Back in April 2018, No. Land Farming was selected to participate in the prestigious Pitch@Palace event held at St. James’ Palace in the UK alongside 53 commonwealth countries. Selected out of 20,000 applicants, we were excited to take No. Land Farming across the border!
Pitch@Palace was founded by His Royal Highness Prince Andrew, The Duke of York and aims to provide a platform to amplify and accelerate the work of entrepreneurs. This was not a competition but a way to connect with others and gain international exposure.
Thursday 12 April
After many hours of traveling from South Africa (via Addis Ababa) we finally arrived in a cold and rainy London. We caught a bus from the airport to Victoria Bus Station and with suitcase in tow we walked from the Station to our hotel in Pimlico. After having arrived too early for check in we decided to go for lunch and try the local fish and chips before meeting our fellow entrepreneurs later that afternoon at Buckingham Palace to discuss the upcoming events.
Friday 13 April
Bootcamp kicked off at Facebook’s London Office where we met up with our mentors and worked on our 3 minute pitches. Working with Seena Rejal, CEO of 3D Industries as our mentor we were able to gain another perspective of what our pitch was going to be like. In addition to having time with our mentors we also had representatives from Facebook, KPMG London and Hult Business School speak to us about marketing and dealing with taxes for our respective businesses. As the day progressed we moved into the pitches with the arrival of The Duke of York as a judge. This was to determine those who would give a 3 minute pitch and those who would give a 30 second pitch at St. James’s Palace. Bootcamp allowed us opportunity to network with other entrepreneurs and share experiences within everyone’s business.
Monday 16 April
Monday morning was spent at the London Stock Exchange for the Market Opening Ceremony before heading to St James’s Palace for the pitching event. There were over 400 audience members consisting of Royalty, Heads of Government, Dignitaries, CEO’s and VC’s amongst others in attendance. Having pitched to a large audience from the commonwealth countries allowed No. Land Farming to gain international exposure and recognition. The experience was a once in a lifetime opportunity for No. Land Farming and the networks gained in the process.
