Founders: Rytis Vitkauskas and Viktoras Jucikas
Founded: February 2012 (launched November 2012)
Website: http://yplanapp.com/

Last-minute event booker app YPlan’s proposition is a simple one – to present an elegant solution to the age-old problem of ‘what am I going to do tonight?’ The company works with event promoters around London to offer unsold last-minute seats, allowing users to book tickets through its iPhone app in seconds. It is the first mobile app to service the $5bn UK ticketed entertainment industry, which despite a huge surge in mobile commerce elsewhere has remained a relatively untapped market – with an estimated 50% of seats going unsold. Proving a smash hit with London consumers, the app has a 93% 5-star review rate and a glowing endorsement from Stephen Fry – who described it as ‘damned smart’ and a ‘seriously good app’. The company has grown rapidly since launch and now encompasses a team of 17 staff drawn from firms such as Timeout, lastminute.com and SongKick – but this success has not encouraged founders Rytis Vitkauskas and Viktoras Jucikas to rest on their laurels. YPlan will also be launched on the iPad and Android platforms in the next six months, with the company planning global expansion to major cities such as New York, Tokyo and LA. 

Founder: Debbie Wosskow
Founded: October 2011
Website: www.lovehomeswap.com

The tourism sector may seem an unlikely place to look for start-up success during a worldwide recession, but would-be holiday makers are keener than ever to save money and entrepreneurial opportunities have sprung up accordingly. Love Home Swap allows homeowners to swap or rent tens of thousands of homes from holidaymakers worldwide, saving them significant money on hotel bills in the process. The market is a large one, as evidenced by the success of US-based competitor Airbnb, and founder Debbie Wosskow’s firm has already attracted more than 40,000 members. Revenue is generated from annual membership fees as well as commission from booked rentals. With ambitions to become the world’s largest social travel club, with over 100,000 property listings, Love Home Swap is well-positioned to make the most of being at the forefront of a new concept in travel.

Founders: Joe Sopher, Jackie Sopher and Adam Sopher
Founded: October 2010
Website: www.joeandsephs.co.uk

Inspired by similar products in the US, former electrical wholesaler Joseph Sopher spent many years and numerous tasting sessions in his kitchen trying to recreate a British version of handmade gourmet popcorn, eventually emerging with a unique process in which multiple flavours are infused into the popcorn at different stages of cooking with the end result a complex, innovative and delicious product. Traditionally a cheap and simple offering, the family business’ high-end approach to popcorn has bucked the trend by firmly establishing itself in the luxury goods sector with Harrods, Selfridges and Harvey Nichols amongst its UK retail stockists as well as luxury hotels including Claridges, the Grove and Chewton Glen. The company also has a growing presence in the European market with retail customers including Avoca in Ireland, Globus in Switzerland and Spanish department store chain El Corte Ingles. Joe & Seph’s is already profitable and expects to double its sales again over the next year, with a major roll-out to Waitrose planned as well as further expansion into European markets.

Founders: Charles Delingpole and Anil Stocker
Founded: July 2010 (launched March 2011) 
Website: http://marketinvoice.com/

Formed with the aim of revolutionising the UK lending landscape, MarketInvoice offers a distinctly alternative way for businesses to access capital. A top 20 entrant in the 2012 Startups 100 list, the service enables businesses to raise finance against their invoices by auctioning them off to professional investors who then bid to advance the capital in return for a fee at a later date. The brain child of Charles Delingpole and Anil Stocker, former city workers with backgrounds in private equity and IT, the lending company is fast gaining an impressive reputation. With £59m advanced so far to companies across the world, the lending firm’s innovative approach has even attracted attention from the government, with a recent award of £5m as part of the Business Finance Partnership Programme. The grant marks the next stage of the company’s growth as it will channel the investment through its platform as extra working capital for UK businesses, expanding its reach. Currently in the process of establishing a customer liaison office in Hong Kong, the pioneering company is firmly establishing itself as a disruptive market leader in alternative invoice finance. 

Founder: Mark Gibson
Founded: March 2010
Website: www.imagematch.co.uk

Winner of the Startups Social Enterprise of the Year 2011 and featured in Startups 100 last year, innovative social venture Imagematch has continued its extraordinary growth in 2012, featuring on James Caan’s ‘Business Class’ series and now boasting a total social impact in excess of £7.6m. Founded in 2010 by Mark Gibson after his own frustration with finding employment during the economic downturn, Shropshire-based Imagematch works with the long-term unemployed and ex-offenders to help them get back on the career ladder by providing training, CV building and work placements at one of its 200-strong portfolio of business clients. The company is a registered Community Interest Company (CIC); the venture operates without loss and invests any surplus revenue into social projects which benefit the community. Building on its success in the West Midlands, Imagematch is in the process of opening a second outlet in Wales. The next 12 months will also see the launch of the Imagematch Academy, which Gibson says will truly focus on training and academic research to further its goal of overcoming barriers to employment for local communities.

