6 days ago
'My grandad inspired my fashion brand for people with disabilities – now I'm moving into sportswear'
When Hanan Tantush saw how her grandfather was struggling to find clothes to wear during his cancer treatment, she knew she had to help.
Now the Cheshire fashion brand she set up to make stylish clothes for people with disabilities has won a Manchester competition for entrepreneurs – and Hanan says she now wants to move into sportswear as she pitches for an even bigger prize.
Her business Intotum won the £70,000 to win the Manchester first round of NatWest Pitch, a programme that gives small business owners a chance to compete for a share of £1m. The bank now wants more inspirational north west entrepreneurs to take part in the competition's next rounds.
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The first round of the contest for firms from around the UK was held at NatWest's Spinningfields Accelerator hub for small firms. After two hours of debate, Hanan was named the winner.
Hanan says on her website that she started her business after her grandfather found it hard to find stylish clothes when he began wearing a stoma and urostomy bag during his third battle with cancer.
She did not want her grandfather to feel self-conscious about his clothes and tried to find him adaptive clothing that worked with his disability – and she soon realised there was a gap in the market. So she founded Intotum in Neston in 2023 to 'bridge the gap between function and fashion'.
After her Manchester win, Hanan said: 'I'm feeling very overwhelmed, it's not really hit me yet, but I'm honestly kind of lost for words that I've just won.
'We make comfortable, functional and fashionable clothing for the disabled community, so we take away the need to alter or put up your clothing by making ready to wear clothing that has all the functions and the comfort that you would need every day.
'We're going to be using the money from NatWest for our next collection and for a really exciting sportswear project because we're trying to create a new class of adaptive sports clothing.'
Two other businesses won funding at the Manchester event. Jas Schembri-Stothart of teenagers' healthcare app Luna Life, received £20,000 – while Alex Somervell, creator of scams protection tool Ask Silver, won £10,000.
NatWest has launched the £1m Pitch competition to mark the 10th anniversary of NatWest's Accelerator programme, which has supported 10,000 entrepreneurs across the UK since 2015.
Anyone who wants to enter needs to submit a 60-second video pitch explaining how winning a share of the £1m pot would help them grow their business.
The people behind the best pitches will be chosen to take part in future live events in London or Birmingham – where they will give a 10 minute 'Dragons' Den'-style pitch in front of a panel of judges.
The competition is open to any business anywhere in the UK. NatWest hopes to host more events in Bristol, Scotland and Northern Ireland next year.
After the Manchester event, Darren Pirie, head of the NatWest Accelerator, said: 'Congratulations to all of the finalists and the winners from this inaugural round – the quality of the entrants and the standard of the businesses made this opening event a real challenge for the judges. Given Manchester and the north's long history as a leader in entrepreneurship and innovation it felt like the right place to begin this celebration.
'As Britain's biggest bank for start-ups, we believe that supporting small business growth is key to a strong economy which is why we are thrilled to launch NatWest Pitch to do just that.
'As we mark 10 years of the NatWest Accelerator, this competition is a fantastic opportunity for entrepreneurs to showcase their ideas, telling us about their successes and milestones to date and how they'll use the funding to grow to the next level. My advice is that if you are interested in future applications, don't be modest – tell us what makes your business special.'
