A Kilkenny company has been named Leinster Regional Winners in InterTradeIreland’s Seedcorn Investor Readiness Competition.
It’s considered the largest contest of its kind in Ireland with a total prize fund of €800,000 to promising start-ups and those at early-stage of business.
BackAware won in the B2C category. The BackAware Belt is a wearable technology that gives instant feedback on your back position, allowing for better posture and lifting technique. Founder Eoin Everard’s idea came about after he saw people exercise in the gym in a way that was going to cause a lot of problems.
Eoin Everard, Founder and CEO says; “I am delighted to win in the B2C category in the Seedcorn Connacht and Leinster finals. I’m really looking forward to the national finals in Dublin next month. Thanks to InterTradeIreland for all of their support to date. Entering Seedcorn has been hugely valuable, and I feel our messaging for pitching to investors is now much clearer now. We received great feedback each step of the way to improve our investor readiness. The money from the regional competition will allow us to complete the development of our product, making us more attractive to investors in 2026.”
Trojan Track in Kildare won the B2B and Slígas in Sligo took the Deep Tech title with all three getting €50,000, moving onto the finals in Dublin on the 13th of November.
All emerged victorious from a group of six innovative start-up and early-stage businesses representing Connacht and Leinster which also included eAltra in Borris, Co Carlow, Building Healthy Bones in Pilltown, Co Kilkenny and Slick Plus in Sligo.
Shane O’Hanlon, Funding for Growth Manager at InterTradeIreland, says; “Congratulations to all the finalists who participated in our Connacht and Leinster Regional Finals. The competition is always strong, and the innovation we see continues to impress year after year. A big congratulations to Trojan Track, BackAware and Slíglas for securing their spots in the Dublin finals next month. It’s going to be one competitive final.”
