Company A 06/10

Company A is a social networking application providing young people with an opportunity to test drive jobs and careers. It is a 3D, avatar-based Massive Multiplayer Online Game (MMOG) encompassing a virtual London in which users earn virtual money and get ahead through job simulations. The target age range is 16-25 years and the objective is to assist young people in making the right educational and career choices.

Market research shows that the top-ranked response by young people to the question “What is important to you in your life?” is: “A Job I Love”. Real Life addresses this need by delivering engaging career simulations through the media in which young people are spending an increasing amount of their time.

The business model is based on a free to use approach with monetization through item purchases/micro transactions, in-game advertising, sponsorship by recruiters, and optional premium subscription packages.

The launch career is trading, with budding financial market and commodities traders able to deal on the major global markets and indices via an on-line, real time financial trading platform. Successful traders can purchase villas on the Riviera, fast cars or hot outfits, just like in real life. Having proven the approach with trading, the platform will be extended into other careers.”

Company B integrates a patented remote control technology into furniture, primarily to the education sector, although they also supply into hotels and homes. Their patented products work with ALL industry standard computers, enabling the PC to be placed remotely, up to 20 metres away. The education sector buy from us because we make their ICT hardware secure, fit more students into their suites, work with any standard computers while maintaining manufacturers’ warranties and reduce electricity use by up to 2000kwh per PC per year (ROI of less than 1 year).

They have recently appointed eight UK distributors who all work within the UK education sector. They have also signed an exclusive US distribution agreement with the largest manufacturer of education furniture in the US. They currently turnover approx £250k and forecast this to rise to £1M in Y1, £2.4M in Y2 and £4M in Y3. They average margins of approx 34% and at £1M of sales we break even. They currently manufacture in Sussex and employ eight people including the owners.

Prospect list includes; Agusta Westland, Manchester University, Newham College and various schools and colleges around the UK.

They have also just registered patent on their latest product which will debut in July. This product replaces the monitor and keyboard at the desk by utilising High Definition Projection Technology working alongside their existing technology.

The owners now seek £500k of investment in return for a significant minority stake.

Company C 06/10

Company C is an IPR technology company that specialises in designing and developing browser and mobile business applications. Over the last 7 years Company C has invested organically, investing 180 man months worth of engineering time, to create and design over 50 standard business modules , including Smart Metering / ERP / CRM / CMS / Manufacturing / Financials / Portal / Public Website and Digitalisation , creating a robust and scalable range of software tool kits.

Company C has successfully licensed its IPR software design, software modules, application code and “know how” to a limited set of industry partners , who have subsequently created a set of business applications, with partners resells to approximately 30 organisations within USA / EMEA and ASIAPAC regions. Having completed the R&D and Product development they are seeking to commercialise their platform of toolkits to the software and mobile industry through the following channels: Computer VARS, System Integrators, major corporate users and internet entrepreneurs.

The management team draws on individuals who have been consistently high achievers in the technology arena within their chosen discipline. Each individual has over 20 years active experience in their specific fields, and has spent extensive periods of time with major sector providers including ACER, Vodafone, ITV, Psion and Microsoft.

Company C , is seeking an investment of £320K, to pursue a 3 year business plan, to produce revenue of £2.6m in year3, building revenues through licensing our SAAS/Cloud IPR software toolkits globally, based on existing developed software technology.

Company D has developed application that will allow the delivery of advertisement during the pre-connection phase of any telephone call. The company’s “video ring back tones” replace the traditional (brrr, brrr sound) a caller hears whilst he is waiting for the recipient of his call to pick up. The innovation is backed by patents granted in the UK and Australia and filed in the USA (2001)

Video ring back tones may be commercially deployed in numerous situations, businesses may deliver advertisements or customised clips to customers who contact their call centres, consumers may create and distribute their own content; however person to person calls, carrying generic pre connection advertisements represent the largest potential market.

Company D has recently completed the development of a working prototype; this fully functional and interactive model is available for demonstration.

Users will receive incentives in return for viewing advertisements during the pre-connect phase of their calls. These could take the form of a revenue share from advertising revenues or accumulation of reward points from existing schemes. Revenues would be generated by charging advertisers for delivery of their content.

Having completed the initial development of the product, Company D is seeking finance of the order of £350k for further development, commercialisation and roll out.

Company E is a traditional, prestige hand-finished brick. It has strong demand and commands a premium price. 75% of the direct cost of making the brick, excluding labour, is gas. The gas price is doubling every 5 years and margins are getting squeezed.

Company E intends to solve this problem by making its own gas through anaerobic digestion, taking in food waste. The gas produced will be sold into the grid and then bought back. As the producer of the gas, Company E will receive the renewable heat incentive, so its cost of gas is actually negative. Even without charging a green premium, the gross margin on the brick will rise from around 20% to 80%.

Planning permission is expected by mid July and the construction time is about 9 months. The capital cost of the equipment is £5M, including contingencies. This will be raised through £2M equity, £1M grants and soft loans and £2M debt.

The company is seeking £300,000 of equity investment now to start operations and fulfil initial orders. The balance of the equity is likely to be raised in conjunction with a PLUS listing at a valuation of £5M to £10M.

Company A 05/10

Company A have developed a new technology for retail forecasting. They ’ve combined innovative mathematical techniques with loyalty card data to create a unique predictive modelling tool. Particularly effective for product launches and major promotions where you cannot rely on previous sales history, it offers substantial marketing and supply chain savings to both retailers and fmcg suppliers.

Based on Agent Based Modelling, the new tool builds forecasts at an individual consumer level compared with current techniques which start from total sales of products within a range or category. As well as predictive modelling this approach also yields valuable quantitative insight into purchasing behaviour.

