Investors are invited to a Dorset Business Angels (DBA) pitch event at the Bournemouth Carlton Hotel on 17th November from 17.15, featuring five pioneering businesses seeking investment from £100,000 to £1 million across diagnostics, food innovation, agritech, and health technology sectors.
“This event showcases the breadth and quality of innovation we’re seeing across the region and beyond,” says Peter Eales, Managing Director at DBA. “From breakthrough diagnostic platforms to sustainable farming solutions, these companies demonstrate the remarkable entrepreneurial talent we work with. Our ‘Meet the Founder’ session before the formal pitches remains a vital part of our events, giving investors that essential chance to connect with entrepreneurs on a personal level. It’s these relationships that often form the foundation of successful investments.”
Featured Companies
- Point of Need Testing: Delivering lab-quality results on demand through two innovative diagnostic platforms. The first is a low-cost, rapid testing system for industrial, food, and veterinary sectors. The second is a compact, instrument-free clinical diagnostics platform bringing gold-standard lab performance to point of care. Operating from a world-class 4,000 sq. ft facility with key patents filed and £2.5 million raised to date, they seek £500,000 to £1 million to accelerate commercial rollout and platform development.
- Dairy-Free Drinks: A Great Taste award-winning dairy-free flavoured drink addressing a major market gap where 95% of UK consumers say plant-based alternatives fail on taste. Available in three flavours and sold in fully recyclable packaging from a SALSA-approved facility, the business is scaling rapidly with five wholesale accounts and two major retailers on board. With 50% revenue growth forecast next quarter, they seek £100,000 to scale production, expand distribution, and accelerate brand awareness.
- Vertical Farming: Redefining food production with advanced aeroponic indoor vertical farming systems providing scalable, soil-free farming solutions from compact units to full-scale Bio-cube containers. Founded in 2022 with a robust operational foundation, equipment sales and leasing options now live, and franchisees onboarded with a national distributor network underway. They seek £450,000 to meet rising demand for this high-growth agritech venture tackling food security, climate resilience, and urban sustainability.
- Health Tech: A comprehensive employee wellbeing SaaS platform delivering health, mental health, financial, and lifestyle benefits to SMEs, sole traders, and remote teams. A low monthly subscription gives users and immediate family 24/7 GP access, mental health therapy, life coaching, virtual physio, legal and debt helplines, and a discount marketplace with over 1,500 offers. Founded in 2021 and scaled organically to 11,151 subscribers across 230 companies with gross margins of circa 50% and minimal churn, they seek £250,000 (£75,000 already committed) to build out the management team and strengthen governance.
- Soft Drinks: Flavour-first, alcohol-free punches crafted with adventurous flavour combinations and all-natural ingredients. Low-calorie, vegan-friendly recipes in sustainable, plastic-free packaging, manufactured in solar-powered, carbon-neutral facilities. With growing retail presence, loyal customers, and a product standing out in a crowded market, they are raising £1.5 million to accelerate brand awareness, expand the management team, and scale penetration into regional and national accounts.
Event Format
The event welcomes DBA members, High Net Worth individuals (HNW), and Sophisticated Investors (SI) serious about investment opportunities. The format encourages both individual investment and collaborative syndicate approaches, allowing investors to pool resources and expertise.
Each entrepreneur will deliver a 10-minute pitch followed by a 10-minute Q&A session. Investors staying for dinner will enjoy a 2-course meal with wine, providing excellent opportunities to continue discussions and build relationships with fellow investors.
Strong Partnerships
Dorset Business Angels continues to benefit from established partnerships with BCP Council, TC Group, Ellis Jones, and Rathbones (formerly Investec Wealth and Investment), providing comprehensive support for both investors and entrepreneurs. This event is sponsored by The FSE Group, whose support helps create a robust ecosystem for regional investment. They will present an update on SWIF deployment, including some case studies and a flavour of what the fund is looking for.
This final pitch event of 2025 promises to be an excellent conclusion to another strong year of connecting investors with innovative businesses, with event dates for 2026 already planned.
Registration
Registration is now open for the pitch event. Two ticket types are available, with full details on our Eventbrite page.
