Prize Draw

Adobe / Express Your Innovation

Competition Terms and Conditions

1. ELIGIBILITY

1.1 This competition is open to Sole Traders, Business Owner or Community Project Organisers (as defined at 1.3 below) (“Entrants”) who work in a Qualifying Organisation (as defined at 1.3 below) and are resident in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man and aged 18 or over. Employees of Telegraph Media Group Holdings Limited (“Promoter”) and Adobe Systems Software Ireland Limited (“Adobe”), their agents or anyone else professionally associated with the competition are not eligible to enter.

1.2 All information detailing how to enter this competition forms part of these terms and conditions. It is a condition of entry that all rules are accepted as final and that the entrant agrees to abide by these rules. Submission of an entry will be taken to mean acceptance of these terms and conditions.

1.3 For purposes of this Competition:

1.3.1 An “Entrant” is someone who is a:

Sole Trader: an individual who operates and owns a business. The sole trader must be registered with the HMRC.
Business Owner: an individual who owns no less than 51% of a business
Community Project Organiser: an individual who governs a community initiative or project.

1.3.2 A “Qualifying Organisation” is one which falls into one of the three below categories:

Rising Star - a business start-up that has not established itself as a sole trader or limited company.
Community Project - An initiative that seeks to create positive social, economic or environmental change in the local area.
Small Business - A business that employs fewer than 100 people.

1.4 The Qualifying Organisation must be registered in the UK and the Community Project must be registered with The Charity Commission.

2. HOW TO ENTER

2.1 To enter the competitions Entrants must:

Select which category applies to their business which deems it a “Qualifying Organisation”: Small Business, Rising Star or Community Project: and
Answer the following questions in no more than 100 words but no less than 30 words:

What is the biggest challenge that business mentoring could help you with?
What is the business challenge you are facing OR what is your big idea and what will the innovation deliver
Tell us how you came up with the solution to your challenge or your idea?
How would you use the funding in the next 12 months?
Tell us why you are so passionate about your business, side hustle, or project idea?
What are the biggest obstacles you have had to overcome so far in your business journey?

(“Together (1) and (2) form your Entry”)

2.2 Entries must not contain confidential information. Entries may feature in content created for the Adobe/Telegraph campaign which could include in articles on The Telegraph’s Adobe hub, in the The Daily Telegraph and on Adobe’s channels. By entering this Competition you give Adobe/Telegraph the right to use your Entry in this way as per clause 3.2.

2.3 Entries must be in English.

2.4 Entries must be the original work of the entrant submitting it and must not have been published elsewhere or have won a prize in any other competition.

2.5 Entries must be submitted via https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/adobe-express-your-innovation/competition/

2.6 Entries must be received by 23:59 on Tuesday, April 22, 2025.

2.7 Entrants may enter this Competition once only. Once submitted, the Promoter cannot accept any changes to any part of an entry.

2.8 Late, illegible, incomplete, defaced, corrupt entries or entries which do not comply with these terms and conditions will not be accepted. No responsibility can be accepted for lost entries and proof of transmission or posting will not be accepted as proof of receipt. Entries must not be sent through agencies or third parties.

3. COPYRIGHT AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

3.1 It is the responsibility of each entrant to ensure that their entry does not infringe the copyright or intellectual property rights of any third party or any laws.

3.2 Copyright and all other intellectual property rights in all entries submitted for this competition remains with the respective entrants. However, each entrant grants a worldwide, irrevocable, perpetual licence to the Promoter and Adobe to feature any or all of the submitted entries in any of their publications, their websites and/or in any promotional material connected to this competition (for example in articles on The Telegraph’s Adobe hub, in The Daily Telegraph (online/print) and on Adobe’s channels).

3.3 Entrants are on notice that:

The competition procedure is not confidential, and
The Promoter and Adobe accept no responsibility for protecting any Entries from disclosure, copying or infringement.

4. JUDGES

4.1 Entries will be judged by a judging panel comprising both a representative from The Telegraph and one business mentor from the relevant category (Rising Star, Small Business and Community Project). These judges are as follows: Paul Lindley - entrepreneur (Rising Star Judge), Julie Lilley - Chief Executive at Federation of Small Business (Small Business Judge), Natalie Campbell - CEO of Belu Water (Community Project Judge) “each a Judge, together the ”Judges”).

