Nurse and clinic owner Jade Cubitt is urging Leeds students and graduates to enter a competition which can kickstart entrepreneurial ventures.
Spark at the University of Leeds has opened its Business Plan competition for 2026 which grants awards to the most innovative individuals who are currently students or who graduated within the last seven years.
The Spark start-up service gives financial awards to people who are trading already and those who have yet to get off the blocks with their enterprising ideas.
Jade was the winner of the Trading Category in 2025 for her Otley business The Art of Skin, with the award enabling her to buy further equipment to grow her business.
Jade completed her degree in nursing at the University in 2023 whilst looking after her young son and daughter. She then began her career at Harrogate District Hospital's A&E department, gaining valuable frontline clinical experience.
Alongside this role, Jade also worked within the medical aesthetics sector. This experience inspired her to establish her own clinic, specialising in high-quality skin rejuvenation treatments.
Medical aesthetics focusses on minimally invasive procedures that enhance skin health and natural features, using medical grade products and evidence-based techniques in a clinical setting which distinguishes it from traditional beauty treatments.
Quite a lot of the entrants were from IT backgrounds and I think it was quite rare to get someone from a medical background. I don't know of many nurses who start their own business.
Jade successfully applied for a Prince's Trust grant to get her business off the ground and, on looking for further funding, discovered Spark, the University of Leeds' business start-up service. She was told to enter the Business Plan competition and, with the deadline only a week away, she had to move fast.
"They received about 120 entries so I was amazed when I won it!" said Jade. "I think my business stood out because it was very different to the others that entered.
"Quite a lot of the entrants were from IT backgrounds and I think it was quite rare to get someone from a medical background. I don't know of many nurses who start their own business."
Being shortlisted for the Business Plan competition meant she had to present for ten minutes and then answer questions from the panel, largely about business growth and development.
She said: "It was a bit like Dragons' Den. There were a lot of challenging questions about finance, marketing and areas of practice."
She heard she was to receive an extra £500 after winning a Special Recognition Award from Limehouse, a film, animation and digital learning company in Leeds. "I didn't expect this at all and it was such a lovely surprise," she said.
Limehouse founder Nick Howard is a former University of Leeds Business Plan competition winner.
The Spark team are phenomenal. They are so helpful. As well as offering individual support, they offer great opportunities.
Then she was chosen by Spark as just one of six individuals to enter for the Sir Peter Thompson Enterprise Award, named after a Leeds alum. It is now supported by Michael Collins of Goldcrest Custom Homes.
Jade said: "The Spark team are phenomenal. They are so helpful. As well as offering individual support, they offer great opportunities."
The process involves the contestants presenting and then being interviewed by Michael Collins.
She was announced as a joint winner with Dragos Popa who, with his partner Nikita Dumitriuk, set up an AI-powered personal study assistant called Plato designed for higher education students.
"It really gave me a confidence boost knowing they believed in me," she said.
She still provides ad hoc support in A&E through an agency, alongside her business.
"I loved caring for patients at A&E and I still do. It helps to keep me clinically competent. I like having the mix. I get an adrenaline rush in A&E and then I enjoy the calmness of the clinic. I am fully in control and can give whatever time patients need," she said.
"I look at natural treatments as well as technical treatments. I am not interested in short term fixes and I don't tell people what they need. I want them to tell me. We all have different perceptions and what bothers one person does not bother another.
"Psychology is a very important part of my business. It cannot be underestimated."
For two decades, Spark has been the launchpad for student entrepreneurs, helping them turn bold ideas into real ventures.
Brian Baillie, Head of Business Start-up (Spark), Student Enterprise and Incubation at the University of Leeds, said: "We're thrilled to be celebrating the 20th year of the Spark Business Plan competition.
"For two decades, Spark has been a launchpad for student entrepreneurs, helping them turn bold ideas into real ventures.
"We'd also like to thank all the previous prize winners, whose creativity and drive truly embody the spirit of Spark and continue to inspire the next generation of innovators. Here's to many more."
The Business Plan competition has now opened. The deadline for applications is Monday 2 March with the presentations due to take place on Monday 16 and Tuesday 17 March.
