Month: July 2024

Sir Keir Starmer met with senior officers of the Farnborough Aerospace Consortium (FAC) at the Farnborough International Airshow, where they discussed the industry’s pressing need for skilled workers.
This meeting coincided with the Prime Minister’s announcement of Skills England, a new public body aimed at tackling the nation’s skills shortage.
Graham Chisnall, chairman of FAC, and Alan Fisher, CEO, spoke with Starmer about the challenges their member companies face. They expressed their satisfaction with the PM’s announcement, highlighting the importance of a coordinated approach to skills development involving central and local government, businesses, training providers, and unions.
Graham Chisnall stated, “We had previously urged the new government to focus on innovation and skills. So we were pleased to hear of the emphasis they are placing on skills with the launch of a new public body. Our members in the aerospace, aviation, defence, and space sectors – as well as their supply chains – are often frustrated by the lack of workers with the right skills. The teaching of STEM subjects and proper training is crucial in ensuring that the UK remains a world leader in aerospace and related areas.”
FAC represents a broad spectrum of businesses, from multi-nationals to SMEs, which are vital to the economy and poised to drive growth. The Prime Minister’s visit to the airshow underscored his recognition of the importance of these sectors.
“Billions of pounds worth of business will be conducted this week,” Chisnall added, “and we are working with our members to ensure they benefit as much as possible.”
Alan Fisher noted, “FAC’s objectives include lobbying the government on behalf of our members and introducing them to multinational global players. Farnborough International Airshow provides us with an opportunity to do just that, and there is a really positive atmosphere this year.”
The launch of Skills England aims to bridge the skills gap in the UK, ensuring that industries like aerospace have access to the talent they need to thrive and continue contributing significantly to the economy.
Read more:
Starmer meets aerospace leaders as PM announces new Skills England public body

Every week, when I take business clinics, eager entrepreneurs ask a wide variety of questions, such as “Should I take Investment?”, “Should I expand into the International market?”, “Should I start employing staff?”, “Do I need to invest in a CRM system?”, “should I hire a Social Media agency?”.
The list goes on.  But if you drill down, all such questions come back down to the same fundamental question.  Where do you want to take your business?
It seems the most fundamental question, that affects every decision you make as a business owner, never gets given much time and attention.
Would you jump in your car with no road map or sat nav and hope to get somewhere vaguely that you wanted to, without having a clue about the route?  Unless you love driving (or you’re a glutton for punishment!) you’d probably want to do a bit of research on the route first.  So why don’t we do it in business?
One of the main reasons is because business owners don’t want to dream big enough due to limiting beliefs or imposter syndrome. Others think “let’s just see where it goes”, or entrepreneurs think putting a plan together is too much work, especially if it involves lots of numbers and spreadsheets. So a plan never gets created.
But here’s the problem.
Frustrations start to occur because you then see other entrepreneurs on social media looking to be far more successful than you.  How did that happen?  How did they get there, whilst you’ve been working your butt off, focusing 7 days a week?
What did they do differently?
Chances are, they had a plan!  Nothing super detailed necessarily, but they had a clear vision of where they want to take their company or career and the steps they then need to take to get them there.
Many of the most successful entrepreneurs will suggest to “Begin with the end in mind”.  I.e. in x amount of time what will be the end goal of the business.  Will you want to sell for retirement, or will you want to build quickly and sell to a bigger organisation, so you can start on the next venture, or do you plan to just run the business as a lifestyle business?
The main thing here is to be really honest with yourself about what you *actually want*. If the idea of a multinational,billion pound empire appeals to you, but you also like to spend your weekends in the pub with your mates, and travel is not really your thing, would you actually take that opportunity if it came knocking at your door? Or would you prefer a work life balance where you run a smaller empire with less pressure and less travel?  It also means being really honest about your personality and capabilities, and what you enjoy.  This is so much more important than comparing yourself to others on social media and wrongly believing that everyone around you is making a huge success of their career, whilst you appear to be stuck or drifting.