Two successful pilot projects have generated impressive results and strong commercial interest from both retailers and data analytics consultancies.

The founders have a proven entrepreneurial, technical and retail record with a previous successful launch and exit. The company is a spin out from the University of Reading and is about to sign its first revenue generating contract with a major UK retailer.

The company is seeking £250,000 to launch the business and productise the modelling tool.

Company B 05/10

Company B is a consumer healthcare business. In June 2010 the company completes its submission to the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for regulatory approval of the first in a new class of medicinal products for the diagnosis of skin allergies.

100 million hair dye treatments are conducted each year in the UK and a skin allergy test should be used on every occasion. Company B will be the first to market with a generic allergy test licenced for diagnosis of allergy to hair colour (PPD). An unmet need led the MHRA to permit the restricted sales of the unlicensed product.

Since launch in 2004 more than 2 million units have been sold to hairdressing salons, as an alternative to the decades old industry standard. Testing is a commercial and legal demand and failure to follow testing protocols have led to prosecution under the Health & Safety at Work Act and the insurance industry will not indemnify salons failing to follow screening procedures.

The founders of the business funded the development and launch of the unlicensed product was part funded by SFLG. Since launch, funding of additional regulatory work has been achieved through sale of equity to investors involved in the business and the industry and sweat equity in lieu of professional fees. Company B has an experienced management team with a proven track record in healthcare and pharma sector.

Funding is sought in two tranches. £150k to complete the licencing process and £800k to launch the licensed product in the UK through pharmacies and salons.

Company C is the body that came out of the Milk Marketing Board, with the shares allocated to dairy farmers producing milk in 1994. This created a shareholder register which currently stands at some 24,500 members, which is inhibiting the development of the business. The company are seeking to do a share consolidation and need to underwrite this with investors willing to take the fractions at an agreed price.

With a current running rate of £500k profit and EBITDA of £1.5 million+ they believe that their market cap reflects an undervalued share and the consolidation alone should allow the price to be more indicative of trading performance.

Company C can present to investors a resilient sustainable business model, a profitable cash generative business, favourable market conditions, real growth prospects and an undervalued share price.

Company D will deliver, for the first time, a new, dynamic, exciting range of make-up, skin care, unisex beauty products, sun care and lifestyle accessories with uniform branding to consumers in the UK and internationally.

Drawing on experience the founders have specified and sourced bespoke products based on natural ingredients and delivered in unique, innovative, stylish packaging. The supply chain is secure, established and from selected manufacturers in the Far East, the USA and Europe, all accredited to EU and world-wide standards and producing new products expressly formulated and exclusive to Company D .

The Company has an opportunity to launch its first mall-based outlet in Westfield, London from September 2010. Direct retail sales from a prime site will launch the brand and create awareness among our target market. The location is available on an all-inclusive basis for six months and can be extended indefinitely. The format will be replicated in other retail malls across the UK to capture market share and further boost online sales.

Shareholder funds invested to date total £86,000 and a further £120,000 is needed to launch in Westfield. Thereafter the Company will be able to fund regional expansion out of cash-flow. The proposed exit route in five years is by a trade sale with a projected value of £3M.

Company A was formed in 2000, originally specialising in the resale of ISDN air time. The business has turnover of c. £1m

Following successful growth, Company A has augmented its expertise in telecoms, video and web conferencing.

In parallel, a leading research and technology company who had developed the ‘state of the art’ product which delivers a very high quality remote video and collaboration environment, were seeking a take to market partner. The product allows sharing of 3D CAD and any drawing internationally without travel.

In 2008 Company A signed an exclusive five year distribution agreement with this leading research and technology company and to market their product. The research company lacked elements of the technical and commercial infrastructure to bring the product to market. Subsequently Company A have developed the requisite commercial layers and the product is now internationally trialled and fully ready for sale. National and international deals are in the pipeline.

This exciting product with international potential is seen to be the best in the world for high complexity decisions requiring collaboration. Currently very strong interest is taking place from the international Oil & Gas markets as well as international Construction. We expect sales during the next months giving rise to a further expansion in sales and operations. The service represents a step change in Company A’s sales and operations capacity requiring additional investment to the director’s sunk commitment of c.£1m The company is looking for funding of £ 250,000.

Company C's product is fast becoming the standard for mobile web and multi-channel development and delivery.

Company C's software makes it easy and cost effective for brands and corporates to move from delivering digital content on a single channel PC based approach to the rapidly growing multi-channel world, embracing mobile phones, Internet TV's, games consoles and more.

Delivering content to multiple channels and devices is not a simple thing to achieve, where there is a complex mix of screen sizes, browsers, operating systems and other factors to consider. The software allows web developers to create and deliver stunning websites that work on all devices and take advantage of these many different factors.

With a market proven product and sales in the first 5 months of 2010 greater than 250% of the total 2009 revenue, Company C is seeking £250,000 to accelerate growth in this large and rapidly growing sector. With the investment we are looking to add to the £300k worth of business in the sales pipeline and grow our brand recognition and market presence. We have secured 22% of the investment to date and are offering a significant minority stake in the company in return for the investment. Company C is EIS registered. Company C owns the IP for the software and their name is trademark protected.

Are you suffering from digital disorganisation? Information on multiple computers & web services and no ability to readily find, organise & share? Unable to migrate data from one product to another?

Company D's product will solve these common problems and will also enable many new services, freeing your data from its current restrictions. Based on 20 years military internet experience and 4 patents, it will be launched in June 2010 and promises to be as revolutionary to digital organisation as the Dewey system was to Libraries. With a strong 2nd time around management team, Company D will generate strong profits at high margins.