Founder: Richard Corbett
Founded: February 2010 (launched January 2012)
Website: www.eyeteasemedia.com

Featured on our Startups 100 list last year shortly after launch, Richard Corbett’s adaptive taxi-mounted advertising system has been taking the world by storm in the last 12 months. Using Internet-connected screens mounted on taxis, Eyetease’s iTaxitop technology can show contextual advertisements specific to the location of the taxi and time of day; for example showing Chinese language ads whilst driving through Chinatown. Having already enjoyed significant success in the US market, Corbett has turned his attention to launching iTaxiTop in the UK; the technology was recently approved for use in London black cabs and will gain full approval from Transport for London this summer. The last year has also seen the launch of iTaxiTop’s sister product CabWifi, which gives passengers free high-speed Internet access in taxis in return for watching a short advertisement – Corbett says it has already proved a huge hit with customers and the technology looks set to follow iTaxiTop as a revolutionary new way of delivering advertising. Over the next 12 months Eyetease plans to build on its success, concluding deals with a new range of clients in the USA, the UK, Russia and the United Arab Emirates. 

Founder: Oli Christie
Founded: March 2010
Website: www.neonplay.com 

Coming in at number 10 on our list last year, Oli Christie’s Neon Play has now firmly established itself as a major force in the smartphone apps industry, with players in 155 countries and more than 50 million downloads to date. Over the last year Neon Play has completely changed its business model for apps; previously 59p, all its games are now free for players to download, with Neon Play making its revenue from in-app purchases and advertising (a model known as ‘freemium’). Now settled with 21 staff in the market town of Cirencester, the business is breaking away from the Tech City mould, which Christie admits has been a challenge, but has enabled him to foster a strong culture and a great team. Following previous successes, such as top 10 global smash Flick Football, Christie says Neon Play is working on a ‘big’ mobile game that has the potential to be one of the most successful games of the year. Watch this space!

Founders: James Hyde and James Strachan
Founded: February 2010
Website: www.ecommercefulfilment.com 

In their previous roles at an international health food business, Cambridge graduates James Hyde and James Strachan were trying to source a company to dispatch online orders and found themselves in disbelief at ‘a 19th century approach’ to order fulfilment. Spotting a potential business opportunity and convinced they could reinvent the wheel, they set about creating an ecommerce and order fulfilment warehouse that could offer accurate and same-day despatch of online orders to customers on behalf of retailers. Incorporating a technology lead approach, James and James uses the cloud to offer real-time order processing, live reporting and full-integration with shopping carts and couriers. Clients can login to an online portal where their order can be tracked at every stage of transition. Immediately popular, their approach saw the duo secure a client that turned out to be 400 times bigger than they initially realised, allowing them to scale the business fast. With projected growth of 225%, Hyde and Strachan have ambitious expansion plans, including a second warehouse facility and targeting national, medium-sized corporations. 

Founder: Dominic Clark
Founded: May 2011
Website: www.tyresonthedrive.com

The tyre fitting industry doesn’t immediately come to mind as one that leads the way in technological innovation. In fact, the tyre retail model hasn’t changed for almost 100 years. But Dominic Clark (formerly of Michelin Tyres) is changing this with start-up Tyresonthedrive.com, which uses technology to ensure it secures tyres from the cheapest possible source. Customers only pay once the tyres are fitted, and by reducing overheads and holding no physical stock, the business can attract custom by being cheaper than the competition; 23,000 people have used the service so far. The firm was started with £200,000 of Clark’s own money, but quickly attracted an initial seed funding round from Enterprise Ventures proceeded by a follow up round in 2012. With a projected turnover of £5.7m for 2013, the company is hoping to capitalise on its popularity by embarking on a rapid expansion plan.

Founder: Adam Goff
Founded: September 2010
Website: www.capitalliving.co.uk

Founded on three principle values, ‘simple + social + smart’, Capital Living is a premium house share company offering young professionals an easy solution for finding housemates and building a community in London. Inspired by his own experience working in the city and renting in London, Adam Goff found himself disappointed by the lack of what he perceived to be the dream ‘London lifestyle.’ Targeting an audience he knows well, Goff has carved a niche – offering premium properties in desirable locations for ‘likeminded’ individuals. With 130 existing members all with average salaries of £30,000-£60,000, the company not only provides hassle-free housing solutions (bills are always included in your one-off monthly payment) but also offers advice on each local area and tips for good places to socialise. Hitting the £1m mark in 2012 and with a track record of 70% growth year-on-year, Capital Living is looking forward to another year of expansion, with a target of increasing membership numbers to 180.