YoungPlanet enables parents to put their children's unused things to use with new families and away from landfills for free via its app. The company cites PwC data estimating the UK’s sharing economy to be worth £9 billion by 2025. It aims to be a contender in this segment. The company argues further that 10-year-olds in the UK will own on average 238 toys at any one time and yet play with just 12. This leads to UK households wasting over 25 million tonnes a year, with one-fourth of this number ending up in landfills as per the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). YoungPlanet aims to change this. It has onboarded 36,000 users on its platform to date and featured in press publications such as BBC News, Vanessa Feltz, and LadBible. YoungPlanet will use the investment to scale nationally, begin generating first phase revenue via brand sponsorship of events, branded gamification, and Business-to-Business (B2B) subscriptions for semi-closed communities via its app.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£547,103
Equipsme is a company that aims to democratise health insurance by making it affordable for businesses. The company offers flexible fixed-price packages to employees while giving them the option to upgrade their package to avail more features upon payment. Members can speak to a general physician round the clock, have physiotherapy sessions, avail regular health checks and, if necessary, be quickly referred to a consultant for diagnosis and treatment. Members can access these features through a simple-to-use application. Since February 2018, the company has secured an exclusive 5-year insurance capacity deal with AXA PPP Healthcare and grown its members by 130.5% Year-on-Year (YoY) (to May 2020) with a 95% broker renewal retention rate. The company will use the investment to enhance its user experience and scale its marketing as it announces its partnerships with organisations such as Starling Bank and Simply Business.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£879,204
Perfectly Spoken offers English learning courses online for free in response to the global demand for learning the English language. The user base of this company has grown exponentially to 125,000+ users in less than a year and forecasted to grow at the rate of 30,000+ new users in a month. Perfectly Spoken has grown to 65,000 active followers on social media and is likely to attract book subscriptions from companies and higher education institutions. The additional revenue streams on the consideration include advertising and sponsorship, licensing of content, potential joint ventures, white labeling and develop parallel language services starting with Spanish.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£60,750
Square Mile Farms (SMF) is a company that installs innovative and productive vertical farms in a workplace to engage employees and help businesses create a culture of healthy, low-impact living. Its 'Office Farming' model creates green spaces for engagement and collaboration. In 2019, it was invited to build a vertical farm in Paddington Central by British Land, one of UK’s largest landowners. The setup now acts as a hub for the company's office farm installations and a base from which it can conduct Research and Development (R&D). SMF's customers include Grosvenor Group Limited and Vodafone. Moreover, the company has been covered by media platforms such as BBC One and BBC Radio. It will use 45% of the investment for sales and business development, 15% for design and technology up-gradation, 15% for raising its profile and increasing brand awareness, and 25% for operations.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£504,118
AndCo offers an open-source, cost-effective, sustainable solution to co-working by turning hotel lobbies and lavish eateries into co-working spaces all over London. The company has over 90 venues, over 1200 members and over 10 brand partnerships. It has been featured major publications including The Telegraph, Forbes, and The Metro. The funds raised will be used for marketing, development, hiring new teammates and working capital.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£269,231
Equipsme is on a mission to democratise health insurance by making it affordable for businesses of all sizes. The company cites data arguing that there has been a 53% increase in National Health Service (NHS) treatment waiting lists since 2012 due to the low reach of health insurance by conventional insurance companies. It aims to change this scenario. Equipsme offers flexible fixed-price packages to companies wherein employees are allowed to upgrade and add family members to their plan as per their pleasure. Members can also speak to a General Physician (GP) 24/7, and, if necessary, be referred to a consultant for diagnosis and treatment through the company's proprietary app. The company was felicitated with the 'Best New Product' award by Cover Magazine Excellence Awards 2019. The company will use the investment to enhance its user experience, ensure its technology remains market-leading, and scale its marketing and customer service capability.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£286,096
WooHa brewing company started with a 3000 square foot and in 3 years moved to a 6.2 acre farm. WooHa is always focusing on export and US has always been their main target. They began exporting in 2016 and within a year had distribution in California, Washington DC and Tennessee. In the UK their beer can be found in supermarkets, bars and restaurants.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£156,870
Your Favourite Teacher (YFT) is a General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) supported online teaching and learning platform that offers students access to high quality and engaging courses. The portal allows students, particularly disadvantaged ones, to navigate through subject areas and courses. Lessons take place through videos, interactive quizzes, development resources, and tested via exam practice sessions. The platform has a pupil dashboard where students can track their progress and celebrate their achievements. In the UK, schools are spending c.£0.9 billion on EdTech per annum. The Covid-19 lockdown is expected to boost the demand for e-learning platforms. YFT offers more than 50 published courses (15 more in production) covering English, English Literature, Maths, and Sciences etc. It has won multiple customers including secondary schools, alternative provision sites and sports academies (including Premier League Football clubs like Manchester United and Arsenal). YFT is seeking an investment of £550,000 to further the growth and reach of the company.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
Withheld
FinOptix is an innovative FinTech company that solves real business problems. FinOptix’s objective is to become a significant player in a rapidly growing FinTech market by developing systems that provide financial clarity to decision-makers. FinOptix has a well-established user base, as well as a sales pipeline that covers multiple geographies and sectors. Their verification and validation procedures applied during the development process and operational trials have led to engagement with commercial partners. With the proceeds, they will design an Evaluator for the future, apply AI techniques to solve complex problems, develop their skill set and framework and hire a team of data scientists based on the assessment.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£125,000
Gively is an online marketplace where users can give and get secondhand items for free. The secondhand clothing market will double in value to £50 billion annually by 2023, and the company finds itself as a suitable contender in this domain. They aim to lower greenhouse gas emissions and minimise landfill sites through its portal. The company has reached over 5,000 users, 70% of which came from unpaid channels. Gively won an SME (Small and medium enterprises) grant worth £10,000 of television advertising and has received rave reviews from its users through the App Store, social media, and in person. They will use 50% of the investment for marketing purposes, 25% for technology up-gradation, and 25% for hiring human resources.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£105,207