In 2009, the UK Government said “by 2013, a technology platform that provides a scalable network solution for local advertising will have traction.” The UK local web market is £1.2bn today – but with a system as described, it will be £5.5bn. The UK is 5% of the global search market and similar opportunities exist in most countries. No one currently delivers a scalable network solution – but it is exactly what Company A will do. We have devised a unique solution, filed a patent application for key aspects, built a “proof of technology” demo, and assembled the team with the experience and knowledge to deliver.

We solve the consumer’s problem first (half of all local searches fail to find the information wanted). Then we solve the local business’ problem (although Yellow Pages and local papers are losing readers to the web, local businesses find it hard to use the web effectively). That’s why local businesses seldom appear in the top 10 results, and why consumer can’t find them (90% of consumers only look at the top 10).

Our solution aggregates comprehensive local information and returns intelligent search results based on the travel time between the user and the content (shop / event). Updated in real time and displayed on any web enabled device (PC and mobile especially).

Company B is the fifth largest recruitment company providing qualified social workers and managers to local authorities in the London Boroughs and is currently expanding into other areas of the UK. The company was founded in 2000 and had a turn over or £6m in the year ending 2009 and is on target for £6.8m in this financial year. An investment of £650,000 is sought to acquire shares in a MBO.

Company B through an exclusive relationship with Bournemouth University provides professional training programmes for locum social workers; a much sought after feature by both delegates and clients. The company has built an invaluable database of some 5,900 social workers significantly reducing placement costs and is, through its Australian branch, able to recruit overseas to meet the increasing market demand.

The Managing Director is a qualified social worker with over 20 years experience of social work and recruitment and is a founding Director of the company. His strategy plan is to expand the scope of the company in both the UK and Australia and so significantly increase the company’s market share in the social work recruitment sector, as well as allied health services, social housing and the delivery of social care services.

• Product X is the cover name for a new patented technology, the first commercial applications of which lie in the worldwide marine marketplace. A new range of power tools is in the process of development to address the need to strip marine fouling from boat hulls, oil platforms, buoys and all other marine installations. This is a huge worldwide market whose needs are not satisfied by any other means.
• Company C has already spent a significant amount to develop a series of handheld power tools using unique patented mechanical technology, one of which, an underwater boat cleaning tool, is now under manufacture in China and will be ready for sale, delivered to the UK and USA in April 2010.
• The initial tool is suitable for boats up to 45 feet in length and is considered applicable to the retail market. In development is a related but much larger tool, which can be used for ocean going vessels, naval craft, oil installations, harbor works, etc. This tool is considered to be applicable to the professional/corporate market.

Company C has three individual shareholders who are interested in additional external investment to help fund both the original retail product launch and the development of the new product.

Company D 03/10

Company D's product is a revolutionary new way of communicating with one central list of contacts stored on its web portal. This portal makes possible Product X,, the world’s first true hands free mobile, which is set to expand existing markets through innovative design and totally unique web deployed applications. The patent pending technology is extremely disruptive in the fact it seamlessly does away with international roaming charges in all countries delivering mobile calls from as low as 1ppm. Company D also fills distinctive and real gaps in the market by solving a plethora of identifiable problems.

The Product has been designed as a natural global application with intuitive viral marketing concepts. This was tested by receiving over 2million hits in 24hours, 350’000 additional views on YouTube, and being the most viewed news item on the BBC world news website from a limited 3 minute news clip. We have been invited back on the BBC, The Gadget show and a mass of related consumer magazines and review sites.

Approximately £350k has been invested to date and existing development work is underway. We are engaging with the EBRD and dealing with the senior global advisor to the board. EBRD wishes to lead a £7m funding round to take the proposition to market. There is approximately a £150k funding gap to finalise development and Beta testing.

Company E is building a global business through the provision of digital services offering a seamless flow of information on Any Mobile, Any Network and Online. Our first service – Product X– is a digital hub for family’s life, designed to provide an intuitive process for accessing, organising, and sharing information between family members and schools, children’s clubs etc. Families need to replace the myriad of papers around the house with one digital hub – Organisations need a one-stop channel to communicate important information about issues, events, activities and last minute announcements.

Company E is trialling the product with one school and focusing on building a core set of users on the service. In the future we will use the same technological underpinnings and offer similar services to other segments such as university students, art, fashion and health enthusiasts, and silversurfers. As the service solves a specific problem revenue will be generated from customers and organisations through subscription and high yielding one-to-one marketing campaigns.

The founder has invested £56K to date and £600K is now required to take the company to commercialisation. An additional £1.2m may subsequently be required to scale the business.

Company A is a supplier and installer of renewable energy products to domestic and commercial properties for both new and existing buildings. The products include solar thermal, wind turbines, solar PV, rainwater harvesting, heat pumps and biomass boilers.

In 2008 £340,000 was raised in order to develop a franchisee selling network. This has now been set up with 9 franchisees appointed and 30 expected by end of 2010. Franchisees earn commission and Company A sources and installs. Also a head office sales team dealing with business sales.

Selling is supported by technical team. Installations are carried out by established sub-contarctors. Recently Company A employed an electrician to start the build-up an in-house installation capability.
The renewable energy market will expand significantly over the next few years driven by increasing energy costs, new build houses have to incorporate renewable energy, and tariffs that will be paid on energy generation. Feed in tariffs for electricity come in April 2010.

Funding £250,000 in equity and loans is sought for expansion to acquire premises for the storage, product display, office and training. Also to increase technical and sales to cope with the increasing level of demand it is now experiencing.

Exit will be by way of trade sale or floatation.

Company B is a news website delivering ‘fresh perspectives on things that matter’ to the large & growing group of Cultural Creatives (80m in US, 80m in Europe). Cultural Creatives are in the vanguard of a worldwide movement to change the way we think about, and act on, 21st century challenges (eg. environment & sustainability).

