More than 120 women gathered outside Virgin Hotels London in Shoreditch this morning to pitch their business ideas as part of the Elevator of Dreams initiative. The project, launched by Sir Richard Branson and entrepreneur Simon Squibb, offers aspiring business founders the chance to present their ideas to a global audience.
Supporting Women in Business
The event, held ahead of International Women’s Day, was organised by Nitika Vyas and Elisabeth Prager, co-founders of Aila Money. The duo aimed to spotlight the challenges women entrepreneurs face when starting a business.
Figures suggest that 72% of women do not feel empowered to take control of their finances, making it harder to start a business. Women-led businesses account for fewer than 20% of UK companies, and only 2p of every £1 in venture capital funding goes to female founders.
A Platform for Aspiring Entrepreneurs
Since its launch in January, the Elevator of Dreams has provided nearly 1,000 entrepreneurs with an opportunity to present their business ideas. Founders buzz a video doorbell and deliver a 60-second pitch to the camera. Squibb and Branson then share feedback on the best ideas online.
Speaking at the event, Simon Squibb said:
“It’s great to see more than 100 women queuing to pitch. We want to inspire more founders to have the confidence to make their dreams happen. This is a queue that should inspire women everywhere!”
Encouraging Financial Confidence
Vyas and Prager launched Aila Money in 2023 to help women gain confidence in managing their finances, building financial plans, and learning to invest. Their free app, Aila Money: Your Money PT, went live in January.
Explaining why they supported the Elevator of Dreams initiative, Nitika Vyas said:
“Women still face too many barriers in entrepreneurship and finance. International Women’s Day is the perfect opportunity to shine a light on these challenges and encourage women to step forward with confidence.”
She added that the turnout demonstrated the importance of financial empowerment in enabling women to pursue their ambitions:
“Seeing a queue of women wrapped around the hotel, ready to pitch their dreams, has been incredible. This is exactly the action we wanted to see.”
Support from Virgin StartUp
All pitches made at the Elevator of Dreams event are uploaded to the HelpBnk platform, where founders can connect with fellow entrepreneurs and potential investors. The top ten pitches will receive support from Virgin StartUp, Virgin’s non-profit organisation that helps new business founders.
Virgin StartUp has pledged to fund women and men equally through its 50/50 initiative, launched in 2019. Since 2013, it has distributed over £80 million in Start Up Loan funding to more than 6,000 entrepreneurs, who have collectively contributed over £300 million to the UK economy.
Diana Greenhalgh, Operations Lead at Virgin StartUp, welcomed the event’s impact, saying:
“This is what International Women’s Day should be about—empowering more women to start and scale businesses and equipping them with the skills to succeed.”
For more information, visit Virgin StartUp.