If you don’t know where to start in gaining clarity, then a great starting point is not to focus solely on financial goals, but focus on the *experiences* you would like to have during your lifetime.  If travel is really important to you and financial independence, then a business focussing on an international nomad lifestyle would be a great move.  A business drifting to taking on premises and more and more staff may not be so conducive if nomadic travel is the experience you want to have.  If you want to experience your children growing up and being “present” then a business or career that can accommodate that would allow you to fulfil your dreams.  And that’s ok!  So many entrepreneurs I speak to actually give a visible sigh of relief when we talk through the fact that it is your life journey and no-one else’s, so if you want to have just a lifestyle business that affords the experiences you want to have, the only person stopping you is you.  But if you want a billion pound empire, that’s ok too, so long as you’re doing it for you and not because your mum / dad / partner / hairdressers wife’s second cousin think that’s what you *should* do.
Once you have real clarity on where you want to take your business, the rest slots into place.  On any decision, you simply ask “does what I am suggesting, or thinking about fit in with the overall vision I have?”  You can then also focus on the skills you need / want to develop, in order to achieve the experiences, you are now focussing on.
I have a vision board in my office, which consists of a collage of pictures that all represent the experiences I want to have.  Friends and family are important to me, so any business decisions I make, I keep them in mind. I also want a house abroad, somewhere hot!  That is also kept in mind when making business decisions, as is running operations as ethically as possible.  Yes, I would like my empire to grow significantly, and I have a 3 year forecast.  But it is all within the constraints of staying ethical and true to myself, my friends and family – and of course that villa in 30 degrees!
Read more:
Finding clarity in your business

Have you considered international languages to boost SEO for clients?
In 2010 Guido worked in the search marketing department for Expedia in London, covering the EMEA market. What he learnt there was the importance to have a different strategy for each country via specialists who are native speakers. So, over the past few years at GA Agency, he has invested in building a multilingual team, recognising London to make it easier to facilitate that.
Not many agencies can offer multilingual in-house teams, especially not ones that cover ten languages. It’s common to use external translation services to plug this gap and the results are incomparable versus having local specialists. Guido takes some time out from his day to share his journey with Business Matters.
What problem does your company solve?
We lend resource and our expertise in digital to our client partners – helping them to become more competitive in the digital space. Of course, most of the time the ultimate goal is to increase online revenue. As part of our work, we also want to educate our clients, and we try to explain every time why we are doing this or that.
 ​What products or services do you provide?
We are a 360-degree digital agency, a one-stop shop for customer acquisition.
We became a 360-degree digital agency in response to the fact that these days customer acquisition happens on different channels. When I started the agency more than ten years ago, we specialised in search engine marketing (SEO and SEM) as that was the main channel to acquire customers in the digital space. Now it is a different game. Customer acquisition happens through multiple touch points and having just one agency partner to manage all those has been proven to bring considerable benefits.
We offer our clients digital strategy, data analysis and reporting, and from that we activate different marketing channels such as SEO, SEM, Social Commerce, Programmatic, Amazon marketing, Influencer marketing and so on. Also, content, a lot of high-quality content, text or visual, as that is essential for a successful digital strategy.
What type of businesses do you work with?
We have built our expertise with well-established international brands. More than 50% of our clients are companies with an annual revenue above £100 million, however we also work with upcoming brands and cool start-ups. We look for long-lasting partnerships with our clients, so we’re a bit selective about the companies we work with. It’s important to believe in the project.
What is your USP?
The market for digital agencies is more competitive than ever and it is important to differentiate ourselves. The most important USP for us is that we are a multilingual team. Our in-house team covers ten different languages, enabling us to have projects active in 18 countries.
Our specialists treat each of our customer’s locations as if it were their own project. It’s a significant value add. Of course, this approach doesn’t work for every business, it is suitable for medium-big size brands with a presence in more than one country.
What are your company values? Have you ever had them challenged, and if so, how have you dealt with it?
Probably the most crucial is honesty. If we don’t see an opportunity to do well in a project, we don’t take it. We are here for the long run, and reputation is essential for our business. We also never lock clients into contracts. We always keep open the opportunity to interrupt a contract without any reason with 30 days’ notice. There’s no reason to keep a client on if they’re not happy.