Company B is the only news portal dedicated to the needs/aspirations of Cultural Creatives – offering news & views on the topics that matter to them and a unique “news into action” concept – enabling users to take action on issues they care about. The business has several different revenue streams eg. from advertisers & e-commerce partners wishing to reach this educated and affluent target market. The business has a low cost structure.

Founders’ funding (£185,000 pre-launch) has been invested in researching the proposition, branding/trademarking, website development, building a strong management team and a partner network. The website, beta-launched in June 2009, is already attracting over 20,000 monthly unique visitors. Investment is sought to finance marketing, editorial content, website development & staffing.

The business has international potential and is scalable beyond news, which will make it attractive to a trade buyer within 5 years.

1. Socially-positive, 2. Fun to play entertainment games for all the family, 3. Focussed on real-world and non-violent themes, 4. Scientifically accurate, 5. Rewarding: you make discoveries while you play

Company C have a distinguished Advisory Board including Professor Diana Liverman and Dr Cameron Hepburn both world-leading academics from Oxford University, and Suzanne Seggerman US President of Games For Change.

Company C is developing an entertainment video game . The game follows the success of our 2007 game which reached around 900,000 players. The game is targeted for online distribution in Q3 2010, followed by retail distribution later in the year. Our sales forecasts indicate a low-mid case of 300,000-500,000 units. We expect to net £4-5 per unit, although this has the potential to be considerably greater due to the commercial advantages we enjoy through self-funding to distribution. We will exploit the success of the games with sequels, and versions for other formats (e.g. Wii) and territories (e.g. Korea).

We have to date raised £572,000 through sale of equity, and £76,000 from R&D tax credits. This money has been utilised in developing the game. We are seeking £300,000 in this round, and have so far raised £110,000 of that amount. New money will complete the product to distribution. Company C is valued today at £1.84m. Estimated 2012 value is £7.2 (low case) to £13.6m (mid case).

Existing digital consultants fail to provide an effective digital marketing solution for lawyers, and legal training solutions provide an unsatisfactory compromise between convenience, cost and quality.

Company D is a specialist end-to-end digital production and distribution company for the legal profession offering a unique online and on-demand legal knowledge portal that delivers compulsory continuing professional development training to lawyers and legal knowledge for a broader professional audience. Company D’s ambitions include replicating the business internationally and, rebranded, to other professions.

Company D is the first legal training channel to deliver bespoke live and on-demand content, via both PC and mobile, and to create a compelling “destination” for both users and suppliers. Think BBC iPlayer for professional legal knowledge!

Company D simultaneously provides an improved training experience, reduced costs, increased efficiency & flexibility, whilst also improving lead conversion for content suppliers.

Company D earns production fees from content suppliers and subscription revenues from content consumers, as well as driving revenues from online advertising and sponsorship, and bespoke production and presentation authoring services.

Company D is founded by Warren Smith, a qualified UK solicitor & US attorney with significant media experience (formerly director of international new media for Universal Studios and senior business affairs executive for FremantleMedia).

Company E will design, develop and market a range of portable and semi permanent acoustic sound stages to the Global music Live event market. Their product will provide a quantum jump in the delivery and enjoyment of live musical events. There is a strong order book from ESG, countries, Municipalities and broadcast entities such as BBC.

The global live entertainment market is measured in billions and is growing rapidly. The product is unique, has global patents registered, and can move straight into production with ESG. The product has no known competitors in a big gap in the market, and will be a high margin cash generative business.

Company E has a very experienced Management team. Prototype model developed ,by its supporting companies - top in their fields- ARUP Acoustics, Hamiltons, Architects, Event Staging and Construction ( ESGroup) and music marketing ( IMG Artists).

£750,000 needed for launch at Somerset House in July 2010 - £1.4m in total will enable the company to complete the first year of operations and start commercial production in 2011.

Exit likely to be via trade sale to major Music Entertainment Business - Estimated 5 year exit value - £25m.

Company A capitalizes on the growing interest in gastronomy as well as in consumer's quest for individuality and authenticity. Our concept is based on the social experience around the discovery of quality foods and wines. Company A is an online social guide that combines a social platform with a map-based tagging system that allows users to visualize and access different layers of product information.
We are targeting "foodies", amateurs that love to experiment with food. With Company A's website they can build an experience around food and wine: discover new products, learn everything about them, track their origins, build a personal food and wine diary and share it with friends.

Our business model is based on premium producer listings (producers pay £99/year to have their own customized page on the site and enhanced visibility), participation in affiliate programmes (sell products and services that revolve around quality foods), advertising and sale of products.

Company A's website is unique in that, unlike other food sites, focuses on the link between product and geography. We would like to be the site of the foodie traveler. Based on traffic estimates (the leading British regional food websites currently get around 160,000 visitors/month) we expect to become profitable in our second year of operations, generating £120,000 of profit, 60% coming from sales of products and services, 35% from listings and the rest from advertising. The site is very scalable and we aim to achieve an annual profit of £750,000 in five years.

Company A's website is already usable and we are now looking for £90,000 that would make it possible to complete the next development stages and serve as working capital until break even.

Overview: Company B is the first 2nd Generation Social Network, founded in 2008 by Anthony Cohen and Nicholas Wittenburg. Following £120,000 investment by the management team, Company B launched into limited Beta at the end of July 2009 and has already accumulated over 1000 users in 33 countries, with no marketing or advertising of any nature. Company B not only captures the current market needs, but also delivers an offering that enables higher advertising revenues then those seen with existing platforms. Currently, no existing offering can match Company B in terms of information relevancy, targeted advertising and user privacy. Together, these factors make Company B the most advanced platform on the market.

