We want to help both early and later stage companies to take their business to the next level through collaboration with Wincanton. We’re interested in all potential partners that can help us, in one or more of the categories described. Your business needn’t be at the very beginning of its journey – if you feel that your business could benefit from working with Wincanton then we’d love to receive your application.
The deadline for is the 1st May 11:59pm 2022.
You must be at least 18 years old to enter W2 labs.
Of course! The best innovators can come from anywhere. Bear in mind that you may need a visa to participate in the programme and that you will be required to travel to the UK at points during the programme.
If you are worried about travel restrictions caused by COVID-19, please speak to a member of our team. We will be doing our best to facilitate virtual sessions where possible to minimise disruptions.
We believe we are different. We’ll provide your business with opportunities to:
– Trial your product with Wincanton
– Receive mentoring from senior Wincanton executives
– Access funding from Wincanton and L Marks
– Gain insights from subject matter experts through a top-notch education programme
The programme has 4 stages:
1. Apply
2. Pitch
3. Programme
4. Demo
See our timeline for more information.
Programme Live starts on the 11th July 2022 with Demo Day taking place on 31st October 2022
W2 labs is at Wincanton’s headquarters in Chippenham, Wiltshire (UK) as well as other Wincanton office sites, such as Birmingham and London.
Mentors will include senior executives from Wincanton (see the bios on our homepage), experts within the wider Wincanton business, entrepreneurs and external subject matter experts. A full list of mentors will be announced in due course.
The programme is designed to help you develop your solution, starting with deciding on a specific use case; receiving essential guidance from your mentors and demonstrating the value of your solution to Wincanton. Each participant’s experience on the programme will be unique – we tailor the programmes to meet your business’s specific needs.
No, we do not ask for equity for participating in this programme. However, we may ask you to keep us notified about future funding.
We will decide if we want to invest in any of the startups at the end of the programme.
No, we’re not asking you to sign an exclusivity agreement. We want to build a relationship based on trust and, if we like each other, we hope that you’ll see us as the first port of call when you need feedback on your new products. Please be aware that we will ask you to sign a mutual non-disclosure agreement (NDA) which you will need to adhere to, even when working with other parties in the automotive and financial services sector.
If you are invited to join W2 Labs, we will ask you to sign a mutual non-disclosure agreement (NDA) – this means that we’ll keep your information confidential, and you’ll need to do the same for us. This will ensure we can work together productively on the programme. However, when you’re applying to join, neither party will be under NDA, so please only share with us information about your product or business that you consider in the public domain.
Travel support to participate in programme-related activities is at Wincanton’s discretion.
No, though we do require onsite attendance for a number of key dates. We can discuss one on one the needs of your company and the partnering resources of Wincanton to see what would work best during the programme timeframe.
We will aim to select approximately 2-4 startups to join the W2 Labs . This smaller cohort and focused approach will ensure that startups receive additional support and guidance.
L Marks has launched over 70 innovation programmes in Europe, Asia and North America. Working with partners that include BMW, Lloyd’s of London, and United Utilities, L Marks has created the UK’s largest network of corporate innovation labs and is becoming recognised as the most trusted partner for corporate innovation.
Their award-winning Open Innovation programmes harness global entrepreneurial ecosystems and create the framework for collaboration to embed proven technologies into business operations that generate efficiencies, design new product offerings, and improve customer experience.
Within L Marks’ New Ventures unit, the corporate workforce is transformed through equipping and empowering employees to generate new solutions for the organisation, creating a successful culture of innovation. Innovative ideas are developed into market-validated and revenue-generating businesses.
Through integrating new technologies and inspiring an entrepreneurial ethos, L Marks is establishing innovation as a key characteristic across their partners’ businesses, driving a dynamic culture and, ultimately, fuelling growth.