‘Angels’ invest £400,000 to give firms major lift
STOCKPORT entrepreneurs secured £400,000 in funding from local investors as a ‘Business Angels’ event.
The ‘Dragons Den’-style event, organised by accountancy firm Hallidays in conjunction with North West Business Angels, saw five entrepreneurs and innovators pitch their products and services to an audience of successful businesses to secure investment.
Those pitching included Just Bee Drinks Limited, a healthy soft drinks brand that also recently appeared on Dragon’s Den on TV and are already stocked in 750 stores.
Joe Harper from Just Bee said: “This event resulted in two offers of investment for Just Bee Drinks Limited.
“The NW Business Angels are good at introducing relevant businesses with enthusiastic investors and hosting the events in relaxed environments where people feel comfortable approaching one another.”
Cheadle-based Real Handful Limited, which claims to be the UK’s first dedicated trail mix brand, also received an offer of investment.
Joe Taylor from Real Handful said: “The Business Angels event format really encouraged pitchers and angels alike to engage with each other.
“We met two investors that are passionate and interested in what we are doing who have fulfilled 80 per cent of our funding requirement.
“We can now bring our plan to life with this investment which will support customer growth, the expansion of our team and the roll out of sampling events. It was a great opportunity”
Real Handful products are available in 1,200 stores across the UK and Ireland, including Boots, Holland & Barrett, and Ocado.
Steve Wall from North West Businesses Angels added: “The investment is excellent with a 40 per cent offer of funding equivalent to £400K of investment, especially when compared to the national average of such an event being around the 15 per cent success level.”