Problem: The Internet is full of content, some relevant, some not, some credible, some not. Its greatest strength – openness – is also the greatest weakness, as it has resulted in a magnification of content – often there for the benefit of the content provider and not the consumer, but also often simply relevant for others, not yourself. This has led to the consumer being oversaturated with content or mindless social trivia that exists on other Social Networks where traditional advertising has lost its effectiveness, as there is simply too much noise.

Solution & Product: Company B gathers and delivers permission based relevant content to users from their most trusted sources and so enriches the quality of a social networking and Internet experience. Content is aligned to users interest along with targeted advertising displayed by interest category and filtered by either location or intimacy level. The result is relevant, credible and highly valued content alongside specifically targeted advertising. Company B cuts through all the noise that exists on the Internet by utilizing the Social Networking paradigm to create relevant content. Herein lies the significant opportunity to a problem where no current solution exists besides Company B

Company C has been granted the exclusive global eCommerce selling rights and exclusive retail rights for the UK, by the French manufacturer Laboratoires Carilène for its unique and scientifically tested 100% natural hair loss remedy called Product X. The product is in lotion and shampoo form and is for both men and women and has a European and USA Patent.

Since 1993, Laboratoires Carilène has sold 2,272 million units of the lotion and 750,000 units of shampoo in Europe, total value €19.2 million.
Above the line advertising was only implemented for the first four years from its introduction. In the UK, Boots Pharmacy was the sole retailer until February 2009 when it launched its own branded hair loss range.
After Boots ceased ordering Product X, Laboratoires Carilène appointed Curtis MacLean, the founder of Company C, to research the market for the future sale and distribution. Curtis demonstrated there was a substantial market opportunity for Product X from eCommerce global sales and to the UK retail market, and his company was incorporated and granted the marketing rights.

Company C is seeking equity investment of £70,000. Net profits projected: £58,000 2010, £268,000 2011: and £513,000 in 2012.

Company D 11/09

Company D's website makes it easier to find the right person when looking for help, ideas and inspiration online. Inspired by how people behave in their everyday lives we aim to make finding experts and sharing ideas an integral part of how people achieve what they’re looking for on the web.

Operating in a UK digital adverting market predicted to reach £3.4 billion in 2009, the principle revenue streams are contextual advertising, premium and B2B services. The strategy is to grow through word of mouth, partner site integrations, marketing and PR.

The website is now online and we have just implemented our first partnership with a national website for local communities. Both these sites are test beds for further development based on user feedback in order to improve messaging, design and usability.

In preparation for a full launch we are looking for an initial investment of £70,000, followed by a second investment of £180,000 in June 2010 to enable the company to consolidate. Break-even is predicted for September 2011.

The exit strategy is to be bought out in Year 4, achieving value through profitability and strategic positioning in what is set to be an exciting new area of online growth: social and real-time search.

Company E 11/09

Overview. Company E combines local search with personally relevant results. We make the web local and personal by providing comprehensive local information on any device, made relevant by a patentable “social warmth” search engine. Company R also helps local communities to re-connect, by enabling visitors to contribute to their local community.

The founders have first-hand experience of developing local web applications, start-ups and media; they have conducted extensive research and prepared detailed plans for the development and launch of the website . £350,000 funding is required initially to build and launch the site; to develop the “social warmth” algorithm and to apply for the patent.

Business Opportunity: Company E solves 2 big problems; 1) web searches returning millions of links to pages containing a given search phrase are of limited use - most people only see the first 10 results. 2) Most businesses are small and their customers are local, yet the web doesn’t make it easy for a local business to accurately target those customers.

Company E helps people and businesses do what they are already trying to do ... but better, faster and cheaper. It is designed to work with the big search engines such as Google, who are iGeolise’s biggest allies.

Likely exit via trade sale by year 4; prospective purchasers include search engines, and media & research groups.

Company F 11/09

Company F's website k is a members-only, subscription website for those working in the Film and TV industry. We are a start up looking for £500k of funding.
• 1 Website
• 5 Essential Services
• 3 Revenue Streams
• 85% cheaper than the competition
• 170,000 people & companies in the UK market

Our services and innovations include Chase List, Online Diary Service, News, Jobs & Directory Services. All together, for the first time, for a fraction of the cost. Producing opportunities in Film and TV.

The Management team has a collective 50 years experience in Film, TV and Online Subscription Services.

£500k would allow the site to be built, launched, cover salaries and offer customers first 3 months free. This is a fragmented, niche market in which thecallsheet.co.uk can dominate. Franchising or exit strategies in place after 3 years.

Company A 10/09

Company A's product is a software for the millions of small businesses that dislike or fear formal bookkeeping, but want effective cash collection, accurate business information and good customer relationships.

For them, current systems seem too complex and expensive; often their record keeping method is to ‘throw it in a shoe box and sling it at the accountant once a year’. This approach costs them hundreds of pounds in accountancy fees, while the accountant often loses money sorting out the mess. Isaacc is a new breed of bookkeeping software that truly addresses this market for the first time.

Company A's product is ‘Software as a Service’, where the vendor hosts the application in an environment optimised for performance and security. This model drastically reduces costs, and also supports compelling new social & collaboration features.

The four founders have huge experience in software development and media production. They have designed and developed an easy-to-use consumer style product with a rich and satisfying user experience. Their aim is to build Isaacc into Britain’s leader of this burgeoning new sector.

Target customers are small businesses, sole traders and the self-employed, a UK market between 2 and 4 million strong. For the most part, they do not use any specialist accounting software.
Company A are rolling out a marketing launch plan, targeting small businesses through trade organisations and memberships groups serving the needs of small business communities.

