Unfolding the finalists of The Pitch 2024

Congratulations to the finalists of The Pitch 2024! These 12 incredible companies have made it through rigorous judging to make it through to the adrenaline-pumping final of this year’s competition.

On Monday, November 11, the finalists will compete head-to-head to impress the five judges with their live business pitch to win the ultimate prize of €100,000 worth of Samsung Electronics Ireland technology and an IMAGE media and marketing campaign, as well as invaluable mentoring by Bobby Kerr.

Let’s introduce the finalists:

Chimac

Sofie Rooney, CEO

Chimac produce a range of restaurant-quality Korean-inspired sauces, selling to 12 countries and over 550 retailers. Inspired by a profound love for Korean fried chicken discovered in Seoul in 2016, the range is launching in Tesco Ireland this month.

Foxes Bow Irish Whiskey

Tony Foote & Alice Carroll, Co-Founders

Foxes Bow Irish Whiskey adds a vibrant and modern alternative to the whiskey scene. Already causing a stir internationally in the $2.5 billion Irish whiskey industry, it exists to disrupt the outdated, exclusive world of whiskey and is designed to serve a new generation of whiskey drinkers.

HairPeople

Bee Byrnes & Jennifer Zamparelli, Co-Founders

HairPeople Salon Dublin delivers luxurious, sustainable hair experiences with high-quality and eco-friendly hair and scalp care. Their vision is to deliver the world’s finest and most sustainable hair experiences in their salon in Dublin 2 and through the range of innovative scalp and hair products they’re developing for online sale.

Hemp Heros

David Hartigan, CEO & Founder

Hemp Heros is an award-winning, organic, seed-to-shelf hemp company that manufactures over 27 different products, for humans and pets, from its facility in Co Wicklow. Hemp Heros are the first food supplement company in Ireland to become B Corp certified. Currently, their products are stocked in over 160 retailers across Ireland including Holland & Barrett, Petstop, Petmania and more.

Hot Chip

David McSharry, Owner

Hot Chip are an award-winning producer and supplier of premium Irish cookies and dough to the retail and food service industry. They have bold plans for international expansion in 2025 to reach their goal of putting an Irish cookie brand on the map worldwide.

Platform 55

Tracy Gunn and Michelle O’Keeffe, Co-Founders

Platform55 is an HR platform transforming how organisations support today’s family at work. The solution, designed by the co-founders, supports individuals to balance their career with family life, whilst addressing strategic issues around gender equality, sustainability and the ‘S’ of ESG.

Sisterly

Aoife Matthews, Jennifer O’Connell & Louise O’Riordan, Co-Founders

Sisterly is developing premium supplement products for all stages of a woman’s life. They have developed a top-quality powder supplement specifically, which simplifies every woman’s supplement routine by making it easy to take essential nutrients every day.

SOS Cookies

Sarah O’Sullivan, Founder

SOS Cookies is a Limerick-based bakery that delivers a unique cookie experience with a variety of speciality cookies and cookie cakes, all handcrafted for maximum indulgence and quality. The company has a broad presence with three outlets in Dublin and one in Limerick, wholesale, e-commerce, and corporate ordering with an option of personalisation.

Squid

Matthew Coffey & Katie Farrell, Co-Founders

Squid is a rewards-based app that helps businesses create simple, custom, loyalty programmes. The app aims to transform customer loyalty through seamless integrations, providing a suite of tools to help businesses engage and retain customers while driving sales.

TaxZap

Conor Duggan, Co-Founder 

TaxZap is an AI WebApp that gamifies tax and allows users to file their tax return in “minutes”. Using open banking and AI, the system identifies tax relief users are due by analysing their transactional data. They are targeting scaling in the UK and are uniquely positioned as the only tax company in the UK and Europe allowing clients to file tax returns using open banking and AI.

Tech Powered Luxury

Ashley McDonnell, Founder

Tech Powered Luxury is an online and in-person educational space dedicated to the evolving worlds of luxury and technology, with insights from industry leaders. The community consists of social media accounts, a podcast, a substack (newsletter) and events with educational content about building premium brands and businesses powered by technology. The award-winning podcast has over 100 podcast episodes, and Tech Powered Luxury also has had five live shows and thousands of social media and newsletter posts since launching in November 2022, with an 80% female and 40% Irish audience.

Whole Supp

Darren O’Reilly, Co-Founder & CEO

Whole Supp is a Dublin-based supplements business that produces a high-protein superfood shake consisting of 13 nutrient-dense ingredients for “all-in-one nutrition and clean, sustained energy”. Co-founded by Darren O’Reilly and Dr Brian Carson, Whole Supp is targeting omni-channel growth having previously sold only direct to customers. As a former Leinster rugby player, Darren came up with the idea after moving to the corporate world and missing the support of nutritionists. Their shake is designed for busy, health-conscious individuals looking to fuel up quickly and effectively.

We wish all the finalists good luck as they prepare their pitches and we cannot wait to unfold the action live on the night of Monday, November 11.

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