Rio Ferdinand OBE, Deborah Meaden and Simon Squibb announced as star-studded judging panel for Alibaba.com's CoCreate Pitch competition in Europe
CoCreate Pitch Europe returns to London as it looks for its next Grand Winner, 12 months on from the success of 16-year-old CoolTowel™ founder Harrison Nott who has seen his business grow 10-fold
LONDON, Oct. 8, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Alibaba.com today announced the return of CoCreate Pitch Europe, its product-based start-up competition spotlighting the next generation of entrepreneurs.
Following the success of last year's inaugural competition, CoCreate Pitch 2026 will take place in London from 19th-20th November with a star-studded panel of expert judges. Having been a judge in 2025, Rio Ferdinand OBE1 returns to lead the 2026 panel, which also features business guru Deborah Meaden2 and social media sensation Simon Squibb3.
CoCreate Pitch 20265 is an AI-driven product innovation competition giving start-ups from across the globe the chance to be named Alibaba.com's Grand Winner. Prizes come from a $1 million global prize pool shared across the competition's US and European editions, each with its own Grand Winner.
Last year, 16-year-old Harrison Nott, founder of CoolTowel™, was crowned CoCreate Pitch 2025's Europe Grand Winner. After meeting Harrison, Rio chose to stay involved, providing hands-on mentorship and business advice throughout the year. His continued involvement speaks to the connections CoCreate can spark.
Since winning the competition last year, Harrison has used his $200,000 prize money as fuel for expansion, scaling up operations and building out his support team, including logistics and customer service. Rio also opened doors that would otherwise have been out of reach, connecting Harrison with high-profile international networks and audiences and helping build the brand's international profile. This combination of funding and mentorship has helped Harrison's business grow tenfold, and earlier this year, he generated the equivalent of almost two-thirds of his entire annual revenue from the year before in a single day.
As well as Rio, this year's competition finalists will get to meet Deborah Meaden, one of the UK's most recognisable business voices, TV personality and serial investor. After a long career in the Leisure Industry, she finally exited her holiday business and became a full-time investor, backing over 50 fast-growing and scaling businesses and giving her a breadth of experience and unrivalled understanding of the challenges facing today's small business owners.
Rio and Deborah will sit alongside entrepreneur, author and social media sensation, Simon Squibb. Simon is a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, and author of the #1 Sunday Times bestselling book "What's Your Dream?". With over 22 million social media followers and 2 billion views each year across all his content, Simon has become a leading voice in entrepreneurship. Simon has invested in over 81 companies, including Lovable, Skillstore, and Stan, and has given away over £425,000 to support people chasing their dreams.
The trio will be joined by Jonathan Anguelov4, co-founder of French unicorn Aircall and recognized among the top economic changemakers in France under 40.
Harrison Nott, CEO & Founder, CoolTowel™, said: "Winning CoCreate Pitch last year has changed the trajectory of my business. It's not just about the prize money, it's about the connections and the platform it gives you to take your business to the next level.
"The network I built through CoCreate Pitch opened doors I could only have dreamed of, like getting CoolTowel™ in the hands of professional athletes and celebrities. The mentorship and practical business advice from Rio over the past nine months have been a gamechanger, and I would encourage anyone with a brilliant product idea to take the leap and enter CoCreate Pitch 2026. There's nothing like it to scale your business."
Kuo Zhang, President of Alibaba.com, said: "We are delighted to return to London and hear from some of Europe's most exciting scale-ups as they pitch to win our significant prize package. Over the last year, the growth of Harrison's business has exemplified the added value that CoCreate Pitch can provide entrepreneurs with, particularly when combined with advice and insight from our industry-leading judges, as well as our Alibaba.com and Accio teams."
This year's CoCreate Pitch is powered by Accio, which provides entrepreneurs with a pre-configured agentic AI business team that manages the entire SME lifecycle end to end, from market analysis, design and sourcing to store optimisation and inventory monitoring. And for this year's competition, a dedicated 'CoCreate Pitch Agent' helps applicants transform early product ideas into structured pitch concepts and actionable business plans. Applications for the London event close on October 16, 2026. For more information, please visit the CoCreate Pitch event page.