Funds will be used for (a) salaries for 4-5 employees, (b) overheads (c) marketing. The shares qualify for EIS relief.

Company A 10/09

Company A's product is a software for the millions of small businesses that dislike or fear formal bookkeeping, but want effective cash collection, accurate business information and good customer relationships.

For them, current systems seem too complex and expensive; often their record keeping method is to ‘throw it in a shoe box and sling it at the accountant once a year’. This approach costs them hundreds of pounds in accountancy fees, while the accountant often loses money sorting out the mess. Isaacc is a new breed of bookkeeping software that truly addresses this market for the first time.

Company A's product is ‘Software as a Service’, where the vendor hosts the application in an environment optimised for performance and security. This model drastically reduces costs, and also supports compelling new social & collaboration features.

The four founders have huge experience in software development and media production. They have designed and developed an easy-to-use consumer style product with a rich and satisfying user experience. Their aim is to build Isaacc into Britain’s leader of this burgeoning new sector.

Target customers are small businesses, sole traders and the self-employed, a UK market between 2 and 4 million strong. For the most part, they do not use any specialist accounting software.
Company A are rolling out a marketing launch plan, targeting small businesses through trade organisations and memberships groups serving the needs of small business communities.

Funds will be used for (a) salaries for 4-5 employees, (b) overheads (c) marketing. The shares qualify for EIS relief.

Company B 10/09

Overview: Company B's product enables people to learn how to relax themselves quickly and naturally. Company B created a range of “safe, simple and effective” products suitable for the global self-help/wellbeing/corporate stress management sectors. Research (1999 – 00) showed 93% of participants wanting the product. Low-cost, high profit, top quality products self-published (2002) providing growing interest and pilots in technique with Professionals in healthcare /education sectors. 2 day certified training programme developed (2002–04) endorsed by BCMA (2004) backed by Alumni, Medics, Consultants. Since 2004, 180+ Practitioners trained; evidence-based measurable outcome case studies, assessment papers. Products copied in US (2002) - successfully stopped by legal action.

Business Opportunity: Sales to date £270k. Following successful pilot franchise operation with leading mental health charity 2006/07 focus is i) drive promotion/brand awareness selling products online; ii)selling individual training licences; iii) group packages into corporate sector and NHS through regional “PCT’s.” (Current UK Govt mental health “talking therapies” programme budget £179M**; annual UK mental health spend c.£900M. All products UK & US markets ready. Trademarks. Occupational Therapists (29,000UK, 99,000 US) key target group to deliver relaxation classes. Ideal “early intervention” tool. Accreditation of Training Programme provides low cost “solution” for “ongoing professional development” required by all therapists.

Funds invested to date £350k. Company B has £960k funding round and seeking £360k Angel funding. Future interest includes “Boots Alliance.” Worldwide Interest. BFIIN Award June 2009.

Company C 10/09

Company C identifies licences and distributes healthcare related products in the UK and Republic of Ireland that have already demonstrated success in other European markets. Company C exploits products that are substantiated by scientific, evidence-based claims with a primary focus on protection from infection. It currently holds 7-year exclusive distribution rights for three products.

Company C has established independent pharmacy and National Health Service channels for sales and distribution as well as direct-to-consumer Internet-based sales. Following test marketing of our first product we are ready to expand our activities and to launch the next 2 products. We anticipate achieving breakeven in 2011 with sales over £5 million in 2013.

The Company is looking to raise up to £1 million, which will be used for the following:-
• Promote and launch the products with an appropriate level of marketing spend.
• Buy the global product rights and associated supply contracts.
• Strengthen the operational team to execute the business plan.

The Directors envisage that subject to market conditions prevalent at the time they will seek a PLUS listing for the Company in 3 to 5 years time which will allow existing investors an option to exit.

Company D 10/09

Company D provides specialised panels which form a mould into which concrete is poured to create buildings e.g. sewage works. It has the opportunity to capture exclusive rights to the system in the UK, where it is currently the sole supplier.

The system is technically superior than existing systems, producing a “smooth” finish much desired within the civil engineering, water and sewage treatment sectors. Construction here is delivered under the AMP (Asset Management Plan) framework and each plan lasts five years. There are nine water boards and they have been allocated £21 billion for AMP 5 [2010 to 2015] where the formwork share is circa 1%: £28 million.

The product is also highly competitive in terms of pricing compared to its nearest competitors.

The owner/proprietor has industry experience with particular emphasis on sales and business management and has ongoing contacts with Water Board contractors where referrals are the main source of business.

Key Strengths:

• Sole supplier in the UK and opportunity to capture an exclusive contract for the UK
• Technically better , cost and quality, than existing systems and produces a smooth finish
• Supported by full technical plan and assembly instructions
• Very profitable and simple business model within a well defined niche market

The preferred exit route is a management buy back or trade sale to a major construction company after four/five years.

The company is looking for £250k to increase equipment levels and to meet customer demand.

Company A 09/09

In the UK alone, online consumer spending exceeds £120m per day.

None of today’s online sites are engineered to facilitate a multi-buyer transaction; they are simply replacing the traditional “one to one” physical shopping experience with an online substitute, and as such, the market is conducted exclusively on a one-to-one basis which neither delivers best-pricing for consumers, nor maximum volumes for sellers.

Buying decisions are increasingly formed through online research from sources that are considered trusted and impartial. Hobbyist communities are a primary source of trustworthy information, and by providing a private shopping-mall to the owners of such sites, the consumption cycle can be fulfilled along with the research.

Company A places ecommerce within a community environment, enabling multi-unit trading opportunities for retailers, one-stop shopping for consumers, and controlled revenues for community-owners.