Another value is transparency. For most of our services, clients are billed on hours worked per month. Each specialist on the GA Agency team logs their hours at the end of each day and against the projects they have worked on. Then, on a monthly or quarterly basis, we send the report to our clients to show how they fit in-line with the agreed scope of work.
How do you ensure that you recruit a team that reflects your company values?
We are getting better and better in this. I started this business three years ago and at the beginning didn’t have much HR or hiring experience, so mistakes were made. With practice, reading and experience this is no longer a problem. We also hired a HR manager this year. We have a good process in place, and I’m pleased with my team. They all reflect the company values, are intelligent, kind and always willing to help each other. I’m still involved in recruitment; I interview every candidate at the last stage to understand if they match our values.
Are you happy to offer a hybrid working model of home/office?
Yes, 100%. I think it is the best solution. After I left Expedia, I worked for five years as a consultant and managed everything remotely, and I loved it. Now with GA Agency we have an office in central London (Soho), and some people come to the office, some permanently, some are keen on the hybrid approach and some want to work from home, I’m OK with that as I have been doing it for many years. I think nowadays if you have the tools to control productivity, there shouldn’t be many problems in working from home. I’m aware also that some people want to go to the office, especially after the extensive Covid lockdowns, so we offer this option.
Do you have any tips for managing suppliers and customers effectively?
While employed at Google and Expedia, I managed supplier agencies like us. The advice I have is to give agencies time. Somewhere from 3 to 6 months is a good period for them to properly understand a business’ dynamics, products, consumers etc. If an agency has promise a little bit of time will yield results, but over time their impact will get better and better. So, it is essential to wait a few months before evaluating an agency.
As for managing clients, I have probably worked with more than 100 clients between my consulting and agency business and its generally all been positive. What I tell my team is, first, be kind/polite. You are providing a service. In the meantime, try to build a relationship and have a good sense of humour. It is boring to talk with someone weekly and have an icy relationship.
Secondly, always have an answer! If you don’t have it now, do your research and come back on it. They have hired you for your expertise, be sure to demonstrate it at every opportunity.
Thirdly, respond swiftly. My rule is that each email should be replied to in less than one working day. If it requires a long answer, respond quickly to acknowledge it and come back with an answer after doing your research.
Lastly, go the extra mile. It is a good way to show clients that you care about their project.
Any finance or cash-flow tips for new businesses starting?
My business started with very little capital. I quit Expedia and started as a consultant but before pulling the plug on my employment, I made sure I had enough savings to keep me going for at least one year of no income.
I was scared a bit, of course, as I had an excellent full time job with a good salary for my age. However, as soon as I started my own business the freedom and time available to me gave me motivation to build a website, put together a valid service offering and find clients (the most complex and important part). In the meantime, it is important to keep costs to a minimum; I was working from cafés, not offices.
Following that, it is important to offer services with a retention model that permits you to plan. Working on too many one-off projects is painful as obviously every time they end you have to search for new clients again. Best avoided.
Another piece of advice is to understand which clients are safe in terms of payments and which can be trouble; with the safe ones, usually well-established businesses, don’t stress them if they are a little late. With troublesome clients, send a reminder as soon as they are late, and if they ignore the reminder, stop providing the service.
If you could ask one thing of the government to change for businesses, what would it be?
In the past few years the hot topics of Brexit and Covid meant a lot of people left the UK. This has added a layer complexity when hiring digital talent, so potentially what I would ask is for an easier way to get Visas for foreign workers coming into the UK.
What is your attitude towards your competitors?
I get inspired by them and want to learn. When I see agencies in our field doing better than us, I’m not jealous. I want to understand why they are better than us and what we can do to become more competitive.
I spend time looking at their website, history, service and I start to follow their company page on LinkedIn. All of this is done with the aim of learning to improve ourselves.
Any thoughts on the future of your company and your dreams?​​​
We have some ambitious goals for this year. We want to keep growing. To do that, we aim to hire a few more senior people to bring more experience to our team; we are looking for people with an agency background to contribute new ideas.
