Drive, the startup accelerator from Belron, invests in two startups from latest programme
by Startacus Admin
Drive is the startup accelerator from Belron, parent company of Autoglass®, which is run in partnership with innovation specialists L Marks, and designed to fast track disruptive young businesses looking for global expansion.
In this second year of the accelerator programme, five tech startups – Blitzz, Locpin, Talking Circles, ThriveMap and ThanksBox - spent 10 weeks working with Belron 
countries; immersing themselves in Belron business operations and trialling their products. On 26 June, each team presented their experiences and proposal for a future relationship with Belron during an exciting Demo Day.
Belron has since announced that it will invest £125,000 in two startups and innovation partner, L Marks will match £103,340 investment, bringing the total startup funding to £228,340.
Those set to receive financial support, in addition to contracts with Belron, are:
ThriveMap - who have a platform that measures how people like to work in order to predict team fit and improve team harmony. ThriveMap will receive £75,000 of investment from Belron and £53,340 from L Marks.
Locpin - who provide a smart addressing solution which provides all the information necessary to ensure you can quickly and efficiently find the right location, first time, every time. Locpin will receive £50,000 of investment from Belron and £50,000 from L Marks.
Talking Circles and Blitzz have been asked to continue to work on their pilots with Belron, on a commercial basis, as conversations about investment continue. ThanksBox is continuing conversations with Carglass® Germany as to the best way to support them
Nick Burton, Head of Digital & Innovative Technology of Belron, said:
“Drive has been really exciting this year, with five brilliant teams joining the programme. I've been really impressed 
with the speed and agility on display as each team got their pilots up and running in four countries, and I really appreciate the hard work and teamwork on display when the teams are in one of our countries, or at Milton Park.”
Stuart Marks, technology entrepreneur and Chairman of L Marks, said:
“Any programme entering its second year will inherit high-expectations from the success of the first programme: In the case of Belron, expectations have been more than met. The teams across all participating countries have been confident, committed and open-minded in their approach to the startups, and we have been pleased to support progress as each has grown in response to the feedback they have been given. Drive with Belron has had another successful year thanks to everyone’s hard work, the contributions of the startups and the support of our team.”
The key focus for Drive with Belron 2017 was to collaborate with disruptive startups who can effectively improve operations of the leading vehicle glass repair and replacement company. In return, startups were given the opportunity to trial their products with a global organisation.
In addition to the startups securing funding and/or paid continuation of their pilots, all five on the accelerator programme developed their business more rapidly than they would have done by operating on their own.
Now read this : Nexus by DIA - Startups Shaping the Future of Supermarket Shopping Wanted
Subscribe to our newsletter
If you would like to receive our startup themed newsletter, full of the latest startup opportunities, events, news, stories, tips and advice, then sign up here.
Moneybox smashes its investment target with over 15,000 people investing £6.25million in 72 hours in its Crowdcube campaign.
Applications from startups with positive social impact at their core sought by for Crowdcube and Virgin StartUp for Collective Impact, their investment-readiness accelerator.
Business owners are currently facing similar challenges in all sectors. These basic tips aim to help address those issues.
Kickstart Innovation, one of Europe’s leading innovation platforms, has announced applications are now open for the 2022 program.
The lowdown on Kuberno and its innovative tech solution to help companies navigate through governance and compliance requirements.
Virtually Visiting is an online platform enabling users to experience their dream destination from the comfort of their own home via immersive 360 video tours.
Next gen mobility beyond the big cities - RideTandem is a startup aiming to turn local transport providers into smart shuttles for work, education and more.
.png)
If you like haggling, you'll like this - London-based startup Nibble has created an AI-powered eCommerce chatbot to enable customers to negotiate a personalised price.
A tidal wave of resignations and increased interest in angel investment; Oliver Woolley, CEO of Envestors shares some insights on why these trends are connected.
Deeptech startup SLAMcore secures major investment to boost the performance and reach of their pioneering spatial mapping technology.
Published on: 31st July 2017
If you would like to enable commenting via your Startacus account, please enable Disqus functionality in your Account Settings.
- Global Innovation Platform Kickstart Launches New Application Round For Startups 9th May 2022 Kickstart Innovation, one of Europe’s leading innovation platforms, has announced applications are now open for the 2022 program.
- SLAMcore Raises $16 Million To Deliver Low-Cost, Spatial Understanding To Real-Life Robots 3rd May 2022 Deeptech startup SLAMcore secures major investment to boost the performance and reach of their pioneering spatial mapping technology.
- Ulster Bank Brings Pitching Competition to International Disability Summit 3rd May 2022 Ulster Bank seeking entrepreneurs to enter the elevator pitch competition at the Harkin International Disability Employment Summit.
- Oneday secures major investment to support aspiring entrepreneurs 27th Apr 2022 Oneday, the platform that helps entrepreneurs turn their passion into business secures £2.5M seed funding to accelerate product innovation and scale up growth.
