Oscar Blazquez, Director of Iberica, was awarded £6,000 for making the most progress with his start-up business during his first six months at Entrepreneurial Spark.
Iberica imports a wide range of authentic Spanish food products, traditionally prepared with natural ingredients, and sells them through wholesale and retail channels in the UK including events and on-line. Oscar founded the business after living and studying in Brighton, enjoying the British culture but missing the Spanish food he grew up with.
Within six months at Entrepreneurial Spark, Iberica has doubled sales, grown a two-person team to seven, developed a business strategy, launched a website, rebranded, and developed and extended the product range to include an own brand label.
Oscar said: “I initially had the support of the Ογ½ΆΦ±²₯’s Entrepreneurship Programme, and in 2013 I was awarded £2,500 from the university’s Enterprise Growth Fund to support the launch of Iberica’s website.
“Now I have also had the honour of receiving a £6,000 award from Entrepreneurial Spark. Our plans for 2016 are quite ambitious but having support from the Ογ½ΆΦ±²₯ and the resources and facilities provided by Entrepreneurial Spark, we are ready for the challenge.”