To celebrate Black History Month we round up a selection of new businesses that are disrupting industry norms and putting their stamp on the UK Technology scene.

From Uber for haircuts to a stress-free event-planning platforms, these Black-run start-ups are changing the game with their innovative ideas.

Here are our picks of the one’s to watch.

Vendoir

As anyone who’s ever organised an event will attest, this line of work isn’t without stress.

To alleviate some of that pressure, entrepreneurs Oshoma Zekeri, Yoma James Kukor and Charles Ofoegbu created Vendoir, a stress-free, affordable, on-demand app to book vendors such as DJs, photographers, live bands or caterers.

For the vendor, it means the ability to market and manage themselves, consolidate bookings and scroll through user analytics. It also aims to make any event organiser’s life easier with ratings and payment protection.

Available to download on iOS and Android

Sojo

Regardless of your ability to handle a sewing machine, clothing repairs and alterations can feel like tedious tasks you never get around to doing. If you follow the ‘make do and mend’ mantra but need help when giving your clothes a new lease of life, Sojo gets your wardrobe in shape.

Described as ‘the Deliveroo of clothing repairs’, Josephine Philips’ sustainable fashion app is helping the clothing repair and tailoring industry go mainstream, by connecting users to seamster or tailoring businesses. Deliveries and collections are done via bicycle.

Free, available to download on iOS and Android

TrimCheck

It’s likely that many won’t forget the months of lockdown hair, overgrown edges, bushy beards and forlorn fringes, or the subsequent trauma of asking loved ones to take the clippers to tame their overgrown manes.

For Moaz Nabiel, it was the perfect opportunity to launch TrimCheck, a subscription-based service connecting customers across the UK with a network of on-demand barbers and hairdressers.

Thought of as the ‘Uber for haircuts’, the platform helps customers find, book and pay for a reviewed barber at their chosen location – anywhere from the comfort of their own home to the office or a conventional barber shop.

Equally, TrimCheck looks to make the entire process more efficient for barbers, helping them manage their schedules, payment processing, messaging and call-outs, while saving costs by going direct to customers.

Available to download on iOS and Android

Suvera

Digital health solutions have been in the spotlight after a turbulent couple of years for the healthcare industry, radically altered by the growing need for remote care.

This has forced GPs to adapt to demands, with many patients swapping face-to-face appointments for virtual ones. London-based Suvera and its founder, Ivan Beckley, is helping to fuel this digital evolution, working with GPs to provide services remotely for patients with long-term chronic conditions.

The aim is to reduce waiting times at physical clinics by providing services virtually, such as administering prescriptions and tracking blood pressure.

Since 2019, the start-up has signed deals with more than 40 GPs covering more than 20,000 patients.

FoodLama

If you’re the kind of person who spends an inordinate amount of time sifting through the dietary information on every product, you might want to bring Damilare Ogunleye and Santiago Schmitt’s FoodLama along for the ride the next time you go shopping.

It’s a free allergy and dietary shopping browser extension – or digital shopping assistant, if you will – that does all the ingredient checks for you.

Working alongside big brands such as Asda, Tesco, Amazon and Ocado, with more launching soon, the Chrome extension enables users to filter the products depending on their allergies, and ultimately see the products to avoid, while shopping and discovering the best alternative recommendations.

This way, those with food allergies can quickly discover food they can eat and avoid any medical emergencies.

Add the Chrome browser extension

Black History Month

October marks Black History Month, which reflects on the achievements, cultures and contributions of Black people in the UK and across the globe, as well as educating others about the diverse history of those from African and Caribbean descent.

For more information about the events and celebrations that are taking place this year, visit the official Black History Month website.

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