Launchpad Awards Night – celebrating entrepreneurship

Lp End Of Year Event
Lp End Of Year Event
Type: Text
Category: Blog

By Launchpad candidate Ananya Banerjee

Celebrating small victories is a part of the norms of many start-up teams. And when it comes to our very own Falmouth Launchpad, we tend to celebrate victories – big and small. The September 2020 cohort members just finished their final pitches and submissions and are off to the next step of their entrepreneurial journey. How could we have not made such an occasion memorable for them, for the in-house staff, and for the June '21 cohort!

With the help and support from the Launchpad team, we hosted an awards night on Friday 30 July. Everyone participated in making it happen – from finding a caterer at the last moment to decorating the presentation space, contributing to buy things, and what not! There were multiple categories of awards like 'warp speed', or 'hostess with the mostess' – complete with chocolate awards given to the chosen ones and eaten within seconds!!

The entrepreneurs dressed up and made it an 'almost black-tie' event. The whole Launchpad building was buzzing with music, crowd-sourced picture slideshows, and Bon Jovi singing 'Reunion' in the background. Toasts on champagne flutes, plastic glasses, or just coffee mugs – it did not matter. Everyone let their hair down. Mike Morris from the June cohort described the evening as: "a great event; very nice food and wonderfully convivial atmosphere to talk to entrepreneurs from many cultures and backgrounds." Matt Glowacki from the graduating cohort aptly described it as "an amazing evening at the Pad with my fellow entrepreneurs!"

For the September 20 cohort, it was difficult to cope with the lockdown and remote work. Neil Cameron said: "Friday was a great celebration of a year's hard work. Loved the awards, the champagne and of course the food. The pandemic and lockdown have been pretty tough for the cohort but we've all pulled together and are rooting for each other. Massive thanks to Ananya and Ellen for making it happen, giving us all a night to remember."

I believe the Friday night celebration not only created unforgettable memories, but it also helped the new cohort bond so well with the in-house team, the previous cohort, and with each other – which is already evident in the post-event interactions. We continued the night beyond Launchpad. However, it makes sense to end this post here with the words of the hostess for the Launchpad Awards Night, Ellen O'Rourke: "It was a pleasure to organise for such a passionate, dedicated bunch of people. The memories I've made over the past year will last a lifetime – wishing everyone every success in whatever road they take next!"

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