22 May 2026
On Wednesday 20 May business studies students from across OSC competed in the Business Accelerator Day, a Dragons Den style competition, fighting for the investment of Guy Walker, a successful CEO and entrepreneur.
The day began with Guy outlining the brief: six groups tasked with turning their brainstorms into fully developed propositions, building and costing their business models, before delivering a polished final pitch to our panel.
Six students stepped forward to put themselves on the line as group CEOs. With just 10 minutes on the clock, they scanned the room to assemble diverse teams capable of delivering a standout final pitch. Each CEO was challenged to build a well-rounded team with specialist strengths across marketing, finance, product development, sales and pitching.
With teams decided, work began on developing comprehensive business proposals. Detailed planning soon followed, covering costs, pricing, target markets, and sales channels. Students calculated production expenses and profit margins while also developing customer acquisition strategies and considering scalability for future growth.
First to pitch were Lunch Ladies, an online meal delivery service, and Revive and Shine, a mobile valet business, both aimed at busy consumers seeking greater convenience in their lives. Their proposals were assessed by Guy alongside panel members Robbie Wilson from Dovetail and Slate and Lily Lamb, Programme Manager for Business & Professional Studies.
Next up were Trinity Spice, a community kitchen bringing African-Caribbean fusion cuisine to the people of Clapham through a rotating menu. They were followed by Surrey Estate Landscaping Services, who in their pitch targeted those seeking professional work at a reasonable price.
Year Round also took the landscaping route, offering affordable maintenance packages alongside a deluxe service that used LiDAR scanning technology to create detailed garden blueprints for tailored garden design. Meanwhile, Exauce Styled pitched an online athleisure brand targeting young adults with affordable fashion and curated product bundles to encourage upselling.
After the judges’ deliberations, it was Year Round who won the £500 winning prize! The panel praised the group’s attention to detail and their ability to tailor packages to suit different customer audiences. The inclusion of a deluxe LiDAR scanning system and integrated app provided the unique selling point that Guy and the judges were looking for, ultimately securing them the win.
Congratulations to our respective second and third place contenders, Trinity Spice and Revive and Shine, whose innovative ideas and confident pitches impressed the judges throughout the competition.
Reflecting on the success of the business accelerator day, Guy said:
“The students today have gone above and beyond. There’s a huge improvement from the morning to the afternoon, and I’m genuinely positive for some of their careers in the future, and I can see many of them working in businesses like mine, and many others across the country. They were outstanding, they were passionate, and they were intelligent.”
Congratulations to all our participating teams who put their all into delivering their pitches, demonstrating creativity, teamwork and entrepreneurial spirit and determination. And a massive thank you to Guy and Robbie for organising the special occasion for our Business and Public Services students.
Find out more about Business & Finance Courses at East Surrey College