We also want to modernise our services with a mind to the future. Digital evolves quickly, so it is essential to stay up to date with the services offered, otherwise you can become obsolete quickly. Two years ago, we launched Amazon marketing services, last year we started to work with TikTok. This year, we have something new ready to launch (secret…), and we are always actively looking at and testing emerging technologies for future use.
Lastly, we want to acquire more expertise in more markets, by adding more international people to our team.
Read more:
Secrets of Success: Guido Ampollini, founder and CEO GA Agency

HMRC has collected an additional £14.4 million in tax from insolvencies over two tax years up to 2023 since it regained its ‘preferential creditor’ status.
The preferential status, known as ‘Crown Preference’, was reinstated for HMRC in December 2020, granting it priority in reclaiming taxes owed from insolvent businesses ahead of other unsecured creditors, including banks and suppliers. This change marked the return of a status HMRC had lost in 2003.
Mark Boughey, Partner in the Restructuring Services practice at Forvis Mazars, described Crown Preference as a controversial power. “This status often results in unsecured creditors, like suppliers, receiving nothing when a business goes insolvent. This is particularly detrimental to smaller suppliers who now find themselves at the bottom of the ranking during insolvency proceedings.”
Crown Preference also ranks ahead of lenders with floating charge security, leading to concerns that its reintroduction has caused banks to reduce lending amounts to businesses and increase interest rates. These adjustments reflect the heightened risk banks face of not recovering their loans if a business becomes insolvent.
Despite the intended advantages of Crown Preference for HMRC, Boughey questioned its overall efficacy given the modest £14.4 million recovered so far. “The amount of money raised through Crown Preference is surprisingly small. This money could significantly impact other creditors, particularly small suppliers.”
Boughey suggested that diverting more funds to suppliers and lenders might boost bank funding and credit lines from suppliers, benefiting the broader economy. He added, “The amount HMRC brings in through Crown Preference is expected to rise significantly in the coming years, especially with the recent increase in insolvencies. It will be interesting to see how these figures evolve.”
Read more:
HMRC gains only £14.4m in extra tax from insolvencies since regaining preferential creditor status

Figures released this morning by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) reveal that inheritance tax receipts reached £2.1 billion from April to June in the 2024/25 tax year.
This figure is £83 million higher than the same period last year, continuing a two-decade trend of increasing receipts. The previous full tax year saw inheritance tax revenue total £7.499 billion.
Inheritance tax remains a contentious issue in political circles, especially given the Labour Party’s pledge not to increase major tax sources such as Income Tax, National Insurance, or VAT. However, a recent Wealth Club survey indicates that this stance may be unpopular, with 42% of respondents favouring cuts to inheritance tax over other taxes.
Nicholas Hyett, Investment Manager at Wealth Club, commented: “Inheritance tax remains a political hot potato. The new government has promised not to raise a whole host of taxes, but inevitably there are spending pledges that need to be met. That means those taxes that haven’t been officially ringfenced, including inheritance tax, are firmly in the spotlight.
Reforms to non-dom rules are one potential source of an inheritance tax windfall, but with an estimated £100 billion being passed on in inheritances and gifts in the UK each year, there’s probably more in play if the government is determined to raise extra cash.
That puts agricultural and business relief in the firing line. But, reforms need to be handled sensitively. Abolishing either completely would be devastating to family-owned businesses and farms across the country, while reliefs for the AIM market, Enterprise Investment Scheme, and Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme provide vital funding for Britain’s smaller companies. The optimum tax system should focus on the behaviours it encourages as well as the revenues it generates.”
Read more:
Inheritance tax receipts hit £2.1 billion in three months

Established in 2005, Soap Media is a full-service digital agency dedicated to helping clients across various industries achieve their online goals, acting as an extension of their in-house teams.
Embracing the mission statement “Your Partner in Digital,” the agency has experienced significant growth, including the promotion of Jack Oddy to Managing Director in July 2023, marking the agency’s most successful year.
Here, Jack offers insights into his motivations, inspirations in the industry, and his unique business approach.
What was the inspiration behind wanting to climb to the top of the organisational chart?
