Published: Mar 25, 2019
Focus:
NPIF Maven Equity Finance
Maven has invested £150,000 in cloud-based project management system, Collabor8Online on behalf of NPIF Maven Equity Finance, part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund. The funding will support the expansion of the senior management, including the appointment of a Chief Technology Officer, strengthen the sales team and invest in extensive product development. Collabor8 will also use the funds raised to commence a targeted contact marketing campaign to better penetrate its customer base in niche sectors, principally construction and associated professional services.
Collbor8 is a cloud-based project management software providing a fully managed file sharing service that enables users to manage projects, files and tasks online. Requiring no specialist IT expertise or investment in sophisticated architecture, SMEs can be up and running within 24-hours. Larger businesses can self-host the software behind their own firewall, giving them a turnkey solution that can be deployed instantly throughout their organisation. Collabor8 supports a range of customers including Ikea and NSPCC and provides subscription-based usage to a number of small business clients.
The implementation of cloud-based enterprise collaboration solutions is expected to fuel the growth of the collaboration market in the coming years. The enterprise collaboration market is expected to grow [globally] from $26.68 billion in 2016 to $49.51 billion by 2021.
Collabor8 was founded by software specialist Colin Barnes, who has over 35 years’ experience writing PC-based software aimed at the construction and contracting industry within the UK.
Colin Barnes, Founder of Collabora8, said: “This investment gives us a fantastic opportunity to expand and further develop our business. Our product is ideally placed to meet the needs of businesses who are looking to share and manage their documentation more securely. We look forward to meeting the needs of an ever-growing market sector”
Dave Furlong, Investment Director at Maven, said: “We are pleased to be able to support Colin and Stephen in the next stage of Collabor8’s development. The impressive client wins achieved to date demonstrate the need for the Collabor8 product, and we expect the enlarged team that this investment will finance will deliver on the significant potential for growth that we believe exists. We look forward to working with Colin and Stephen to assist with achieving this.”
Sue Barnard at the British Business Bank said “Since its launch in 2017, NPIF’s impact on businesses has been wide-ranging, providing funding to launch new products, employ new staff, enter new markets and acquire new facilities. We are pleased to continue that momentum with this investment and are proud to continue our commitment to unlocking the North’s growth potential by supporting business communities with vital investment.”
The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.
