The winner of the inaugural GIMA Innovators' Seed Corn Fund has been named as SteadyPost, with its solution for erecting fences more easily.
The Garden Industry Manufacturers' Association broke the news at this week's Glee exhibition in Birmingham.

The competition, which aims to encourage new businesses, designers and innovators to enter the market, drew over 20 entries, but it is SteadyPost that will receive the £5,000 seed corn fund prize and help with the development and marketing of the product.

SteadyPost's FenceFin is designed to revolutionise the way fences are erected one fence post at a time. It is an easy-to-use alternative to spikes or concrete, usually employed to anchor wooden fence posts in the ground. Installation is quick and easy and no heavy labour or special equipment is needed.

GIMA director Vicky Nuttall said: "The company, and its product, really stood out for a number of reasons. The first is that the FenceFin tackles a common problem head on in the most innovative yet simple way, and the second is that the team at SteadyPost have already managed to successfully manufacture and retail their product. But I believe what most attracted us was the volume sale opportunity it offers retailers."

As well as choosing a winner, the panel also named four highly-commended companies: Seedsava with its eponymous product the Seedsava, designed to help gardeners sow seeds neatly; Garden Greetings with the Potted Greeting Card, a card that wraps around a pot; Version 22 with the Geco Hub, which provides a safe spot to store important household objects such as keys, notes and phone; and VH Innovations with the Zebedee Kneepads, designed to offer a more comfortable and protective solution than other knee pads.