BU’s partnership with Santander Universities provides financial and career support for students and graduates, with a focus on education, employability and entrepreneurship.
BU’s partnership with Santander Universities provides financial and career support for students and graduates, with a focus on education, employability and entrepreneurship.
Three Bournemouth University graduates have each been awarded a £5,000 business scale-up grant, thanks to a partnership with Santander Universities designed to support early-stage entrepreneurs.
The competition invited BU alumni with UK-based start-ups to apply for funding to accelerate growth. Following a competitive selection process, three graduates were chosen for their innovation, ambition and business growth potential.
They are:
- Vikki Hutton, BA (Hons) Multimedia Journalism, 2013, founder of Featured Studio
- Daniel Turner, BA (Hons) Business Studies, 2015, founder of Gardna
- Nikki Stearman, BA (Hons) New Media Production, 2003, founder of her namesake creative business
Meet the Winners
Vikki Hutton, founder of Featured Studio, runs a creative business providing brand storytelling, digital content and marketing support.
She said: “This funding will go far! I’m going to split it between training on operations and processes, an annual membership to a PR platform, and the first month of a retainer for our own social video editor. It’s a huge boost to receive support like this from Santander and BU. Financially, it gives you permission to go after the things that will enable you to take your business to the next level, rather than bumping them down the list, as so often happens when you’re juggling financial priorities, and it’s so encouraging to have your vision recognised.
“To have your own business is the ultimate creative endeavour – for me, it’s the dream job, on my terms, and that’s priceless.”
Nikki Stearman (Centre), founder of nikkistearman.co.uk, creates interactive and creative products designed to engage audiences through play, storytelling and design.
She said: “The funding will help us to refine our existing products, playtest with our audiences and have the freedom to explore our ideas more. Practically, it’s given us a real lift to move forward. It genuinely opens doors. It gives us energy and confidence to continue to build out our products and be braver with our choices because the initial risk is taken away.”
Daniel Turner, founder of Gardna, is developing modular hydroponic systems designed to help people grow plants more efficiently without soil.
He said: “The £5,000 grant is a pivotal moment for Gardna. It will allow me to invest in the tooling needed to move from hand-built prototypes into batch production. Winning this award means far more than the funding itself. Having a panel of experienced judges say ‘we believe in this’ is genuinely transformative. It validates months of research and prototyping and gives you the confidence to keep going.”
He also encouraged aspiring entrepreneurs to take the leap: “Start before you feel ready, because you never will be… find something that genuinely excites you, because that passion is what carries you through.”
BU’s partnership with Santander Universities provides financial and career support for students and graduates, with a focus on education, employability and entrepreneurship.
