Theale-based logistics firm secures £6.75m investment
A THEALE-based company has secured £6.75m in investment, just two years after an initial £6m cash injection.
The funding deal will help pharmaceutical temperaturecontrolled specialist Tower Cold Chain with its plans to become the leader in robust, reliable, and reusable cold chain solutions, and follows a period of rapid and sustained growth.
Last month, the company welcomed Reading West MP Alok Sharma to open its headquarters in Station Road, something helped by the initial funding.
The firm has, over the past two years, doubled its employee base, created strategically located hubs, and invested in its infrastructure including custom-designed shipping containers, 3D-printed in house.
The firm received the Queens Award for International Trade in 2022.
Investec’s Jonathan Wynn said: “Our investments into Tower have been carefully structured to futureproof the businesses’ capital needs to deliver its highly compelling growth trajectory.
“We believe Tower is optimally positioned to provide the solutions necessary to meet the challenges of its blue-chip customer base in the global pharmaceutical sector.
“This capital helps further expand and enhance the container fleet to service the resulting growth in customer demand.”
Tower Cold Chain’s initial investment was in spring 2020.
This coincided with the covid pandemic, and its role in transporting critical pharmaceuticals such as vaccines around the world helped grow the reputation and the business.
And it says its focus on reusable, multi-use containers that require no external power source, chimes with a shift towards sustainable solutions.
“We’ve come a long way since the initial investment, and the new funding allows us to continue our upwards trajectory. The trust and confidence from Investec and our shareholders provide us the freedom to respond to customer needs and market challenges, quickly and effectively,” explained Niall Balfour, CEO of Tower Cold Chain.
“We’re looking at several exciting projects that will deliver even more value to customers, while remaining true to Tower’s core principles of being robust, reliable, and reusable. We’re grateful to Investec for recognising our continuing potential, and we look forward to delivering on their trust in our business.”
He added that the investment would allow them to manufacture more stock, and open hubs in new locations.