Troubadour is a London-based menswear brand specialising in designing minimalist bags & accessories by combining performance design with a clean & modern aesthetic feel. The company has delivered its products to 60+ wholesalers. It is backed by Pembroke VCT, a luxury-focused venture capital firm based in London. Troubadour is planning to work with non-traditional retailers including Ritz Carlton, Four Seasons, and Equinox. It has also collaborated with many world-renowned brands such as British tailors 'Thom Sweeney' and British essentials brand 'Sunspel' that is famous for clothing James Bond. The company has also been a case study for classes at the Harvard Business School. With the investment, the company will support sales growth to its customers and retail partners and also fund working capital requirements from its forecast growth plan.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£621,240
Percuro is a low carbon, next-generation pet food that is ethically farmed and formulated using insect proteins. The company argues that its pet food has a low carbon pawprint whilst being hypoallergenic and nutritious with low inflammation properties. Percuro has launched its Direct-To-Consumer (DTC) site in the UK and Germany with a roll-out plan that includes covering additional EU markets later in 2021, raised a £340,000 seed investment in the previous 10 months, and signed product listing agreements with key retailers in the UK and Singapore. The company will use 40% of the investment for brand building through digital marketing, 30% for retailer brand-building investments, 20% towards launching treats and its plant dog range, and 10% towards new market expansion into Asia.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£618,596
Square Root (SR) aims to shake up the adult soft drinks market with its range of high-quality, fresh-pressed, small-batch sodas that contain no concentrates or artificial flavours. SR's product line includes classics, seasonal specialities, perfect serve tonics, and alcohol-free cocktails. SR asserts that unlike other craft soft drinks firms, it fully owns the soda making process from concept to bottling. The company has sold 3 million bottles to date with its products stocked in 9 Michelin star restaurants. SR has also crowdsourced a mojito recipe, secured a listing as part of the Sainsbury’s Future Brands scheme, and created collaborative-branded tonics for high-end clients like Gymkhana and Pantechnicon. The company was the winner of 3 Great Taste awards in 2019 and adjudged 'Best Drinks Producer' at the 2015 BBC Food & Farming Awards. It will use the investment to launch into the off-trade, meet increased demand, upscale its marketing strategy, and launch its drinks in cans.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£572,128
Stasher is a company that operates an online platform facilitating luggage storage by connecting travelers with local hotels and shops. Available via their website and app, Stasher offers secure and affordable luggage storage options, benefiting both travelers and local businesses, with a mission to enhance travel experiences across a global network of over 600 cities and 75 countries.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£568,864
HOMETHINGS, a UK B Corp that has received awards, is revolutionizing the home care sector by introducing refillable products using tap water. Their mission arose from the realization that most cleaning sprays contain over 90% water, leading to unnecessary transportation of heavy water in disposable plastic bottles worldwide. They initially launched effervescent tablets for surface care sprays, which are manufactured in the UK and certified as Vegan and Cruelty-Free. By refilling with these tablets, customers can potentially reduce carbon emissions by up to 94% compared to conventional spray products.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£529,818
Fitbakes is a low sugar and high protein baked snacks brand. The company claims that its products have 90% less sugar, 80% less fat, 60% fewer calories and 200% more protein than leading cakes and chocolate brands with no artificial sweeteners, flavourings or colourings. Fitbakes claims that its products are compliant with the UK government's 'Non-HFSS' policy. The company has sold over 1 million cakes via the 'Direct 2 Consumer' channel, experienced 25% repeat purchase in-store, onboarded retailers such as Coop and Selfridges, and planned a launch in 1,000 Tesco Express stores in Q3 2021. The company is also working with over 1,000 micro-influencers and over 50,000 Instagram followers. It was also a winner at the 'Best of Health Awards' and a finalist at the 'MidCounties Good Food Awards'. The company has received press coverage in BBC1 News, The Times, Forbes, The Telegraph, Daily Mail and The Grocer. It states it will use the investment to support its digital growth and retail launch with major retailers.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£523,184
Deciwatt develops renewable energy solutions and its new product (nowlight), creates instant power and light from the pull of a cord. This company created 'nowlight' leveraging on the success of its first product ‘GravityLight’, which had secured media coverage from around the world, won many awards and was sold by major retailers like Best Buy and Walmart. Additionally, it has been awarded a new £173,788 grant from Innovate UK to integrate Pay-As-You-Go technology into nowlight. Further, this company has a pending registered trademark on the nowlight name and a patent pending on the manual power generation mechanism. It will invest the fund raised in implementing its marketing plans, further product development, and scale up its marketing activity and develop its business.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£519,607
Pale Green Dot (PGD) is a company that provides a ‘closed-loop food system’ in the UK, targeting the £60 billion+ hospitality market. It says it collects food waste from commercial kitchens, turns it into bio-fertiliser and energy, and uses this energy to grow next seasons produce to deliver fresh produce to commercial kitchens and homes. The company claims that 5% of consumers want carbon labelling on menus. PGD aims to capture this sentiment and become a contender in the £60 billion sustainable food spend category. It claims that its commercial sales grew 740% since January 2021. The company has secured one of the UK’s largest 'Contract Caterers', with the potential to be worth £5 million a year. PGD points out that it has onboarded two multi-site independent chains, namely Granger & Co and Caravan to deliver sustainable produce. PGD will use the investment to grow its production on company-owned farms, grow purchasing opportunities with partner farms, and invest in people, training, and systems to improve sales, marketing, and operations.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£502,167
Beija London (BL) is a digital lingerie brand for cup sizes AA-H with a flagship store at Coal Drops Yard, Kings Cross. It argues that women have suffered because of the over glamorisation of the intimates sector. BL intends to solve that problem. It asserts that every single bra it makes caters to different cup sizes and different needs. The company has received an investment of £1.8 million in equity finance to date. BL witnessed +1300 fittings being completed on its online bra fitting service portal since its launch in April 2020 and garnered a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 57. BL was approached by Victoria's Secret US in 2019 to help the latter expand its offering and be more inclusive of different body shapes. It states it will use the investment to ensure that it has a sufficient stock of fast selling fashion lines to boost cash flow and increase the lifetime value of its loyal customer base.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£478,013
The Mighty Society produces a tasty, smooth and rich non-dairy substitute to milk which is made from yellow split-peas. The company is in partnership with the UK's biggest dairy substitute manufacturers, and it has sold over 66,000 units. The pea milk has been launched in 2,000 different stocking points across the UK including Sainsbury's, Marks & Spencers, Whole Foods Market and other retailers. The Mighty Society will use the funds for production, R&D, sales and marketing.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£443,389
