Founder: Ned Corbett-Winder
Founded: March 2011
Website: www.notanotherbill.com

Not Another Bill (NAB) is not another bill – it is a monthly surprise through your letterbox, to lift spirits in tough economic times. The brainchild of a high-flying Central Saint Martins graduate turned serial-entrepreneur, Corbett-Winder started NAB while working from dawn to dusk as an art director for M&C Saatchi. However, his idea, to send paying subscribers something beautiful once a month, soon took on a life of its own – amassing significant press, in The Sunday Times and Guardian.

With subscribers soaring to 700 (including 200 overseas), in March this year Corbett-Winder left his dream job and now works with a carefully-curated team of up-and-coming artists to create bespoke gifts, including jewellery and limited edition prints, for his growing tribe of subscribers.

Founder: Alex Melrose
Founded: September 2011
Website: www.wellseasoned.co.uk

In this digital new millennium, how apt that the idea for a consumer brand should develop off the back of a blog. Believed to be the first food range to do so, what began as a tribute to seasonal eating has grown into a unique range of 100% British pestos, which include feature ingredients (such as roasted beetroot, mushrooms and wild garlic) that rotate with the seasons.

A runner-up at the 2011 Observer Ethical Awards, the fledgling business is now pursuing its first contract with a national retailer – and has no shortage of ambition. The five-year plan is to become Britain’s leading ethical food brand, with a portfolio of different food types and add-ons, including books and event catering.

Founders: Gaby Lixton and Caroline Sparks
Founded: September 2011
Website: www.turtletots.com

There are plenty of aqua-baby classes around, but none like Turtle Tots. As a successful franchisee for one such business, Lixton noticed many mums lacked confidence introducing their baby to the water, and devised a new type of class to resolve this, while also promoting pre and post-natal exercise. With marketing pro Sparks on board, they decided to license the start-up – and within a year had a dozen licensees on board, teaching in more than 15 territories around the UK.

They have been rewarded for their fast growth with funding from the European Regional Development Fund and plan to begin trading internationally within 12 months. Both founders have started and sold ‘baby businesses’ before, so they know how to make a splash.

Founders: Michael Norton OBE and Theresa Burton
Founded: December 2009 (launched January 2011)
Website: www.buzzbnk.org

Crowdfunding is quickly becoming mainstream, and an effective way for businesses to raise start-up or growth capital. Buzzbnk is crowdfunding with a difference: it focuses on social enterprises and charities, and connects them with people who want to support them with time, money (through donations or loans) or both. To date it has helped raise over £330,000 for 27 social ventures.

Co-founded by serial social entrepreneur Michael Norton OBE (co-founder of Changemakers, YouthBank and UnLtd, among others), the site is currently developing the functionality to be used on mobile platforms. The aim is to build an online community of more than 5,000 ventures and raise over £40m in the next five years. The site makes money through taking a small commission, but 70% of profits will go to good causes.

Founder: Kate Castle
Founded: April 2010
Website: www.boginabag.co.uk

A lightweight portable toilet is not the most seductive proposition to present to a panel of business angels. So, when Castle entered the lair of the ‘Dragons’ last year, she was shell-shocked to be offered £50,000 by retail guru Theo Paphitis. Her invention, which looks cunningly like a typical tri-legged camping stool, has a removable seat, over which a specially designed, degradable bag can be placed – filled with magic crystals to absorb liquid and solid waste.

Originally devised for campers and festival-goers, the product has been snapped up by fishermen, the elderly and beach hut owners (among others). Currently stocked in Millets stores across the UK, Boginabag is distributed in four European countries. Next stop, the southern hemisphere: South Africa and Australia.

Founders: James Nash, Josh Coleman (both pictured) and David Schulhof
Founded: April 2011
Website: www.hudsongardenrooms.com

To appreciate fully why Hudson Garden Rooms made our list, visit the website. Its striking imagery does a fine job of showcasing the company’s signature garden rooms and annexes. Along with private individuals, the innovative designs have caught the eye of commercial clients such as Microsoft, for whom Hudson built four custom-designed ‘Orb Pods’. Adorned with Xbox colouring and branding, the pods were used to showcase the console’s new games at a recent press event, acting as media interview and gaming rooms. The company has also been awarded a contract for the London 2012 Olympic Games – the details of which are still under wraps.

Impressively, Hudson is one of several businesses started by the 25-year-old co-founders since leaving university (where they met). Other ventures include bike parking specialists Bikedock Solutions, and Shelterstore Direct, which sells street furniture.

Founder: Jessica Williams
Founded: November 2011
Website: www.britpopbakery.com

Serial entrepreneur Jessica Williams inadvertently tapped into a phenomenon when she started The Britpop Bakery. The keen baker devised her unique recipe for organic, luxury cake-pops after discovering that the rich little cupcakes-on-a-stick she’d spotted breaking into the baking market were generally coated with a synthetic chemical called Candy Melts – and decided she wanted to eat better.

She wasn’t the only one and demand for The BritPop Bakery’s child-friendly, handcrafted treats has been so strong that the business is already outgrowing Williams’ home kitchen – within months of launch. After recently filling a significant order with Crew Clothing to celebrate its new ‘Junior’ range, Williams has just launched a promotion with Cosmopolitan magazine. Watch out Hummingbird Bakery.

Founder: Alyssa Smith
Founded: September 2009
Website: www.alyssasmith.co.uk

Deciding to make a living by selling jewellery in the middle of world-wide recession is a brave move by anyone’s standards, but Alyssa Smith’s eponymous business belies economic conditions as well as her tender years. The 25-year-old has set herself and her products apart through quirky design and an assured and effective use of social networking. Smith describes her products as ‘driven by customer demand and inspired by social media’ and a focus on interacting with customers through platforms such as Twitter has paid dividends.

As well as selling via her website, Smith has now begun working with stockists, such as online boutiques, to grow the brand. Savvy collaborations with brands such as Firefly Tonics, as well as some star appeal from celebrity fans, have put Alyssa Smith Jewellery on the map.

Read our Just Started profile

Founders: Anna Bance and Xavier de Lecaros-Aquise
Founded: January 2009
Website: www.girlmeetsdress.com

It’s no secret that women love designer dresses, if beyond the means of most. Enter Girl Meets Dress, an online wardrobe of more than 4,000 designer pieces, all of which can be rented, as simply as borrowing a dress from a friend. Orders arrive overnight and come with a pre-paid box for returns, after the occasion at hand.

With more than 150 designer brands on board, the site is attracting more than 150,000 unique visitors a month and growing at a rate of more than 100% – despite remaining boot-strapped to date. Just two years in, Bance has an array of accolades under her (high-waisted) belt, including the highly sought after Drapers Innovation Award and a column in the Huffington Post.