Putting the fun into funding

As the owner of a business which works with entrepreneurs and startups, I am aware of how important understanding and unlocking funding options is when trying to grow a company.

For businesses in the early-stage space, such funding can also be the difference between success and failure.

However, navigating that landscape, knowing who to talk to, and understanding what potential funders are looking for, can be very challenging – and no amount of LinkedIn outreach or speculative pitch deck emails are as powerful as face-to-face time with a real-life investor.

That’s why it was great that the Preston Partnership and Preston City Council collaborated with the Lancashire County Council (LCC) fhunded programme last year.

Led by LCC’s investment ecosystem manager Rory Southworth, fhunded is a dedicated investment initiative which supports the county’s early-stage finance and funding community.

At the heart of fhunded’s activities are carefully curated in-person gatherings which put founders and funders in a room together.

The clever use of coloured lanyards tells everyone who’s got the cash – and who’s looking for it – and the emphasis is firmly on practical advice, making new connections, and relationship building.

Over a series of Preston-based events hosted at OneCoWork, Society1 and The Artistry House, this refreshingly candid approach to B2B networking saw over 20 VC funds coming to Preston and engaging with more than 100 founders, influencers and intermediaries.

Key local partners such as Rosebud Finance, RedCAT, and Boost: Access to Finance, were also in attendance, as were representatives from Manchester and Liverpool angel networks, the British Business Bank, and mainstream lenders like Barclays and NatWest

As someone who was actively involved in one of these sessions (interviewing a VC investor from Mercia Asset Management), I can testify to the positive impact they had on the businesses looking to raise, and the funders looking to invest.

Some of the VCs later admitted they’d never visited Preston before, and had been sceptical about both the calibre of the investment opportunities – and the quality of the business support provision – which existed in the city.

I’m delighted to say that in addition to facilitating some great conversations and, more importantly, kickstarting some potential VC deal flow, these events went a long way to change those perceptions.

I’m therefore greatly looking forward to us building on the momentum these events generated, and seeing what more we can do to increase Lancashire’s reputation as a growing hub of early-stage investment activity.

This article first appeared in Preston City Council’s Innovate + Influence magazine in January. To access the full publication, click here.