By Dave Law
I haven’t won Scottish Edge four times.
They say most winners don’t succeed on their first try. They also say you learn the most from failure. So, after four unsuccessful attempts, I’d like to think I’ve learned a fair bit about how not to win.
Now, as Round 25 opens with its biggest prize yet – up to £150,000 – I’m preparing for my fifth go. Here’s what went wrong the first four times, and how it might go right this time.
Attempt One: Brew Lab & Cold Brew Coffee (2016)
In 2016, I applied with my first business, Brew Lab , an Edinburgh-based specialty coffee bar. I had spotted a wave of innovation coming from North America: cold brew coffee. We developed a bottled cold brew product for our café customers and quickly gained traction, even landing a major Scottish F&B distributor.
I applied for Scottish Edge to scale up production. But I didn’t make it past the semi-finals.
The judges saw too much risk in building a production facility for a product that had yet to scale. They were right. Four years, three cold brew product launches, and three cold brew failures later, the cold brew dream was dead.
Attempt Two & Three: FAFF Coffee (2020 & 2022)
After selling Brew Lab, I launched FAFF Coffee , a brand focused on making great coffee more accessible. I saw an opportunity to improve on what brands like Taylors of Harrogate and Percol were doing with coffee bags.
This time, we weren’t handling manufacturing – we used a contract producer – and I sought funding to push a major marketing campaign.
- Attempt one failed because we were too early. I hadn’t communicated demand for the product or really pushed home how we were better than Taylor’s.
- Attempt two failed because I got distracted by new product development. The judges told me to focus on growing product one before launching product two.
FAFF is still growing, and we recently secured outside investment. But I learned that timing, and focus, is everything.
Attempt Four: Zeepy (2023)
In 2023, I applied with Zeepy, a sleep training clock for kids that integrates meditation and mindfulness. My brother Rob (founder of Trunki) and I launched it just three months before applying, with promising early traction.
But our plan to manufacture in China and run a remote team didn’t appeal to the judges. They saw no clear benefit to the Scottish economy.
That rejection helped shape a core lesson: Scottish Edge isn’t just about a great business—it’s about a great business for Scotland.
8 Key Lessons for Winning Scottish Edge
If you’re applying, here’s what I’ve learned:
- Not manufacturing in Scotland? You need to show a strong sustainability impact or job creation in Scotland to make up for it.
- Remote workforce? They won’t like it. Commit to hiring in Scotland.
- Be crystal clear on your competitive edge. When I applied with FAFF, a judge told me, “Taylors already do coffee bags.” I hadn’t made our differentiation obvious enough.
- Put your metrics in context. Judges may not know your industry norms. FAFF had a strong reorder rate, but they thought it wasn’t good—because they didn’t understand coffee DTC benchmarks.
- Scotland, Scotland, Scotland. It doesn’t matter if your business is thriving. If it doesn’t have a clear Scottish economic or social impact, don’t bother applying.
- Show demand before talking about new products. If you haven’t nailed product one, don’t waste time pitching product two.
- Leverage Scottish business support networks. Name-drop RBS Accelerator, Bright Red Triangle, Tech Scaler, or Business Gateway. Judges like to see you engaging with them.
- New business with no sales? Apply for Wildcard Edge. Otherwise, you need to prove clear demand and traction.
Looking Ahead to Attempt Five
Zeepy hit £250k in sales in year one. Now, we’re building a stronger sustainability focus—while we can’t manufacture in Scotland, we can ensure our product is repairable, refurbishable, and recyclable in Scotland.
Additionally, we’re committing to a Scotland-based team of children’s sleep experts, positioning Zeepy as the leading authority on kids’ sleep.
We’ve learned from our mistakes. Now, let’s see if fifth time’s the charm.
If you’re applying for Scottish Edge, don’t just ask, “Is my business great?” Ask, “Is my business great for Scotland?” Nail that, and you’re in with a chance.
Dave Law is Founder of FAFF Coffee, a trading name of Innovative Coffee Ltd.
