ScaleUp Capital has made an investment in InStep, a Cheshire-based apprenticeship and commercial training provider, and imageHOLDERS, a Dorset-based custom kiosk designer and manufacturer
Both companies are profitable with revenues in the range of GBP5-7 million, growing at 30-40 per cent per year and an enterprise value in the range of GBP7-10 million, but both fall into the funding gap for scale-ups in between venture capital and private equity.
ScaleUp Capital invests in digital B2B businesses of GBP1-10 million in revenues that have the potential to grow to GBP10-50 million in revenues but are typically underfunded because they are too small for private equity and not growing fast enough for, or are not in sectors favoured by, venture capital investors. ScaleUp Capital believes InStep and imageHOLDERS have significant growth potential with both operating in attractive, expanding markets. With many companies looking to upskill their workforce to meet the needs of a rapidly evolving and increasingly digitalised job market, InStep is well-positioned to meet this demand with its innovative apprenticeship and corporate training programmes. imageHOLDERS is similarly experiencing a surge in demand for their bespoke tablet enclosures and kiosks as businesses across sectors adapt their sites to facilitate contactless transactions and social distancing and seek lower cost and added value service models across a diverse range of sectors including voting, visitor management, retail, catering, travel and leisure.
Source: Private Equity Wire
