Flannels backs Heat young entrepreneurs prize

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
May 22, 2023

Premium fashion brand Flannels isn’t just very active on the retail front. Behind the scenes, the Frasers Group division is also supporting up-and-coming entrepreneurs in a programme with “youth culture experts” and mystery box business Heat.

Via the Heat Ignite Prize, they’re inviting digital-first entrepreneurs aged 18-25 from across the UK to apply with either a business idea or an existing business in its infancy, in the categories of fashion, innovation and circularity. 

Three winning businesses representing each category will be awarded a £10,000 grant, a year of mentoring, and the opportunity to “show up within the Flannels business based on the winning business’s needs”.

The new scheme comes under the umbrella of Flannels’ ongoing Youth-Phoria programme, which champions the “excellence and ambition of a new generation through a series of initiatives and cultural events”. 

Applicants must display “a clear and concise digital-first business concept including how it solves a current industry ‘problem’, indication of how the grant would be invested, and a top-line one-to-three-year business plan”. Applications close on 9 June.

The judging panel, led by Heat founders and mentors Joe Wilkinson and Mario Maher, brings together a cross-section of business leaders in the fund categories; Beckie Stanion (Frasers Group Chief Marketing Officer), Michael Adex (NQ, CEO & Founder), Sam Ross (New School Represents, Director), Tora Northman (Highsnobiety, Head of Tiktok), Sonika Phakey (TikTok, Global Lifestyle Partnerships) 

Stanion said: “Our current Youth-Phoria scheme is truly a platform for all of the ability and drive that we see in the next generation, so it was vital that we were able to launch an initiative like this. I’m looking forward to seeing the applications and am hopeful we will get to see some brilliant entrepreneurs from all over the UK.” 

Following a judging process, the three selected prize-winners will be announced on 5 July.