Hill Street Hatch cashes in on novel concept

NI hospitality pop-up incubator Hill Street Hatch has scooped a £2k cash prize as the winner of LEVELUP 2021.

Delivered by Starticus in partnership with Derry City and Strabane District Council, LEVELUP 2021 was a two-day hybrid event which took place on April 21 and 22, looking at innovation, ideas and inspiration from around the world.

The event was part of the programme for Enterprise Week Derry Strabane and explored how people, locally and internationally, have created opportunity, economic growth and initiated real change.

Hill Street Hatch, a which offers a creative partnership for entrepreneurs in Belfast’s hospitality scene to test and launch new concepts and ideas, was hailed for offering “try before you buy for the hospitality industry.

‘Great pitch’

Judge Naomi Timperley  said of the pop-up space in Belfast’s Cathedral Quarter: “Love love love this concept – great pitch and passion.”

She added: “So many restaurant concept ideas crash and burn and this is a way of trialling the concepts first and building an audience.”

Ema O’Kane and Ryan Crown, above, co-founders of Hill Street Hatch said: “We are so delighted to be named the winners of the pitch competition.

“We’ve loved creating Hill Street Hatch and are so excited for the future and the ways in which we will be able to support and work alongside hospitality entrepreneurs in Northern Ireland.”

“We’re really grateful to LEVELUP for seeing the potential in our startup and for choosing us for the award.”

‘Special congratulations’

Claire Nixon, Director at RealTime Recruitment added: “All of the start-ups were very impressive and pitched brilliantly – but a special congratulations goes to the deserving winner Hill Street Hatch – whose entrepreneurial pop-up business is set to shake up the NI hospitality scene.”

The LEVELUP pitch competition, sponsored by RealTime Recruitment, saw 12 NI startups pitch virtually to a panel of startup industry pros and investors including Beth Glenfield, Scout for Ada Ventures, Audrey Osbourne, Investor at Techstart Ventures LLP, Nico Albanese, Senior Associate at Ascension Ventures and local star Angel Investor Mary McKenna.

You can catchup on LEVELUP and all the events from last week’s Enterprise Week Derry Strabane at derrystrabane.com/ewcatchup.