The second edition of GM Business Growth Hub’s ASCEND Scale Up Programme is underway – and it has started as it means to go on.
A total of 25 companies are set to benefit from the programme which proved a roaring success for Manchester’s tech ecosystem last year, with businesses such as Specscart, CODE Beautiful and Parker Neal reaping the rewards.
This year, monthly meetings are taking place at Brewin Dolphin’s offices in the heart of the city. I headed along to the first of these to hear how support is being ramped up even further for scaling Greater Manchester businesses.
ASCEND network manager Kellie Noon told me: “We are going to improve the focus of the workshop content this time.
“We’ve managed to really plan out what the journey looks like: how the support will be delivered for each of those businesses. We’ve got that longer term outlook around what happens for businesses post-ASCEND.”
The event saw advice given from guest speaker Guy Remond, founder of Cake Solutions, which was acquired by Disney’s BAMTECH Media in 2017.
Guy Remond speaks at ASCEND meeting
Guy is now the founder and director of Manchester-based EHE Venture Studios, which invests its resources into innovative AI-driven firms.
“We’re looking for startups and scaleups in the AI world to which we can add value,” he tells me.
“We’re about helping with the tech and supporting companies through our network, seeing how our in-house specialists can help – it’s not money-first.
“At EHE, we’re entrepreneurs first and investors second. We understand what it takes to build a company from the start to an exit – that’s what we try to help startups with.”
His talk was swiftly followed by an expert panel of EY figures, exited entrepreneurs and investors, discussing all things financials, tax, exits and markets, hosted by Brewin Dolphin wealth manager Matthew Casson.
Expert panel, ASCEND
The true value of ASCEND is seen through the connections built between the businesses – and it was on full display again.
By handing these companies the mentorship, strategy and community which they can benefit from, GM Business Growth Hub is aiming to create conditions where success can multiply.
It’s not just about helping individual businesses thrive, though: it’s about creating those personal connections and sustaining them.
Gareth Langley, CEO of Piing, a company on the cohort, cited a previous programme which he had been on years before as a reason why he thought his firm could benefit from ASCEND.
“I went on something that was relatively similar to this about 15 years ago and I’m still in touch with those people today,” he explains.
“I’m still sharing ideas, contacts and connections, and I think those long-term connections are vital to business and people.
“This has come at a really good time for us as we are really starting to take off.
“Being among other like-minded entrepreneurs as well as listening to the experts will prove really useful.”
Steven Foster, CTO and co-founder of Powdr, added: “It’s a fantastic resource to have.
“The pool of startups is brilliant and even just speaking to everyone today to learn about their journeys and what they do really inspires us.
“ASCEND provides all this to us on top of the expert advice that we get from it.”
I’ll admit that I have always had a soft spot for the ASCEND programme since joining BusinessCloud.
A fireside chat back in December 2024 was one of the first external events I attended in my job and it’s hard not to feel welcome.
The successes from last year’s cohort and the interest for this year’s were not hard to believe when you really get to know the team who are behind it.
Every time I’ve attended an event, the team, mentors and participating businesses have created such a collaborative atmosphere that it’s easy to see why so many founders thrive here.
One business looking to follow suit this year is Nicola Weedall’s FinTech Hydr.
“This seems to have a great mix between learning from experts as well as cohort,” she says.
“There’s such a variety of businesses too that you can look to expand a little bit more.
“There was a big attraction to the Web Summit in Lisbon after what I saw last year.
“It can be lonely doing something like that on your own, so to go with a group will be a real help and hopefully a great experience.”
Justine Best, head of North West strategic partnerships at Brewin Dolphin, adds: “Talking to people within businesses and understanding who might be able to do what for you is a massive part of the journey.
“So engaging with 25 scaling businesses in our region is a great opportunity for us at Brewin Dolphin and we are really looking forward to doing that over the course of the programme.”
GM Business Growth Hub has previously promised to ramp up the ASCEND programme for 2025-26 and there won’t be any slowing down in the short-term, with Lisbon on the horizon.
The cohort, along with myself and BusinessCloud executive editor Chris Maguire, will cross the continent next month to attend the famous Web Summit – a prospect I’m now relishing even more after meeting several of the founders for the first time.
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