The Chief Executive Officer of Heritor’s Labs Limited, Derrydean Dadzie, has urged entrepreneurs and young business owners to continue to pursue their dreams no matter what.

He said Heritors Labs will fund all contesting businesses to boost their marketing and social media presence and create maximum awareness about their innovative products and services.

“As entrepreneurs, you must continue to pursue your dreams without letting down; winning or losing pitch competitions has little bearing on your business success. Pitch competitions are test grounds and catalysts to stimulating success. Emerging at the pinnacle and becoming a viable brand requires continuous and attentive efforts to innovate and develop ideas in the bid to attain the right and successful outcomes,” he encouraged young entrepreneurs.

He made this known when food processing and catering firm, Mudeys Catering Services, secured a grant of U$1,000 from Heritors Labs Limited after emerging as the ultimate winner in the maiden edition of the RISA-funded Women in Innovation and Research Conclave (WIRC) Business Pitch Contest, held at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra.

The funds will enable the budding startup to undergo conformity assessments and acquire the requisite certifications and standards to enhance the safety, consumer trust, and scalability of its innovative cake mix products.

The business pitch contest is a key pillar of the WIRC initiative, powered by Heritors Labs Limited and its partners. It identifies and provides funding support to commercially viable innovations and research outcomes, specifically targeting young women innovators and entrepreneurs.

Mudeys won the ultimate prize with its innovative ready-to-use cake mix, which comes in a range of varieties, including vegan-friendly, low-sugar red and chocolate velvet.

Seven (7) women-led startups in healthcare, agribusiness, agro-processing, fashion, and construction pitched their innovations to a team of established mentors and business coaches. The other contestants were Bloomwell, Nutrio Agribusiness, Cyperus Enterprise, Nathemix, Upcraft, and Knourysh.

In his brief remarks, the Chief Executive Officer of Heritor’s Labs Limited, Derrydean Dadzie, commended the various contestants for their desire and commitment to building innovative products and services that were commercially viable and assured them of his outfit’s continuous support to enable them to transition from startups into scalable and profitable brands.

“The various ideas that were pitched are brilliant; therefore, our conversation and engagements will not end with this contest. We [Heritors Labs] are willing to provide business mentoring support and other resources to enable these businesses to scale up their innovations and products,” he assured.

On his part, the country technical lead for RISA Fund, Mr. Gameli Adzaho, applauded the pitchers for their various innovations and ideas, stressing that his outfit was committed to entrenching equity and inclusion in Ghana’s research and innovation ecosystem.

He indicated, “It’s refreshing to see young people proposing solutions that cut across several sectors; from addressing environmental challenges to making healthcare accessible and making it easier to prepare food, all of these are wonderful initiatives.”

He however encouraged the young innovators and entrepreneurs to come out of their comfort zones to build the right collaborations and connections that will grow and sustain their innovations, products and brands.