Ember Snacks (ES) is a sustainable meat snack brand that aims to end factory farming in the meat industry. It works directly with farmers committed to using high welfare and regenerative practices to improve soil health and encourage wildlife on their farms. Since its launch in 2017, ES's products have been stocked in over 2,000 distribution points across the UK, including Sainsbury’s and Waitrose. It also argues that it is the most reviewed meat snack brand on Amazon across the UK and Europe, with nearly 4,000 reviews. The company asserts that its products are stocked in 200 Stonegate pubs, supported by field activation. It earned over £1.75 million in sales in 2020, won a medal at the Charcuterie Live Awards 2021, and received over 35 pieces of press coverage in 2021. ES states it will use the investment to discourage factory farming, build its team, grow distribution channels in major UK supermarkets, launch a campaign to highlight factory farming practices, reach out to new customers, and launch new products.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£1,420,578
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
Planks is a British clothing brand that creates eco-conscious outerwear for skiers. The company is an omni-channel brand that sells Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) via planksclothing.com, through its Val d’Isère store and other retailers. Planks uses 'Bluesign' approved fabrics and incorporates 'REPREVE' recycled yarns into 68% of its products having recycled 1.5 million waste plastic bottles, in the process, so far. The company had a turnover of £1.85 million between May - June 2020. Planks has a growing community of 27,000+ customers that are a part of its Grassroots Tour initiative. Planks's loyalty platform, 'The FUSS', allows the brand's best customers to complete missions, create content and become brand advocates. The company will use the investment to continue international D2C expansion by improving customer experience in target markets via website localisation and digital marketing and sustain Business-to-Business (B2B) growth via digital wholesale accounts and integrated marketplaces.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£847,154
Solent Automation specialises in developing, deploying and supporting automation robots to perform and tackle common manual labour-intensive tasks in factories. To solve the 'pick-and-place' challenges in an industrial setup, these robots are created with proven reliable components coupled with proprietary software to solve 'pick-and-place' challenges in an industrial environment. Two of the company's noteworthy products are 'SOLPAL 8' and 'SOLPACK 1XP, both are equipped with an all-in-one gripping tool, and can handle 16 boxes per minute and 60 packs per minute, respectively. Backed by a team of experts from manufacturing and robotics, Solent Automation provides on-site installation, training, and remote support for its products. There is also a rent-to-buy option through a 3rd party finance company. With the investment, the company aims at providing more robotic equipment most needed in factories focused on labour-intensive work functions.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£76,000
Richard Brendon is a prominent British design brand that values master craftspeople by creating a platform for contemporary and timeless tableware collections that challenge the expected. It has received extensive media coverage since 2013 including the FT and NY Times. The company has sold to more than 120 B2B customers in 15 countries. It has seen a growth of 75% since 2015 amounting to £2.5m sales to date and more than 3,000 orders delivered. Richard now plans to take his brand global. It has enjoyed a CAGR of 75% from 2015 to 2019, with revenue of £1.12m in 2019. The company plans on opening up new markets, creating four additional collections over the coming years to develop existing channels and territories.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£250,350
Thread Tales is a luxury sustainable fashion brand that designs sustainable scarves, blankets, kaftans and travel wraps. Its designs are unique and hand-woven by Artisans. The company's products are featured in the Conduit, at Soho Farmhouse, and Harvey Nichols. It has regularly participated in many pop-events in Tier One locations like Le Pigalle Hotel, Paris and Grace Belgravia, London. Thread Tales has influencer endorsements from Sirens and Seaplanes, Eva Ciland, Sustainably Chic, and Sabine Turner. With the proceeds, the company will develop bespoke pieces for this market. It also has an exciting potential partnership with a huge luxury hotel chain.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£79,293
Wellbeing Sisters (WS) is a company that offers wellbeing advice, hosts an online shop, and sells a subscription box full of toxin-free health, beauty, and nutritional products by and for women. The company first launched its subscription box in 2019 for women trying to conceive. WS witnessed a sell-out of its series of one-off boxes tailored towards conceiving, pregnancy, early motherhood, midlife and menopause in 2020. WS aims to be a contender in the UK subscription box market that is set to be worth £1 billion by 2022. The company asserts that it has organically grown its social media following consisting of over 5,000 supporters. It will use the investment to invest in technology, product development, and marketing/PR.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£153,394
Flatout is a platform which makes buying bicycles, gears and parts easier and hassle-free. This platform allows consumers to compare and find their next bicycle from third party dealers at the best price anywhere in the UK. To ensure smoother operations, it has partnered with stores across the UK. In 2019, the company is planning to launch and run its first Exchange store. The company will use the proceeds in commencing opening its pilot franchise store.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£50,265
Revvies Energy (RE) is a nutrition company that argues that its innovative energy strips are a game-changer. The company stresses that 80% of the world's population consumes caffeine every day, which takes at least 45 minutes to an hour to reach its peak. RE states that its energy strips dissolve on the tongue in seconds, providing a faster and efficient performance boost that is less than two calories, vegan and gluten-free. RE has sold over 400,000 packs to date and stocked in more than 400 locations across five countries in entities like Chemist Warehouse Australia, Decathlon Australia, and Amazon marketplaces in the UK, US and Australia. RE was awarded 2021's 'Product Of The Year' in 'Sports Nutrition' by NutraIngredients, Europe's leading nutrition industry title. The company works with athletes across various sports, including RE's Ambassadors Charlotte Purdue (British Marathon Champion 2019 ), top US marathoner, Sara Hall, and dual Australian Olympian, Eloise Wellings. RE states it will use the investment to scale its marketing formula both in the UK and international markets.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£189,363
Kokoon is a digital platform that offers personalised, clinically approved, intelligent audio content and coaching for better sleep and relaxation. The company has also introduced a set of ergonomic headphones that work seamlessly with the Kokoon app and encourages and protects relaxation and sleep. The company has also been featured in esteemed platforms such as BBC, HuffPost, and The Guardian. Since its inception 4 years ago, Kokoon has received over £4.5m in online sales, scaled manufacturing to 6000 units per month, won an Innovate UK Government Grant and has 5 international patents in its portforlio. Going forward, Kokoon aims to become a world-leading technology brand, positively changing the lives of millions.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£1,654,936
