PortaSauna named national finalist in Santander X UK Awards 2025, takes third place in SME category

Portsmouth, UK, 20 November 2025

PortaSauna, the UK portable sauna company bringing wood fired sauna experiences to back gardens, beaches and events, has been awarded third place in the SME category at the Santander X UK Awards 2025, Santander's flagship entrepreneurship competition.

The national final, held at Santander UK's headquarters in Milton Keynes, brought together nine early stage businesses from across the country, with three finalists in each category: University, Start-up and SME. PortaSauna was selected from an initial shortlist of 150 businesses that progressed through online pitch workshops and regional heats before reaching the national stage.

The Santander X UK Awards recognise innovative founders who are building high potential businesses in the UK. Over the last 15 years, the programme has provided more than £1.1 million in equity free funding and support to thousands of entrepreneurs, making it one of the largest university and early stage business pitching competitions in the country.

Mike Regnier, CEO at Santander UK, said in the main Santander announcement:
"Start-ups play a vital role in stimulating growth and innovation in the UK economy - they attract investment, enhance productivity and create jobs. However, building a successful business is no mean feat in today's world. With rising costs and competitive access to finance, almost nine in 10 business-owners are calling for more funding and support. That's why the Santander X Awards, our global entrepreneurship programme, sets out to support founders across the world with the funding and skills to take their businesses to the next level. A huge congratulations to this year's winners - I look forward to watching your businesses grow."

Founded in 2024 by Portsmouth based entrepreneur Jordan Boon and Commercial Director Harry Beardsley, PortaSauna has grown from an idea tested on Southsea Beach into a fast growing wellness brand. The company designs and supplies wood fired portable sauna tents that can be set up in around ten minutes, heating to over 80°C, and are now used by households, athletes, wellness businesses and events across the UK and Europe.

"This recognition from Santander feels huge for a young company like ours," said PortaSauna founder and Managing Director, Jordan Boon. "We started PortaSauna to make authentic wood fired sauna experiences more accessible, whether that is in a small city garden or at a wild swimming spot. To stand on stage alongside some of the UK's most exciting founders and be named third in the SME category is something we are incredibly proud of."

Commercial Director, Harry Beardsley, added: "For us, this is about more than saunas. It is about community, mental health and creating healthier social spaces that do not revolve around alcohol. The support and visibility that comes with the Santander X UK Awards will help us reach more people and accelerate our plans for new products, more retailers and a bigger events footprint."

The Santander X UK Awards 2025

The Santander X UK Awards 2025 featured three categories: University, Start-up and SME. One hundred and fifty businesses were shortlisted, with 50 in each category. These founders took part in online pitch workshops before competing in a series of online and in person heats for a place at the National Final in Milton Keynes on 13 November.

Nine finalists, three in each category, pitched live to a panel of judges for a share of £135,000 in funding and business support, as well as access to Santander's international entrepreneurship programme, Santander X. The three first placed businesses will go on to represent the UK in the Santander X Global Awards, Santander's international entrepreneurship competition.

More details about the Santander X UK Awards and the full list of winners can be found on Santander's website:
Santander UK announces winners of its annual awards competition for innovative and early-stage entrepreneurs:
https://www.santander.co.uk/about-santander/media-centre/press-releases/santander-uk-announces-winners-of-its-annual-awards-1

About PortaSauna

PortaSauna is a UK based wellness company specialising in portable wood fired sauna tents and contrast therapy setups. Designed for fast setup, portability and durability, PortaSauna products are used by households, professional athletes, wellness practitioners and event organisers across the UK and Europe. The company's mission is to make high quality, traditional sauna experiences more accessible, from back gardens to beaches, festivals and corporate wellbeing events.

For more information about PortaSauna, visit: https://www.portasauna.com

PortaSauna Ltd
13 Penhale Road
Fratton
Portsmouth
PO1 5EE

PortaSauna Press Office
Email: hello@portasauna.com
Website: https://www.portasauna.com
Jordan Boon / Harry Beardsley

PortaSauna is a wellness company that makes traditional wood fired sauna and contrast therapy accessible to people who do not have the space, budget or planning permission for a permanent spa building.

We design, manufacture and distribute high quality portable sauna tents and cold plunge pools that can be set up in minutes, heated to authentic Finnish sauna temperatures and packed away into the boot of a car. Our core products are the PortaSauna HEX and HEXXL wood fired sauna tents and the PortaPlunge range of inflatable cold plunge pools (CUBE, SOLO, TWIN and PARTY).

The enterprise is built on three pillars:

Home wellness
Direct to consumer sales to households who want a genuine sauna experience in their back garden without committing to a fixed structure.

Business and professional use
Retail partnerships with pool, spa, garden and outdoor stores, plus our PortaSauna Beyond partner model, which supports small businesses that use PortaSauna as part of their own offering, from lakeside saunas and wild swimming clubs to gyms and recovery studios.

Events and experiences
PortaSpa, our event and hire arm, provides fully managed sauna and plunge setups for festivals, sports events, corporate wellbeing days and private hire.

The wider purpose of the enterprise is to support mental health, recovery and community. Many of our early adopters come from cold water swimming groups and recovery communities, where heat and cold are used not only for physical benefits but also as a way to connect, socialise and replace alcohol centred social life with healthier routines.

The business is designed to be scalable, asset light and internationally deployable through local partners and distributors, with current focus on the UK, wider Europe and early steps into North America.

This release was published on openPR.