Through the introduction of Company A’s services, community-owners are able to monetise their user-base, establish themselves as gateways to valuable consumer blocks, and offer unique multi-unit trading opportunities unseen before.

Company A has a launch customer, solid interest from a large UK national charity, and has a letter of intent from a 600k-user outdoor pursuit community wanting to capitalise on its position.

It seeks £200k to fund the remaining development and post-launch staff, predicts a turnover of £7.5m in year 1, and a £100m+ exit within 3-5 years.

Company B 09/09

Company B has been established to address valuable security and care markets. Company B's first market will be vulnerable households - about 8m people in the UK. For this market, Company B's services have been defined in discussions with key statutory agencies, who actively support Company B and will act as sales channels. Company B is in late-stage negotiation for the use of a police logo.

The first Company B system will safeguard against three major threats - distraction burglaries, rogue traders and the consequences of accidents or falls in the home:

• distraction burglaries occur when access to the house is gained under false pretences
• rogue traders call uninvited to offer the householder work that is not needed or is grossly over-priced and/or of poor quality
• accidents or falls that leave a householder unable to summon help

Company B's system is entirely automatic - no action is required of the householder.

Company B will shortly be starting a trial of a prototype system in conjunction with a leading police force.
A patent application on Company B's system has been filed.

Company B has a highly-experienced management team. The company seeks £400k to take it through to profitability. Likely exit is via a trade sale.

Company C 09/09

Company C owns and develops a computer management software for organisations providing managed IT services. Founded in August 2006, Company C is an IT support technology that makes the support of PCs and servers faster, simpler and cheaper. Over the Internet the service provider has visibility and control of the entire IT environment that they support - device audit & monitoring, remote support, software deployment and device management, and reporting. By coupling an innovative, highly scalable architecture and user-friendly interface to an aggressive pricing model Company C addresses the three major inhibitors of effective IT support - cost, effort and usability.

An EIS-approved business, Company C has attended TVIN to complete a £250,000 funding round. With over £200,000 already raised through 5 private investors, Company C is looking for additional investors to finalise the funding round and execute the next phase of the business plan. With revenues of over £350,000 to date, Company C sell the software into Local Government and the private sector, offering the software both on a 'software as a service' and traditional 'on premise' model. The funding will be used to accelerate revenue growth and market penetration. Likely exit will be a trade sale within 3-5 years to a major IT support and outsourcing organisation.

Company D 09/09

Company D helps high-value job seekers (40 million graduates of the top 500 universities worldwide) define their career priorities and identify the right job. The site consists of three integrated tools:

• Visualize career paths. Using data derived from millions of online CVs, Company D shows users the intermediate steps (jobs, degrees) required to reach a career goal, and helps users understand the implications of a career decision.

• Interactions. Users with questions about their careers are matched to users with relevant experience, and can browse reviews of employers and salaries.

• Career test. Built with scientific rigor by experts in positive psychology, the Career Test matches users to the types of jobs that fit their strengths and aspirations.

Revenue comes from lead generation for job listings (cost-per-click); premium services for end users; recruiter advertising and access to passive job seekers (£2 billion market); and subscriptions from university career services and alumni affairs offices (£300 million market).

Company D raised over £100k in seed funds and is launching autumn 2009 with its first paid client, a large university in London. Company D is seeking investors to contribute to a total business angel round of £300,000 to accelerate growth in the UK.

Company E 09/09

Company E is a technology company which enables businesses to connect to and transact with their customers more easily - for a spontaneous purchase, a customer service question, an on-demand phone-based interpreting service, a donation phone line or just a change of doctor’s appointment. Several of these applications are already in commercial production. CRM giant Salesforce.com has already rolled out its first application and sees Company E as a key part of its “Service Cloud” offering to its customers.

Customers increasingly demand such transactions – anytime and on the device of their choice. Unlike conventional systems Company E handles this transparently while making transactions easier to use for consumers and easier to design for businesses. And Company E is delivered as “Software-as-a-Service”, so its low cost and effort of deployment makes it attractive to customers.

The revenue model is monthly subscription plus transaction fees or revenue share. Company E sells through partners in each market, relying on their domain knowledge, contacts and integration skills to develop standard or bespoke PM3-based systems for their customers.

Company E is seeking an investment of £250k – to consolidate its partnership with Salesforce.com and sell to its vast customer base. Projections are for £12m revenues £5m profit in 3 years. Exit via trade sale in year 3 or 4.

Company A 06/09

Company A is an online entertainment platform and an independent record label. It enables unsigned artists to upload their music videos and compete for a record deal. The winner is chosen by internet users grouped in a dedicated social network. The platform promotes new artists, signs the best of them, provides free source of music entertainment and encourages creation of online community.

The commercial model includes a number of revenue sources from e-commerce, m-commerce to digital music downloads, album sales and music event organisation. It is planned to launch initially in the UK and Germany, and gradually expand in stages to another 3 EU countries and the USA within the first 12 months.

The business has reached the investment-ready stage with a complete business plan, financial forecasts and core management team formed. The business has received support and mentoring through Connect London, a member, with TVIN, of the British Business Angels Association.

The company is now seeking up to £500k to fully launch its operations, sign up brand ambassadors and develop its contacts with key industry players. This level of investment will enable the launch of the competition within 3 months. Investment may be received in staged payments, based on the achievement of milestones agreed with investors.

The development of the brand will significantly enhance the value of the business, with a projected exit strategy offering investors a significant return on their equity stake after 3 years.

Two complementary offerings:

1. Establishing UK clinics where medical travellers (consumers who travel overseas for treatment) can undergo consultations with visiting dentists. Revenues are derived from charging both rent on the facilities and 50% of X-ray and consultation fees. There is no UK dental surgery dedicated to serving international dentists and medical travellers. International dentists currently face several issues when arranging consultations for UK patients at existing practices run by UK dentists.