The announcement comes as new data from Alibaba.com and Small Business Institute Research6 shows that only 5% of small business owners are using agentic AI for supply chain management. It also shows that while only 5% are using agentic AI regularly, 68% of UK entrepreneurs want to find out more about what it can do for their business.
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Notes to Editors
1Rio Ferdinand OBE is a former Manchester United footballer widely regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation. He has won six Premier League titles, the 2008 UEFA Champions League and represented England at three World Cup tournaments.
Beyond his legendary football career and impactful presence in the media, Rio has established himself as a savvy and strategic businessman. As President of New Era Ingenious, a talent and creative agency specialising in athlete-led content and brand partnerships, and a global content creator through his digital channel Rio Ferdinand Presents, Rio continues to shape the future of sport and media. With investments across a range of successful ventures, he has proven that his talents extend far beyond the pitch. From property and lifestyle brands to tech and media, he's built a diverse portfolio that reflects both his business acumen and vision.
2Deborah Meaden is an entrepreneur, business leader, author and well known for her role as an investor in early stage and startups, with particular emphasis on those businesses solving or reducing negative environmental and societal impact. Deborah supports ethical, fair practice both in business and in life believing that taking care of the environment is essential for our future security and wellbeing. As well as utilising her wealth of experience supporting, advising and guiding businesses to more sustainable business practices, she is actively involved in a carefully selected group of environmental charities.
3 Simon Squibb is a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, and author of the #1 Sunday Times bestselling book "What's Your Dream?". With over 22 million social media followers and 2 billion views each year across all his content, Simon has become a leading voice in entrepreneurship. Simon has invested in over 81 companies, including Lovable, Skillstore, and Stan, and has given away over £425,000 to support people chasing their dreams. In 2025, Simon launched the "Elevator of Dreams" at Virgin Hotels London-Shoreditch. Simon continues to democratise entrepreneurship through initiatives like HelpBnk, The Doorbell of Dreams, and his #GiveWithoutTake movement.
4 Jonathan Anguelov is the founder of Offstone, a real estate investment platform offering access to exclusive club deals. With a lifelong passion for real estate, he enables investors to invest alongside him and benefit from the same returns.
Before founding Offstone, he co-founded Aircall, one of European biggest startup unicorns, now valued at over $1.3 billion. Specialising in business telephony and voice AI, Aircall has established itself as a global leader in the European tech ecosystem.
One of France's most active angel investors, Jonathan has invested in more than 40 startups in France and internationally. His journey has been anything but conventional. Born to an unknown father and a Bulgarian immigrant mother who could not write, he grew up in the French child welfare system, moving between foster families and children's homes until the age of 18. He describes this difficult childhood as the source of his inner strength and entrepreneurial boldness.
5This year, CoCreate Pitch is divided into three tracks: the General SMEs Track, the 0-to-1 Startup Track and the Students Track. The 0-to-1 Startup Track, designed for founders using Accio Work to bring raw ideas to life, currently accounts for 65% of all applications, reflecting strong momentum among early-stage entrepreneurs using AI to move from concept to prototype and launch. For full competition rules, terms and prize details, please refer to the official CoCreate Pitch website. The organiser reserves the right of final interpretation.
6Data comes from a survey of 1,000 small UK business owners in August 2026; Small Business Institute is the knowledge and capability hub for the small business community, run by Small Business Britain.
About CoCreate
CoCreate is the world's leading sourcing event, connecting global e-commerce sellers, retailers, and wholesalers with top manufacturers and industry experts. By fostering face-to-face collaboration, the summit empowers businesses to discover innovative products, optimize supply chains, and build partnerships that drive long-term growth.
About Alibaba.com
Launched in 1999, Alibaba.com is a leading platform for global business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce that serves buyers and suppliers from over 200 countries and regions around the world. It is engaged in services covering various aspects of commerce, including providing businesses with tools that help them reach a global audience for their products and helping buyers discover products, find suppliers and place orders online fast and efficiently. Alibaba.com is part of Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group.
About Accio
Accio is Alibaba.com's plug-and-play enterprise AI agent designed to support the operational needs of SMEs worldwide. It deploys specialised agents to execute complex tasks - from product design and sourcing to negotiation and CRM - handled in one continuous conversation.
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