A start-up designing irrigation and control technology for vertical farms last night landed the top prize in the annual Best Elevator Pitch staged by incubator SETsquared Bristol.
LettUs Grow uses aeroponic grow beds and farm management software to deliver higher crop yields, reduce production costs and makes farmers’ lives easier. 
Managing director Charlie Guy’s 60-second pitch wowed the audience at the Tech-Xpo event at Bristol’s Circomedia circus school, beating five other fledgling tech firms to win top prize. Guests at the event chose the winner using a digital voting system to crown the winner.
Charlie, pictured right receiving the award from VWV partner Nathan Guest and below making his pitch, explained to the gathering of investors, academics, and business leaders how the firm’s patent-pending aeroponic technology delivers consistently high yields for vertical farms.
Aeroponics is a method of growing plants without soil, allowing greater oxygenation to the roots, delivering better flavour and faster growth and using 95% less water than traditional agriculture.
Charlie said: “We’re absolutely over the moon to have won the ‘Best Elevator Pitch’ at SETsquared’s Tech-Xpo 2018. This is a really exciting time for us as a business, the team is growing, and building Europe’s first vertical farm, and we’re really excited to see what comes next.”
SETsquared Bristol centre director Emma Thorn added: “All of our ventures worked hard to refine their impressive 60-second pitches. Charlie swayed the audience with their alternative approach to sustainable agriculture, and I am delighted for LettUs Grow on their well-deserved win. ‘Best Elevator Pitch’ is an accolade to be proud of, and we hope to see LettUs Grow go on to achieve the success they deserve.”
Some 17 companies, including AutonoMe, Interactive Scientific and YellowDog exhibited while the six pitching companies were filmed as they presented their one-minute speed session, with the aim of winning over delegates, and winning the Best Elevator Pitch award.
Tech-Xpo 2018 was sponsored by law firm VWV, Bristol Private Equity Club, R&D grants specialists ForrestBrown and Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator.
VWV corporate partner and head of technology sector Nathan Guest said: “We are proud to be the main sponsor of SETsquared Bristol’s annual Tech-Xpo for the eighth consecutive year. The event is a chance for us to reinforce our commitment to SETsquared and the companies and entrepreneurs it supports.
“The past 12-months have been brilliant for SETsquared Bristol, with many of its ventures drawing significant investments. SETsquared forms the foundations of our national technology sector business, and I am delighted to present LettUs Grow with the VWW Best Elevator Pitch award.”
Previous winners, including Becky Sage from Interactive Scientific and Gareth Williams from YellowDog, have gone on to secure significant investments, and have won national tech awards from Oracle and Innovate UK.
As with previous years, Tech-Xpo 2018 was filmed, and the resulting video will be shared on YouTube in the coming weeks. SETsquared Bristol have also launched their own standalone website making it easier for aspiring entrepreneurs with tech innovation to bring their ideas to a commercial reality. For more information about how to apply, visit the website here.
