Edward (Lower Shell, PP) and Mikhail (Lower Shell, PP) impressed judges with their QuickFoods app, coming out top in a field of four teams in the Sir Richard Stone Innovation Competition in November.

The competition – named after the late Sir Richard Stone OW who won the 1984 Nobel Prize in Economics for a double entry accounting model that could be used to track international economic activity – is designed to encourage invention among the School’s youngest cohort. Created by four Remove pupils, Kaushal (RR), Aryan (HH), Kaden (WW) and Chris (BB), this year’s competition launched in January 2022, when all competitors were in Fifth Form, and nine teams of pupils took on the Dragons’ Den style challenge, coming up with innovative ideas for products and services, helped by A Level economics students.

The first round of judging took place early in the Election Term, with a panel composed of Westminster teachers led by the Economics Department. All nine business plans were scrutinised before four teams were selected to compete in the final round, showcasing their ideas to a stellar judging panel: investment bankers Ina De, a managing director of J P Morgan and Edward Cartwright, CEO of Arcus, both Westminster Governors; Flor Kassai, partner of private equity firm Inflexion; and Alex Fitzgerald, Old Westminster and co-founder of Cuckoo Broadband.

The four finalists’ presentations were delivered to an exceptionally high standard and after much deliberation, Edward and Mikhail’s delivery concept was awarded the top prize. QuickFoods is a website and app that places all the delivery apps into a single location in order to be able to scroll through all the options in an area in one place, to find the best deals as well as the best quality food. The website uses referral links to not only monetise the business, but also to be able to have a smooth checkout process that redirects customers back to the already completed purchase on whichever delivery companies they have chosen.

On victory, Mikhail said: “I was very surprised when the judges chose us to win the prize, but after the initial shock I was elated to be chosen by such distinguished people. It was a one-of-a-kind experience and I wanted to thank our teachers as well as the Remove pupils for organising this for us. I have learnt an immense amount about the economic market in general, as well as how to present in front of people and all the aspects of a start-up and how to format them. I am intent on continuing with economics further, and if I am delighted that I started and stuck with the project through this time. “

Edward added: “I feel humbled, honoured and very proud to receive such a prestigious award from such distinguished judges. I am also very grateful to everyone in our school community who worked so hard to make this event happen. I am also grateful to my friend Michael for great teamwork and collaboration. Through this competition I discovered the importance of the brainstorming and thinking “out of the box”, being creative and addressing a real problem or gap in the market with a simple solution rather than creating a solution and finding a problem it could resolve. I observed that start-ups fail exactly for that reason – they invent a solution and try to find a problem for it! I also realised the importance of thinking about the solution from a customer’s perspective – it should be simple, easy to use and provide a delightful customer experience. Complexity is not well understood, and it does not scale. And most importantly, working as a team brings diversity of ideas and great results.”

Kaushal, a mentor, said: “I think the spirit behind this competition has been to promote the idea that young students, as the entrepreneurs of tomorrow, should be encouraged to develop the interest and skills of entrepreneurship. Over the months of preparation, it was great to see not only how their ideas developed, but also how they became more confident presenters and enthusiastic businesspeople.”

Aryan added: “We were incredibly excited to have set up the Sir Richard Stone Innovation Competition earlier this year, and proud to see the teams develop through the weeks, culminating with a set of fantastic presentations in the two rounds of the competition. Kaden and I had taken part in a Dragons’ Den style competition when we were in the Fifth Form, and having really enjoyed the experience, thought it would be fun to set up something similar as part of the Economics Society. We thought it would be a great opportunity for Fifth Formers to channel their energy and enthusiasm into an entrepreneurial project, an opportunity to bond as teams, but also to develop the many skills involved in putting together and presenting their ideas.

“It has been the most brilliant experience, and we were thrilled to learn that the Economics department plans to continue the competition in future years.”