A warm welcome back after the summer break, as we relish the ‘back to school’ mentality that resonates for many of us, whatever our age!

The remainder of 2024 will be busy for our investor and founder communities and we’re excited to continue supporting through our advisory work, introductions and investment pitch events, which return on Thursday 19th September 2024, 2pm-3pm (more info below).

We’re also proud to launch a series of ‘Founder Focussed‘ events during the Autumn utilising the extensive commercial expertise of our experienced partners and their broad networks of specialists across sectors and specialisms. More details to follow in the weeks ahead.

During the summer, we’ve seen a Labour government elected in the UK, and in recent weeks there’s been speculation about changes that may impact on private equity and investment in start ups and early-stage businesses.

It’s still premature to see how the landscape will change on the back of a newly elected government’s ambitious plans and pledge to “make Britain the best place to start and grow a business.” Included in their plan is unlocking institutional investment and incentivising investment and entreprenurship.

Despite the change in government, UK economic challenges are expected to continue alongside wars and political uncertainty globally, and the path ahead is far from clear.

So it was welcome news at the end of August when the UK government was informed by the EC of their approval under EU State of the continuation of the EIS and SEIS schemes and the VCT scheme from the original Sunset Clause ending the schemes in 2025, to extend to April 2035.

There is much to be positive about, despite the general uncertainty. Through our work with entrepreneurial founders leading innovative and fast growing businesses across various sectors, we are seeing investment opportunities offering great potential and look forward to continuing to present these to our investor community in the months ahead.

PACP Online Pitch Event

Female Founders Changing The Game For Consumers

Thursday 19th September 2024, 2pm-3pm (UK Time)

Company 1:

Changing the face of aging in the Beauty sector, with a “grown up” makeup line of innovative products that meet the unique requirements of mature skin, empowering women to look and feel their most beautiful and confident.

• ARR: £2.0m with +90% current growth
• Raise: £500k

Company 2:

A purpose-led lifestyle brand that is setting a new precedent for fashion and wellness with a collection designed for positive impact, comfort, confidence and sensuality.

• ARR: £750k multi-channel, including Next, Nordstrom and Bloomingdales
• Raise: £1m

Click here to register to attend.

Awards Success For Our Founder Clients

‘Confer With’ and ‘For The Creators’

Congratulations to two outstanding founders and their award-winning businesses that we have the pleasure of working with here at PACP:

CONFER WITH has become a leading live commerce platform driving exceptional customer experience and sales for retailers and brands such as John Lewis, Marks and Spencers, Samsung and L’Occitane.

Last week, Gartner recognised Confer With as a cool vendor in Digital Commerce. They were one of only 3 vendors given this recognition in Digital Commerce this year, and the only London-based outfit.

Click here for more information about the award.

By 2026, live commerce adoption in North America and Europe will be driven by one-on-one live video providing personalised sales consultations. In comparison, one-on-many video is expected to be mostly used for campaigns and driving customers traffic.

Confer With are currently raising £1.5m with £500k committed – please contact Greg Tufnell for more details.

FOR THE CREATORS is aiming to transform Motherhood for Good and this week has won the Parenting Category for the Marie Claire Sustainability Awards 2024.

Building the premier global destination for motherhood, delivering the essential products, tools and services tailored to every stage of a mother’s journey, supporting her mental health and well-being, For The Creators is a circular omni-channel marketplace that combines membership, subscription, rental and drop ship revenue models offering 60+ brands, alongside a wide range of content, tools and expertise to a community of over 1,000 members.

The business is now raising £800k, with Morgan Stanley already committed to lead the round at £250k, as recently featured in The Sunday Times.

Please contact Martyn Dawes for more details.