2. Providing medical travel packages to UK (and global) consumers at 15% commission on total treatment costs. The global medical tourism market is nascent, but is estimated to be worth ~GBP60b, growing at ~15% pa. The market is unregulated; competition is not well developed; imminent EU legislation should buoy the industry.

Financials

£140k is sought to establish the dental clinic and agency businesses respectively. The dental clinic will break even in month 12 at 50% occupancy; PBT will be £350k in year 3. The agency business could generate year 1 PBT of £100k at a 1.5% share of the UK dental traveler market. A 10% share of the UK medical traveler market in year 5 could generate PBT of £3.5m. Exit via trade sale.

Company C developed an off-road satnav software application for mobile phones for the outdoors activity market. The product makes it easy for users to explore the countryside: they can map, navigate, track and share their outdoor experiences.

GPS mobile phones are becoming a widespread reality. The outdoor GPS market is forecast to grow to annual revenues of $1.7Bn in 2013, and Company C has been identified as an innovation leader in this market.

The product is in use by cyclists, walkers, horseriders, boaters and other outdoor enthusiasts who use topographic maps. Professional users including search & rescue team members and field surveyors are also benefiting from the product..

The product’s innovation has been recognized with awards from Ordnance Survey, Nokia, and Symbian.

Partnering with national mapping agencies Company C earns revenue from the premium content delivered. All map data can be downloaded over-the-air direct to the mobile handset along with multimedia leisure guides. Detailed maps and data for eleven European countries are available, with further countries in the works.

Company C is an early stage business ready to grow. We are now seeking investment to increase commercial activity and to port the application to additional mobile platforms.

Company C is the smart revolution in outdoor GPS.

Company D is an online/offline regional holiday home provider for the mid to high value end of the travel market.

It concentrates on the South West France area and, by being a niche provider offering a high quality customer service, aims to grow into a highly attractive operator which can successfully compete with the large tour operators. These are disadvantaged by their lack of focus on providing a personal service to those seeking a distinctive offering in a particular location, which requires local knowledge and an understanding of local factors.

Providing the holiday opportunities as online and offline also differentiates the business from the smaller operators who manage a small number of properties in the region. By choosing a carefully researched and attractive niche region, the potential to appear high on the list of internet searches is greater and requires less direct marketing. The online offering will have features that will add to the personal attention given to holidaymakers and provide a further differentiator.

Whilst the full plan anticipates growth into further niche regions, EBITDA in year 4 on the initial region is expected to be £1m. Other regions will be taken on organically or through the acquisition of existing smaller operators. The longer term vision is for a strong brand with multi-region coverage and significant revenue potential. The business model has been endorsed by sector specialists who confirm the current market opportunity.

The management team has experience of building teams and in growing and selling successful companies.

Total investment of £300,000 is sought and outline commitment for £100,000 of this has been received. Exit is anticipated by way of trade sale in 5 years and the investment is expected to yield the potential for strong dividends from positive cashflow.

Company E operates a recurring per person subscription business model, often with upfront payments to create a branded look for each customer. The product has a zero marginal cost of delivery for each incremental user and is independent of training subject, for example, Moody uses the system to certify employees in the oil/gas industry in 60 countries and 80 languages.

After founding in 2004 as a sales training and consultancy company, customer demand morphed this service into a web-based training academy platform, launched in 2008. Since then, the subscription base has been growing and includes Moody (600 users) – who recently signed to increase to 1,000 users and Wish (100 users).

The pipeline is strong - customers appear to be trading down to eLearning/training academies. In the first 6 weeks of this financial year the company invoiced £51k and is on target to achieve £421k with a net profit of £114k. Year 5 forecasts the company will be turning over in excess of £2 million with a net margin of over 50%.

The market is large and the product offers a lower cost and measurable way to train staff. The recurring subscription revenues snowball in relation to the cost of delivery. The company has a lean overhead ethos that provides a greater degree of ‘storm resistance’.

This fund raising is to finance working capital and was intended to be from an SFLG. The funds will be used to develop the platform. The company raised £40,000 during Summer 2008 from friends/angels.

Company F is establishing itself as the leader of behaviour-based customer insight for Mobile Telecoms and Banks in Africa and Asia.

The company's core technology is a series of proprietary algorithms that run analysis over large mobile and banking transactional databases to produce ‘Responsive Customer Profiling.’

For Mobile Telecoms, Company F halves marketing costs by enabling acquisition, retention and growth of the right customers in their base. For Banks, Company F quarters the cost of customer acquisition and risk management by enabling targeted offers to be made into the Mobile customer base.

Company F aims to build Credit Bureau 2.0 for emerging markets by becoming the industry data aggregator of the only scalable and reliable sources. Company F will hold the clearest aggregate view available of the customers’ value and risk profiles for products and services including mobile upgrades, mobile bank accounts, loans, savings and insurance.

Seed Investment was made from the SBS Venture Fund (£60k for 15% equity, January 2009) judged by Sir Philip Green (Arcadia) and David Bonderman (TPG). ARK has used the seed cap to encapsulate its IP into operational software and run a Proof of Concept Pilot in Tanzania with its first Channel Sales Partner and early adopter Telecom and Bank.

Company F is raising £500k through July 2009 to cover cost of serving early adopter client with technology which can be sold scalable sideways to other Telecoms and Banks. Conservative financial projections achieve Y3 revenues of £6.1m and EBIT of £3.4m. Company F anticipates exit by trade sale in 2-5 years to an incumbent credit scoring firm such as Experian looking to expand into new markets.