Entrepreneur Alice Hall announced ambitious growth plans after taking back ownership of popular fashion business Pink Boutique.
Ms Hall was 23 when she launched Pink Boutique alongside her mother Julie Blackie, investing £90 between them on a handful of dresses and then juggling the fledgling firm with other jobs to help pay her mortgage and other bills. The company was soon recruiting staff to help sell hundreds of dresses a day – peaking at 4,000 dress sales a day – aiding gross sales of £15m while also earning Ms Hall a place on the Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe list, amongst other award wins.
Three years ago she left Pink Boutique to launch luxury furniture and homeware venture Rowen Homes with her husband Andrew, starting as a purely online venture. It has since built up a large social media presence with more than 1.3million followers, leading to the opening of its first physical store at the Metrocentre, while also working with celebrities including TV presenter Rylan Clark.
Now Ms Hall has unveiled grand plans for the future of the company that propelled her into the North East business community, after her mother decided to retire. She and her husband announced their future strategy today to the teams at Rowen Homes and Pink Boutique.
She said: “My mum decided to retire, so either the business was going to be sold or I took it back on - and I’m really delighted to come back in. I’ve learned a lot in the last three years in terms of applying things to this business so it’s all good fun. Andrew is assuming the role of MD and I’m creative director, and we’re now splitting our time in half across the two businesses to start with, and we’ll see how it goes.
A Newcastle entrepreneur who launched a low-calorie canned cocktail business after losing her job during lockdown has won a £50,000 UK accelerator programme.
Siobhan Linney, 30, of Gosforth, set up Thirsty Gal after the pandemic led to her losing her self-employed waitressing jobs, and she realised there was a gap in the market for a low-calorie cocktail alternative. Ms Linney researched online how to make her own range, then enlisted a company to create the 90-calorie concoction. Since then, Thirsty Gal cans have proved popular with nightclubs and festivals.
The drinks have now won the top prize in the Brew Accelerator programme, designed to support the growth of start-up drink brands, beating competition from North West based craft beer firm Spookton Brew Co and Edinburgh-based non-alcoholic spirit Talonmore. The prize includes a year of mentoring and guidance, valued at £50,000.
A North East community interest company focused on overcoming the barriers and social exclusion faced by disabled people has sealed a £125,000 funding award.
South Tyneside-based Tailored Leisure Company (TLC), which helps disabled people access fitness and leisure activities, has won a number of awards for its work and mission to develop accessible projects across the region, with partners including SAFCs Foundation of Light, Sunderland City Council and Headway.
Now its commitment to accessibility has led to the securing a £125,000 funding award from the National Lottery Community Fund for a two-year project. TLC developed its Sit to be Fit concept in lockdown, and has since grown the initial Sit to be Fit classes into a large-scale community engagement project, supporting participants to access tailored fitness support. The funding will help the organisation to roll out the project across the community, allowing the team to deliver more seated exercise and other wellbeing activities to people with disabilities and long-term conditions throughout the East region.
Tara Johnson, director of TLC who set up the company due to her own experiences of living with cerebral palsy, said: “This ground-breaking lottery funding from the National Lottery Community Fund will further elevate our work in the community, allowing us to support so many more beneficiaries. This really is a momentous moment for TLC.”
Newcastle digital agency Readysalted is celebrating its 20th anniversary by launching an expansion drive powered by substantial five-figure investment.
Readysalted provides web development, user experience and digital transformation services for clients around the world in a wide range of sectors, and already has household names among its client base, including Sage, Ladbrokes and Durham, Newcastle and Cambridge Universities. The firm worked with regional fund management firm NEL Fund Managers to secure the North East Small Loan Fund investment, which it is using to maximise its presence in its home region, introduce new services and carry out its biggest ever business development campaign.
Three new jobs are expected to be created this year, with more to follow as the business grows, and after increasing its turnover by 50% last year, the management team is aiming to do the same again in the coming year.
Founder Simon Honeywood said: “We’ve recently picked up our biggest ever contract and feel confident that there’s a lot more to come. We developed a very positive relationship with the NEL team right from the off and their ideal investment model gave us precisely what we needed to supporting our expansion plans.”
Offshore engineering firm Tekmar announced a "significant" contract worth more than £5m.
The North East operator says the order, which is expected to commence this year and complete in 2024, will see its flagship Generation 10 cable protection systems produced at its Newton Aycliffe facility. Investors were told Tekmar's in-house subsea analysis capabilities will be used to support the project.
The announcement is the first since Tekmar secured investment from US-based private equity firm SCF Partners in April, following a period in which it had sought a buyer as part of a strategic review intended to turn around losses. The group said the £22m injection, which includes direct investment from SCF and its partner Steve Lockard as well a £18m in convertible loan note, will predominantly be used to support growth, which could include acquisitions, with a smaller amount of around £5m put towards working capital.
Alasdair Macdonald, CEO of Tekmar Group, said: "This contract helps consolidate our strong position in the growing offshore wind market, and is a testament to our strong in-house engineering capabilities, which enable us to address customer's complex engineering requirements and optimise and de-risk projects. It also reflects the strength of our working relationships with project developers and key supply chain partners. We look forward to supporting our partners in successfully delivering this project."
Healthtech firm Manus Neurodynamica has secured £2.6m to commercialise its neuromotor disorder diagnosis tool.
The Newcastle and Edinburgh-based firm has been supported by existing investors including the North East Innovation Fund, supported by the European Regional Development Fund, and managed by Northstar Ventures co-leading the round with Par Equity and involvement from SIS Ventures, Scottish Enterprise and Old College Capital. The funds will be used to help market its NeuroMotor Pen device which can support diagnosis and monitoring of neuromotor disorders including Parkinson's disease through measurement of fine motor skills.
Manus says the money will support its push into the EU pharmacy retail sector having already signed an agreement this month with Italian wellness firm Medispa to integrate the NeuroMotor Pen with its services. And funds will also support the firm's application for US FDA regulatory clearance and progressing its US trials.
Manus recently received funding from healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson to extend the NeuroMotor Pen's use in immunotherapy. The firm said the backing would also support development of the pen for use with other neurological conditions, such as Alzheimer’s disease.
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