twitter.com/mursalhedayat
Nafisa Bakkar
After noticing the issues faced by Muslim women shopping for clothes that are both fashionable and modest, Bakkar launched Amaliah with her sister. Since then the site has become a key hub for issues around Muslim women, a sorely underrepresented group in UK media.
Follow: twitter.com/nafisa_bakkar
Ilana Taub
Tackling the immense amount of fresh produce wasted in the UK is no small task, but Ilana Taub and Michael Minch-Dixon had an innovative—and delicious—solution. They launched Snact, a company that turns surplus produce into ethical snacks that are now stocked by major online retailers like Ocado, Amazon and Planet Organic.
Follow: linkedin.com/in/ilana-taub
Nisha Kotecha
Is there too much bad news in this world? Nisha Kotecha thinks so. In 2014 she established Good News Shared, a website which shares stories of the work over 500 charities are doing across the UK, spotlighting important issues that often go unreported, and giving everyone a touch more faith in humanity.
Follow: twitter.com/nishakotecha
Want more guides to the London start up scene? Check out our round up of the top tech events of 2019, the best tech companies in the capital and our pick of the best coworking spaces in North and East London.
Aron Gelbard
Co-founder of Bloom & Wild Aron Gelbard has been revolutionising the tricky flower-delivery sector with his pioneering letterbox package, which allows flowers to come straight through the door, even if you’re out. It’s a business model that just seems to grow and grow.
Follow: linkedin.com/in/aron-gelbard
Ed Miller
Miller’s Scape Technologies is looking to create a safe future in our connected world by creating a map which is designed to help camera devices understand more about their environment using cloud technologies.
Follow: twitter.com/tweetedmiller
Phoebe Hugh
Insurance is a tricky thing to get a handle on, especially for young Londoners whose finances are constantly in flux. Phoebe Hugh created Brolly, which uses AI to help users work out if they have too much insurance, or not enough. Last year the company was named one of the “Disruptor companies shaking up the insurance industry” by The Times.
Follow: twitter.com/phoebe
Who would have thought, the inside of a mobile barbershop could look this good? pic.twitter.com/SAnIy1j1gD
— TRIM-IT (@Trimit_app) May 7, 2019
Darren Tenkorang
Brixton local Darren Tenkorang was so sick of waiting a whole day queueing for his local barber that he established Trim-It, an app that helps streamline the barbershop experience, bringing a mobile barbershop to your doorstep.
Follow: linkedin.com/in/darren-tenkorang
James Smith
Cryptocurrencies have made the world of finance more transparent, but have also made it easier for cybercriminals to move funds around. Smith is the co-founder of Elliptic, which traces transactions across the Bitcoin blockchain to hone in on illicit activities. Their clients include the UK police, Europol and the FBI.
Follow: linkedin.com/in/jamesssmith
Marta Krupinska
While working in Dublin to support her mother in Poland, Krupinska realised how ludicrously expensive it was to send money back home — it would have been cheaper to fly over and deliver the cash by hand. She set up Azimo to help make digital money transfer easier and cheaper, and has recently been appointed head of Google for Startups UK.
Follow: twitter.com/mmeentrepreneur
Thinking about printing t-shirts or merch for your start up or tech company? At ICON Printing we offer fast turnaround printing with an extensive catalogue and our expert team are always happy to help with any design queries. Get a quote in 2 minutes online