Simply, I wanted a career that I could be proud of. Much the same as a child may look at a firefighter or doctor, I can recall moments where I’d gaze in awe as a business person, suited and booted, would step out of their fancy car whilst on an important business call – Well, that’s how I liked to imagine it, anyway.
After muddling my way through the traditional education years, my crossroad came at university, during year 2 of a 4 year business course, when I started to lose passion and interest in the subject of business. In fairness, it might have helped if I’d turned up more!
I decided to drop out of university. It was an extremely difficult decision with feelings of failure and disappointment looming over. Eager to find my true calling, the next few years saw me try my hand at numerous part-time positions – Once upon a time you’d have found me serving Greggs’ sausage rolls in Blackpool town centre!
Perhaps by fate, I was eventually drawn back into the business world taking an apprentice business admin position. The company had multi-discipline teams within its departments which opened my eyes to the world of account management. Owing to lack of opportunity, I scoured the job market where I met, and fell in love with, Soap Media.
The timing turned out to be perfect. I joined Soap at a time when the co-founder and CEO, Markerle Davis, had a mound of incredibly exciting ideas. Being a brand new resource, hungry to impress, I grasped the opportunity to work closely with this business mastermind with both hands. We’ve had a unique relationship over the years that transformed into mentorship, and a friendship. Starting at Soap in a business support position, 7 years later I’ve completed my first year as Managing Director, overseeing our best ever year for business performance.
So, I’m in the position I always dreamed of, but the irony is that today I’m sitting in a pair of shorts taking important business calls through video meetings.
Who do you admire and why?
That’s easy – Markerle Davis, Soap’s co-founder and CEO. The hard part is knowing where to begin with the ‘why?’
I’ve seen problems get solved and deals get closed with what I can only describe as master sorcery. Markerle’s knowledge and acumen has had me hooked from day one. The opportunities he’s granted me, with the achievement based rewards, have literally changed my life. We continue to learn and grow together to this day, and I have tremendous gratitude.
I’d also like to make mention of Rob Pierre, founder of Jellyfish.
Part way through my journey with Markerle, he advised that I watched an interview between Rob and the Drum; scaling for impact with Rob Pierre. I had so many ‘penny dropping’, ‘lightbulb’ moments. I always remember how he likened business growth to bodybuilding; you bulk up (grow) and then cut for the tournament (refine) – and it gives you a headache.
Looking back, is there anything you would have done differently?
Considering the position I find myself and the agency in today, no. I’ve made my fair share of mistakes, but every loss is an opportunity to learn and grow.
I’m not a religious person, but in my recent quests for continued development and understanding, I have found clarity in religious speaking. Just today, I saw a post on Linkedin that read “If you get what you want, that is God’s direction. If you don’t get what you want, that is God’s protection”. The parable of the old man and the white horse has a similar moral to its story; good fortune can be rooted in perceived bad fortune.
Of course, it’s hard to remain passionate and confident in your decisions when things start going against you. But you have to accept that’s business, and that’s life. Whenever I find myself getting sucked into the micro, I’m now able to snap out of it to gain macro validation. I also have a fantastic support team around me.
What defines your way of doing business?
Soap Media’s core values are passion, freedom, respect, integrity, creativity and dedication. And all of these are captured by the company tagline ‘your partner in digital’.
Our teams, dubbed ‘Soaperstars’, are dedicated to achieving the very best results in all aspects of our partnerships. And we expect that same level of commitment from the companies we partner with.
We truly embody an end-to-end digital marketing agency with a collective passion for enhancing every stage of the customer journey and experience.
Each person is empowered with autonomy and the reporting frameworks to make best decisions from. There is a no ceiling approach. We adopt a meritocracy-based progression process where employees can ‘pitch for a promotion’ up to 4 times a year. Just look at me; I started from the bottom now we’re here!
Transparent communication is regularly echoed throughout the agency. This honesty helps us address challenges head on and quickly learn from mistakes. Facing complex problems is par for the course in our game, but we pride ourselves on our creativity and innovation.
What advice would you give to someone starting out?
Write your own story, and be the hero of it. Grab inspiration and guidance from those that you admire, but understand that no story is the same as yours.
