Stories about investment

Last year, over 150,000 new all-women-led companies were founded – more than ever before - but statistics show that over 95% of early-stage funding goes to all-male-founded start-ups. So how do you get ahead of the game as a female founder? Here are some top tips from someone who has done it before.

Long-term strategic thinking is required to drive progress for the country and retail, argues Matt Truman

Health is getting a full tech glow-up and at True we're keenly watching this consumer Health Tech transformation. Take a look at the six trends we're seeing in this space...

There are 37 large-scale designer outlets in the UK, which saw an estimated 111 million visitors in 2021. Outlets are growing at ten times the rate of traditional high street retail, so could this be the solution to our overstock problems?

One of the most challenging times to raise funding is in the beginning, but luckily, there are many funding options available to early-stage startups. The current economic climate has intensified difficulties, and this is set to continue. But, raising from a VC isn't the only option, so we've laid out some other routes to consider.

What happens when 4,600 start-up founders and 2,600 investors, representing $1 trillion in assets under management, spend two days in Helsinki? We went to Slush 2022 to find out – read on to learn the top trends in tech and our key takeaways on the state of venture funding.

With the FIFA World Cup coinciding with the busiest shopping period of the year, as well as a challenging economic forecast, this is unchartered territory. But there are opportunities for all retailers to get involved in the hype, community and revenue that sporting events bring.  

Entrepreneurship has never been easy, and with the backdrop of a tough economic landscape plus a year on year slowdown of venture funding, the challenges for entrepreneurs can mount up. So, what's the best way to think about runway and funding when the venture capital markets are tough? Read on to find out.

At a time of massive economic upheaval, history brings a sense of perspective, believes True co-founder and executive chair Matt Truman

The fiscal stimulus in response to Covid lowered the cost of capital, flooding business models that didn’t deserve funding with valuations that were, at times, eye-watering. The upshot of excess stimulus is the inflation every business is now faced with, says True co-founder Matt Truman.

With new product lines, store space and international expansion on the horizon it's an exciting time for True to be participating in another funding round for ethically-produced tablewear brand Fable.

With rising inflation rates and a downturn in consumer confidence what is the lay of the land for retail this year? And what - if any - are the investment opportunities out there?

It may sound counterintuitive in an unpredictable trading environment but companies need to invest and innovate, argues True executive chair and founder Matt Truman.

As we sit at the beginning of December, there are many conflicting industry drivers for retail, which when combined lead to significant ambiguity moving into 2022.

True has completed the first close for its new seed stage fund, which covers pre-seed to Series A. We’ll be investing up to £5m in exciting, innovative brands that are stretching the possibilities of digital and changing the retail and consumer landscape.

True has acquired a majority stake in D2C zero sugar, energy drink business Sneak to help supercharge international expansion, build out Sneak’s distribution channels and support the business as it continues to disrupt the traditional energy drink market with its creative approach to marketing and ecommerce.

Brawn, the leading platform for strength athletes, has secured early stage investment from True along with a group of strategic private investors, including Nick Mitchell of Ultimate Performance, the leading global personal training brand.

In the current climate, True’s investment will accelerate fulfilment technology Huboo’s growth by providing access to its retail and consumer ecosystem

Mental health is now viewed by many as being of equal importance to a person’s physical health, and as such the market for consumer tools, apps and platforms, including Unmind, Headspace and Calm, continues to grow at pace. This shift in behaviour and attitude has supported the growth of workplace mental health platform Unmind, in which True became the business’ first institutional investor in 2017.

Warpaint is a disruptive men’s make-up brand which we were tracking for almost a year before we invested. We'd identified a brilliant management team and a brand that was one step ahead of consumer behavioural shifts. Although lockdowns across the world were changing consumer behaviour we were confident in our investment case. We take a look at why we chose to invest in founder Danny and his brand despite an uncertain time.

As sustainability moves further up the agenda, more and more consumers are growing tired of carrying the burden of responsibility when it comes to ‘doing the right thing’ and are increasingly pushing back on brands to demand they take sustainability further. Given 88% of consumers across the US and UK want brands to help them be more eco-friendly in their everyday lives, legacy ‘essentials’ categories such as personal care and cleaning are also beginning to experience and drive disruption.

True has invested in men's make-up trailblazer WarPaint. The funds will be used to accelerate War Paint’s growth by strengthening the team whilst True's consumer insight will help support Founder Danny and the team deliver the brands ambitious growth plans.

True is extending its partnership with Zwift, as cyclists continue to flock to the platform and virtual fitness platforms grow in popularity. True teamed up with KKR to fundraise the latest $450m minority investment round.

Frugi has acquired TotsBots, the environmentally-friendly cloth nappy company, and its sister brand, Bloom & Nora, the reusable sanitary products brand. With a growing consumer focus on sustainability and a rising interest in purchasing environmentally-friendly products, the acquisition will allow all three brands to further ingrain their purpose.

This is our first investment in the food and beverage sector - so why have we chosen Antipodean healthy food group Soulfresh? We take a look at the market and the reasons why we believe we can help support the Soulfresh team on its journey.