Entrants to this competition must be:

• Established businesses, academic institutions, start-ups, SMEs, or individual entrepreneurs
• UK based or have the intention to set up a UK base

Applications will be assessed on:

• Relevance to the defined challenge
• Benefit of implementation
• Feasibility/economic viability
• Innovative nature
• Ability to launch in line with expected timescales
• Credibility of applicant company
• Coherence of the proposed business model
• Development potential
• Maturity of the solution
• Suitability for the intended geographic market

• Launch of the Competition: 23rd January 2026
• Deadline for applications: 17th April 2026
• Selection and notification of finalists: 15th May 2026
• Date of Pitch Day: Week commencing 1st June 2026

Functional Requirements

The solution must/should:

• Be operational in basements and or small spaces (where ventilation can be an issue).
• Be user friendly with minimal PPE requirements.

Technical Requirements

The solution must/should be open source (if applicable).

Operating Conditions

The solution must/should:

• Be easy for LUSH to maintain
• Customisable to fit each different treatment theme
• Solutions which will sit under the spa couches need to fit within the following measurements:
  • Seers medical treatment room – Table Length 2m, Width 0.63-0.70m
  • Avalon treatment room – Minimum working height 43cm(*Please note, this measurement is from the floor to the base of the cushion). Maximum working height 99cm. Table length 182cm
  • Spa vision treatment room – Table length 1.85m, Width 0.79m. Height Range: 533mm – 940mm

Existing background IP associated with a potential solution will remain with Solution Provider(s). Where any new IP generation is envisaged, it will be subject to the mutual IP agreement of the Solution Provider(s) and Innovation Challenger.

Any commercial deployment of a transferred solution or newly developed solution, through licensing, joint venture, partnership, or direct investment, will be subject to the commercial agreement between the Solution Provider(s) and Innovation Challenger.

Where necessary, a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) may be signed to uphold confidentiality in the engagement between the Solution Provider(s) and Innovation Challenger. (This would be expected to be after company selection, it is suggested that details of IP be not disclosed, focus on the outcomes of the technology proposed).

Innovate UK and Innovate UK Business Connect do not take any share of IP ownership or enter commercial ventures through the iX programme.

The application form for this challenge will require applicants to provide company information and answer 3 questions – Idea Summary, Technology Readiness, and Intellectual Property – each with a limit of 300 words.

Optionally, supporting documents can be attached to the application. We recommend that supporting documents are limited to those which are directly relevant to the application. Please note that applications with no supporting document will not receive any penalty in assessment. Supporting documents which the Assessment Panel deems to be superfluous may be disregarded. Examples of useful additional documents include product images or short specification sheets, slide decks detailing the solution and/or company background, or solution case studies.

We recommend that you complete the application form in Google Chrome as other browsers may have compatibility issues. The application form does not need to be completed in one session and can be saved for future edits. Please ensure that you toggle “Stage Complete” for each section before submission. Note that you will no longer be able to edit your application once you have clicked “Submit Idea” at the bottom of the Summary page.