When circumstance allows, use time and patience as your ally. It’s amazing what your subconscious will do. Countless times I’ve pinned an RFP submission or delayed sending a response to a difficult email, and had ‘the winning tweak’ come to me on a dog walk or in the shower. In fast-paced moments, lean on your experience, and as I said before, see a loss as an opportunity to learn and grow.
Create a vision and align to it every day. Create a plan to realise that vision and accept that the plan will need constant iterations over time. Granted, agility, dynamism, and resilience are a slew of ‘buzzwords’, but they have been integral attributes of our story so far.
It’s an incredibly valuable use of time to look back every now and then. If you’ve long faced a challenge and doubt starts creeping in, past reminders of achievement and progress bring with them a vital surge of optimism and motivation.
Last, but certainly not least, make sure you love it.
Read more:
Getting To Know You – Jack Oddy, MD, Soap Media

UK and Spain have been identified as the most attractive places to invest in Europe, according to a recent survey by Bank of America.
The survey, which included insights from 242 fund managers overseeing a combined $632 billion in assets, was conducted from July 5 to 11 and highlights a notable shift in investor sentiment towards London-listed companies.
The survey underscores the resurgence in popularity of UK stocks, which had previously fallen out of favour with traders. The FTSE 100 index, representing Britain’s largest companies, has often been criticised for its heavy weighting towards “old economy” sectors like energy and utilities, and for lacking a robust representation of tech firms. Despite this, the FTSE 100 has risen by 6% this year, crossing the 8,000-point threshold for the first time, although it still lags behind Wall Street’s major indices, with the S&P 500 up about 20% this year.
In comparison, France’s Cac 40 has increased by approximately 0.5% this year, while Germany’s Dax 40 has seen a 10% rise. Meanwhile, the Italian stock market was the least favoured by fund managers in Europe this month, followed by the French market.
Political stability in the UK is seen as a significant factor driving renewed interest in UK stocks. Labour’s decisive victory in the general election on July 4, securing a majority of over 170 seats, suggests a smooth path for the party’s fiscal and legislative plans.
In contrast, political uncertainty in France had traders worried before recent elections, fearing a shift towards far-left or far-right policies. However, neither extreme group secured a decisive win, implying a more moderate approach to taxation and spending.
In the US, fund managers anticipate high rates on government debt if either the Democrats or Republicans gain control of both the House and Senate, with 48% of participants highlighting trade policy as the most likely area to be influenced by the upcoming presidential election. Donald Trump, the Republican candidate, is expected to adopt a protectionist trade stance similar to his first term if he wins.
Fund managers also assigned a 68% probability to the global economy achieving a “soft landing,” where inflation returns to the central banks’ 2% target without significantly harming growth.
Read more:
UK and Spain emerge as top investment destinations in Europe

The pound has surged to a one-year high against the dollar as traders drastically scaled back their expectations of an interest rate cut by the Bank of England next month.
Sterling rose by 0.45% to $1.30, its highest level since July 2023, following the release of official figures showing that inflation in the services sector remained steady at 5.7% in June. Additionally, annual consumer price inflation held at 2%, meeting the Bank’s official target, while more persistent measures of inflation did not decline as economists had anticipated.
In response to the sticky inflation data, traders reduced the likelihood of an August 1 interest rate cut from 50% to 25%. Earlier this month, financial markets had assigned a 70% probability to the Bank’s first rate cut in four years.
Investors reacted by buying the pound and selling UK government bonds, which are particularly sensitive to interest rate expectations. The yield on two-year gilts rose by 6.5 basis points to 4.01%, while ten-year gilt yields increased to 4.08%, reflecting higher government borrowing costs. Bond yields rise as prices fall, and currencies typically strengthen in a higher interest rate environment.
Despite no change in services inflation, the Office for National Statistics noted a 1.4% annual decline in goods prices, driven by reduced costs for furniture, household items, and clothing, largely due to summer sales amid poor weather. Food price inflation has also decreased from over 17% last year to 1.4%, the lowest since October 2021.