5. JUDGING PROCESS

5.1 The decision of the Judges will be at their sole discretion; be final; and no correspondence will be entered into.

5.2 The Judges will base their decision on the following criteria:

Rising Star
Innovative / creative solution to a problem - 40%
Execution plan -20%
Drive to succeed -40%
Community Project
Creativity - 20%
Likely impact - 40%
Relevance i.e. the solution is relevant to the problem outlined on the entry form - 20%
Feasibility of the solution and viability- 20%

Small Business
Market understanding - 30%
Problem solving / creativity - 40%
Pitch clarity - 30%

5.3 The judging process is as follows:

5.4 The Telegraph’s representative will:

Carry out due diligence into each Entrant’s business to ensure it meets the eligibility criteria
Filter entries based on the judgement criteria (5.2 above).
Select the top 10 entries in each category and share them with the relevant judge for that category

5.5 Each Judge will choose the winning entry for their category from the 10 provided by The Telegraph representative.

5.6 The Telegraph representative reserves the right to amend the Entrants chosen category should a different category be more befitting.

6. PRIZES

6.1 There will be three winners, one per category. Each winner will receive:

£6,000 towards the winner’s business/business idea:
The winner’s business will feature in an online article on the Adobe hub on telegraph.co.uk:
The winners’ businesses will feature in The Daily Telegraph (Adobe campaign content):
Two 30-minute mentorship sessions with the relevant Judge of their category:
Two 30-minute 1 to 1 design sessions with an Adobe creative designer: and
One annual Premium Subscription to Adobe Express.

(“Prize”)

6.2 The £6,000 business contribution will be provided via BACS within six weeks of the closing date of the competition. The business should use the contribution in the way described on the entry form.

6.3 The first mentoring session must take place within six weeks of the date of the photoshoot (5 - 31 May 2025). The second session must take place within six months of the first meeting.

7. GENERAL

7.1 The Promoter reserves the right to refuse to accept any entry which in its opinion does not comply with these terms and conditions or which contravenes the spirit of the Competition.

7.2 The winners will be contacted by the Promoter by email or telephone by April 30, 2025. Should the Promoter be unable to contact a winner or should a winner be unable to accept the prize within three working days, the Promoter reserves the right to award the prize to an alternative winner, drawn in accordance with these terms and conditions.

7.3 The Promoter's decision in all Competition-related matters shall be final.

7.4 The winners will be required to take part in reasonable publicity on behalf of the Promoter and/or Adobe. This will include photographs created for the Adobe/Telegraph campaign which may feature in The Telegraph’s Adobe hub, in The Daily Telegraph and on Adobe’s channels. By participating in this Competition, the winner agrees to participate in such photoshoots and understands that they may be asked to sign a release form to this effect. The photoshoot will take place no later than May 16, 2025.

7.5 Entrants’ data will be used for the purpose of administration of this Competition and in accordance with the permissions granted or withheld at the point of entry. Adobe and its third-party processors may use the winners’ name, email or postal address for the purposes of contacting them as the winner of the competition. For information about how the Promoter uses personal information, please see: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/about-us/privacy-and-cookie-policy/ For information about how Adobe uses personal information, please see here: https://www.adobe.com/uk/privacy/policy.html

7.6 The Prizes as described are available on the date of publication. All Prizes are non-transferable and there are no cash alternatives (except for the £6,000 cash contribution as described above).

7.7 Events may occur that render the Competition itself or the awarding of the Prizes impossible due to reasons beyond the control of the Promoter and accordingly the Promoter may at its absolute discretion vary, amend or waive the Competition’s rules and the entrant agrees that no liability shall attach to the Promoter (or Adobe) as a result thereof.

7.8 These Terms and Conditions are to be interpreted in accordance with English law and any dispute arising out of these Terms or their subject matter is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.

Promoter Telegraph Media Group Holdings Limited, 111 Buckingham Palace Road, London, SW1W 0DT.