Over the summer, pAiback applied to the Engineers in Business Innovation programme at the University of Southampton. Following several rounds of interviews and pitching, we were championed and awarded a £2500 funding prize to support further development.
Such competitions span universities across the UK, and each year the Engineers in Business Foundation (EIBF) pitches the 10 strongest entries against one another in the Champion of Champions grand final. In early September, we received the news that we had been shortlisted for this prestigious event, taking place on Friday 8th November at the Royal Academy of Engineering.
The event boasts a combined £16,500 prize pot over several award categories. pAiback will be targeting the leading Enterprise and Start-Up Business Winner awards, with both offering significant seed funding and a business mentorship program under a Sainsbury Management Fellow.
In addition, the EIBF offers a pre-show prize to the team that gathers the most online votes. We'd be extremely grateful to any readers who are willing to help us out: voting is available on the EIBF website where you can also learn a little more about us in a short pitch video from our very own co-founder Morgan Taylor.
On the shortlisting, Taylor said:
"It is incredibly validating to be recognised by the EIBF, and even more so to be a finalist. The opportunity to gain the alternate perspectives and different opinions of other entrepreneurs and experts is what we strive to do as a business. Entrepreneurship isn’t a static process and the EIBF and Southampton have been encouraging us to keep pushing our thoughts further."
In preparation for the event, the EIBF conducted a brief media interview with us, reflecting on our inspiration, learnings in the world of business and goals for the Champion of Champions competition.
"The idea for pAiback was sparked when a companion's ticket was booked, turning a business trip into a weekend getaway. Despite booking closer to the departure date, the new ticket was significantly cheaper than the one originally paid for, even on an economy fare. This happened again on a second trip, and after noticing the price dropped for a third time, he contacted customer service, who reissued his ticket and gave a credit for the difference - at no extra charge. Realising how time-consuming it was to repeatedly monitor prices, pAiback was created to automate this process." - Morgan Taylor, Co-Founder
We've published the remainder of the team's thoughts in a separate post available here! For more information on the competition, visit the EIBF website. (don't forget to vote!)