Economists suggest that the monetary policy committee (MPC) members will now be more cautious about cutting interest rates, given that services inflation is 0.6 percentage points higher than the Bank’s forecasts. Recent growth statistics showing the UK economy expanding at its fastest rate in two years further complicate the case for monetary loosening.
“Services inflation and wage growth remain high,” said Sonali Punhani, UK economist at Bank of America. “The persistence of domestic inflation suggests that any rate-cutting cycle will likely be slow and shallow, with fewer cuts than our base case of two this year and four next year.”
Economists predict that the headline inflation rate could increase from 2% in the coming months as energy prices rise following a significant drop last year.
The MPC is set to meet on August 1 to decide on interest rates and will also release updated economic growth and inflation forecasts.
Gabriella Dickens, economist at Axa Investment Manager, mentioned that the nine-member MPC could still vote five to four in favour of reducing the base rate from 5.25% to 5% next month. A shift would require support from Governor Andrew Bailey, his deputies Sarah Breeden and Clare Lombardelli, and the two MPC members who backed a rate cut in June, Sir Dave Ramsden and Swati Dhingra.
Read more:
Pound surges as interest rate cut expectations fade

GrowUp, the UK’s best-selling vertical farm, announced a substantial £38 million investment from Generate Capital, a prominent sustainable infrastructure investment and operating company
This investment aims to meet the growing demand for GrowUp’s ready-to-eat salads, renowned for being locally grown and pesticide-free.
Generate Capital’s investment will primarily support the expansion of GrowUp’s Kent vertical farm, enhance the company’s leadership in the UK salad category, support the Unbeleafable and Fresh Leaf Co. brands, drive research and development at GrowUp’s Leaf Lab in Cambridge, and bolster GrowUp’s status as a certified B Corporation.
This funding extends Generate Capital’s existing partnership with GrowUp, following an initial financing round in 2021. The previous investment allowed GrowUp to validate its energy-efficient growing system and begin transforming a five-acre brownfield site into the equivalent of 1,000 acres of grade 1 farmland in Kent. GrowUp has since become the first vertical farm to supply branded, bagged salads to the UK’s largest supermarket chain, Tesco, as well as to Iceland, SPAR, and other major food service customers.
Marcus Whately, CEO of GrowUp, commented: “This investment is a fantastic boost to GrowUp and recognises the team’s passion and talent. We partnered with Generate Capital because, as a $10 billion sustainable infrastructure investor with a mission to ‘rebuild the world together,’ Generate Capital aligns with our ethos. With Generate Capital’s support, we have proven that vertically farmed salads are sustainable, cost-competitive, and commercially viable, as well as tasty, healthy, and long-lasting. Together we can unlock a new salad category and meet growing consumer demand.”
Whately added: “Consumers want UK-grown, sustainable, longer-lasting leaves – grown without pesticides. With this further investment, we can expand production to meet demand and continue to transform UK food production. We’ve been growing for over 11 years now. We’ve come a long way with Generate Capital’s support, since Kate Hofman and Tom Webster set up their first vertical farm in 2013, supplying salad leaves to London markets and restaurants.”
Scott Jacobs, CEO and co-founder of Generate Capital, stated: “GrowUp is one of the UK’s most exciting and innovative vertical farming operations, experiencing nearly 800% sales increase year over year. Their ability to quickly earn the trust of the UK’s largest retailers shows the appeal of their product lines, the strength of their team, and their ability to meet rising consumer demand for healthy, locally grown food. We look forward to working with them to keep accelerating the decarbonisation of the food system by providing nutritious, affordable, and sustainable greens to UK consumers and food manufacturers.”
Eduardo Clemente, Managing Director at Generate Capital, added: “Since our first investment in 2021, GrowUp’s unique approach has demonstrated that producing superior, sustainable leafy greens at scale and at competitive pricing is possible, unlocking the potential to capture significant market share in the UK salad market. In less than a year from starting operations at industrial scale, GrowUp’s success in securing significant interest and volumes from some of the UK’s largest retailers is a testament to their value proposition.”
Read more:
GrowUp Secures £38M Investment from Generate Capital to Expand Vertical Farming Operations