Founder 250 weekly wrap: Lucky Egg, FYLD, Merwave and THG. Awards success for Lucky Egg, FYLD, MAGIC AI, Merwave & Rheal, while THG's share price continues its climb and Quantexa seals contract win Listen to article As part of a weekly series, BusinessCloud is highlighting updates from some of the companies featured in our Founder 250 list. The UK-wide list celebrates 250 of the country's best founder-led and founder-influenced businesses. RSM UK is the headline sponsor of Founder 250, alongside law firm CG, property specialist OBI and investor Mercia Ventures. 1. Merwave and Rheal shine at North East awards. Merwave and Rheal were among the big winners at the inaugural Scaleup North East Alumni Awards 2026. Delivered by RTC North, the awards celebrated the businesses and individuals making a real impact on the North East's thriving scaleup community. Inspired by her own experiences, Abigail Reid founded Merwave in 2021 alongside her husband Tom, with a mission to transform the world of wavy haircare. After picking up the Rising Star Award, Reid said: "I bloody love being a Geordie lass." Charlotte Ali came up with the idea for Rheal in 2017 after struggling with her health following a coeliac disease diagnosis. The business has generated more than £50m in sales over the last three years and was crowned Outstanding Scaleup at the awards. 2. Glory for MAGIC AI and FYLD at Allstars Awards. MAGIC AI and FYLD were among the biggest winners at the GP Bullhound 2026 Allstars Awards. Now in its 24th year, Allstars celebrates Europe's leading technology founders and the investors backing them. FYLD, which announced a £32m Series B funding round in February, walked away with the High Growth Company of the Year award. Shelley Copsey, who co-founded the business in 2020 with Karl Simons OBE, said: "They say the winners show what's possible when ambition meets execution, across investing, building, and scaling. And I'll add, yesss, the FYLD team knows a lot about that." MAGIC AI, which closed an £8m Series B funding round in September to accelerate its US expansion, was named Sports Tech Company of the Year. Varun Bhanot, founder of MAGIC AI, the business behind the MAGIC AI Mirror, said: "It was the first time we'd ever been nominated, in any category." 3. THG's share price continues recovery. The recovery in THG's share price has continued following the publication of its latest quarterly results. Last week, the Manchester-headquartered eCommerce group's share price jumped by 30 per cent following the results. The momentum continued this week, with shares closing at 39.70p on October 23 - their highest level since January 2026. The company's market capitalisation now stands at approximately £651m. The strong performance of Myprotein and falling whey prices - a key ingredient in its products - have been partly credited with the recovery in THG's share price. 4. Lucky Egg crowned fastest-growing founder-led firm. Lucky Egg has been crowned the UK's fastest-growing founder-led business at the UK Fast Growth Index Awards. Founded by Marcus Ereira and Luke Shelley, Lucky Egg makes party games, with hits including Grab The Mic and Sorry, What? Lucky Egg was crowned the UK's fastest-growing founder-led business at the UK Fast Growth Index Awards The latest accolade caps a stellar year for the London-based startup, which topped the FEBE Growth 100 and was ranked the UK's second-fastest-growing company in The Sunday Times 100. Ereira said: "We've done it without raising a penny from investors, built through organic content and selling our games in 30 countries." 5. Quantexa wins multi-million-pound Insolvency Service contract. Quantexa, the global data, analytics and AI software company pioneering decision intelligence, has secured a multi-million-pound, three-year contract with the Insolvency Service. The partnership will provide the government agency's investigators with a trusted, sovereign data and AI platform to investigate financial wrongdoing, protect taxpayers and strengthen confidence in the UK economy. It follows a £175m, 10-year partnership awarded to Quantexa by HM Revenue and Customs in May 2026 to modernise its data infrastructure and enable the use of sovereign, governed AI on a national scale. Founded by Vishal Marria, Quantexa operates across a range of sectors, including banking, insurance and government. 6. Government must back risk-takers, warns Castore boss. Castore co-founder Tom Beahon has urged the Government to back Britain's risk-takers by creating the incentives and environment they need to succeed. Beahon co-founded the Manchester-based sportswear brand with his brother Phil in 2016 and has helped transform it into a global name. The entrepreneur warned that the UK risks falling further behind its international competitors unless changes are made - starting with Chancellor John Healey's Budget on October 28. He said: "As someone who makes decisions every day on hiring, investment, expansion and exporting, it is clear to me that our collective ambition as a country is waning and unless something changes with our approach to business and wealth creation we will continue to fall further behind."

MAGIC AI, FYLD and PharmAppy shine at GP Bullhound Allstars. Founder 250 companies among the big winners at awards celebrating Europe's leading technology businesses, entrepreneurs and investors Listen to article MAGIC AI, FYLD and PharmAppy co-founder Rhys Lloyd were among the biggest winners at the GP Bullhound 2026 Allstars awards. Now in its 24th year, Allstars celebrates Europe's leading technology founders and the investors backing them. The evening also featured a keynote Q&A with Vishal Marria CBE, founder and CEO of AI unicorn Quantexa. Varun Bhanot, founder of MAGIC AI, the business behind the MAGIC AI Mirror, and Shelley Copsey and Karl Simons OBE, co-founders of AI-powered field management platform FYLD, were all included in BusinessCloud's Founder 250 list. FYLD, which announced a £32m Series B funding round in February, walked away with the High Growth Company of the Year award. Copsey, who co-founded the business in 2020, said: "GP Bullhound Allstars is the 'Oscars of the tech world'. "It's been a stretch goal for us and that's why I'm so excited they named FYLD High Growth Company of the Year. "With past honourees including Spotify, Revolut, and Figma, it's especially meaningful to be celebrated by a community and panel of judges that understand what it takes to challenge established industries and build entirely new categories. "They say the winners show what's possible when ambition meets execution, across investing, building, and scaling. And I'll add, yesss, the FYLD team knows a lot about that." MAGIC AI, which closed an £8m Series B funding round in September to accelerate its US expansion, was named Sports Tech Company of the Year. "We beat 10 others in a very competitive field, most of them far older than us. "As a young entrepreneur, I looked up to the Allstars as the Premier League of tech. "To be nominated, let alone win, means a lot. Not just for us. It's validation that the UK's investors, VC funds, entrepreneurs and investment banks are rallying behind what we're building. "Most of all, they were impressed by our US growth. In our first year there, the US is on track to be over half our revenue." Rhys Lloyd, co-founder of Manchester-based digital pharmacy platform PharmAppy, was named Young Entrepreneur of the Year. He said: "Really grateful for the recognition, but more than anything, it's a reflection of the team at PharmAppy and how far we've come over the past 12 months. A lot has changed in a year, and none of it happens without the people around me sharing the same vision for pharmacies and their patients." The full list of GP Bullhound 2026 Allstars winners: * 1. Consumer Tech Company of the Year: Deepstash * 2. Digital Advertising Company of the Year: Koto * 3. AI & Digital Transformation Company of the Year: Opencast * 4. Sports Tech Company of the Year: MAGIC AI * 5. High Growth Company of the Year: FYLD * 6. Deep Tech Company of the Year: IONATE * 7. Growth & Buyout Fund of the Year: Inflexion * 8. VC Fund of the Year: EQT Ventures * 9. Seed Fund of the Year: firstminute capital * 10. Investor of the Year: David Klein, One Peak * 11. Exit of the Year: Apax for the exit of Faculty * 12. Entrepreneur of the Year: Moritz Kreppel, Urban Sports Club * 13. Young Entrepreneur of the Year (in memory of Mark Sebba): Rhys Lloyd, PharmAppy * 14. Professional Services Firm of the Year: PER