20 Under 20 Judges
We've brought together some of the most well-known, experienced and well-connected entrepreneurs, business people, investors and experts in Britain to select our 20 Under 20.
Taavet Hinrikus, Wise
Co-founder
Taavet likes things that are simple, reliable, and cost no more than they should. As Skype's first employee, he helped build a company that has changed hundreds of millions of lives. He’s since helped various companies as an angel investor and advisor.
Will Shu, Deliveroo
CEO and Co-Founder
Will is the CEO and co-founder of the online food delivery company, Deliveroo. He founded the company in 2013 with childhood friend and software engineer Greg Orlowski while working in Morgan Stanley's London office and missing the late-night food delivery options that he had as an investment banker in New York. Today, Deliveroo has a valuation of more than £1.5 billion and operates in more than 12 countries. Will continues to personally deliver food to customers every few weeks in London to understand the customer experience.
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Robin Klein, LocalGlobe
Co-Founder and General Partner
Robin is a renowned investor, advisor and entrepreneur. He founded LocalGlobe, a venture capital firm focusing on early stage (Seed) investment in technology enabled businesses, with his son Saul. Robin was previously a Chairman and CEO of Innovations Group PLC, which conducted the first documented e-commerce transaction in the UK. In addition, he was managing director at Arcadia, co-founder of The Accelerator Group and was a Venture Partner at Index Ventures until 2015 when he founded LocalGlobe. He has also been an early-stage investor in a number of companies including CityMapper, Graze and MyBuilder and has served as investor, board member or observer of FarFetch, Zoopla and Wise among others.
Tom Valentine, Secret Escapes
Co-Founder and COO
Tom is the COO and Co-Founder of Secret Escapes – a free-to-join, members-only website and app specialising in best-in-market flash sales for luxury travel. Secret Escapes has raised almost $153m (£104m) in capital since its 2011 launch and currently operates in 21 areas in Europe, Asia, and the US, with 47 million members worldwide. Prior to founding Secret Escapes, Tom was the product and marketing director at E-Trader Group, product lead at Quiet Riots Ltd, programme director at Seatwave, and strategy and business development man ager at eBay.
Phoebe Hugh, Brolly
CEO and Co-Founder
Phoebe is co-founder and CEO of Brolly, the startup that’s changing the way insurance works. Powered by AI, Brolly helps people understand what insurance they need, finds the best policies and then helps manage them simply and easily. Phoebe developed the idea for Brolly at Entrepreneur First. She was previously an underwriter and product manager at insurance company, Aviva. Prior to founding Brolly, Phoebe co-founded Ambition First, a diversity and inclusion initiative supporting emerging business talent.
Sharmadean Reid, Guardian Columnist
Founder, WAH Nails, Beautystack
Sharmadean Reid is a former fashion stylist and brand consultant who started WAH as a hip-hop magazine for girls in 2006 while at university. She then founded WAH Nails as a side project in 2009, with a millennial voice, feminist attitude and innovative salon space. Sharamdean has written two books, delivered global pop up nail salons for hundreds of brands, created a product line with Walgreens Boots Alliance and was awarded an MBE from HRH Queen in 2015 for services to beauty. She also organised business events for young female entrepreneurs culminating in futuregirlcorp.com. In 2016, Sharmadean opened WAH Nails Soho, London showcasing a Virtual Reality Nail Design app in collaboration with DVTK and is constantly looking for ways to push the salon experience further through technology. She is now building Beautystack, a visual booking system for global beauty entrepreneurs.
Peter Steere, MSL Group
EMEA Chairman
Peter Steere is the EMEA Chairman of international communications company, MSL Group. Peter oversees a region that includes about a third of the company’s business and more than 1,100 employees across 30 markets in Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He also serves as part of MSL’s Global COMEX. In 2010, Steere was appointed co-CEO at MSL’s JKL unit -- its strategic corporate communications advisory group in the Nordics. Steere has broad experience over the course of more than two decades as a strategic communications consultant, specializing in Public Affairs, Corporate Communication, Crisis Management and Reputation with significant international experience. Steere joined JKL as a consultant in 1997 and became partner in 2004. He opened the firm’s Copenhagen office before serving as MSL’s EMEA public affairs lead.
Alex Mitchell, Chair of IoD 99
Founder of Causarma and Kit Us Out
Alex Mitchell is the Chair of IoD 99, the UK's fastest growing network for entrepreneurs looking to scale with over 2,800 founders from businesses across all major sectors and across the UK. It was launched 3 years ago and is designed to support founders and entrepreneurs who are looking for the resources and support network needed to effectively grow their businesses.
Alex is also the Founder and Director of Causarma, an agency working on positive impact projects in the youth, business and sports fields, and Founder of Kit Us Out, a charity that supports Para Athletes from developing nations and has so far supported teams from over 60 countries.
In addition, Alex is the UK President of the global network G20 Young Entrepreneurs Alliance, and the Vice President of the European Confederation of Young Entrepreneurs. He was recently awarded the title of Commonwealth Champion for Youth and Enterprise by the Commonwealth Secretary General for work in supporting youth empowerment and enterprise growth across Commonwealth nations.
