Bean bag maker Bazaar Group has ramped up European expansion plans with the launch of a base in Germany, on the back of a seven-figure finance deal.
The Northumberland company secured the debt funding package from HSBC, which will pave the way for European expansion and support its ambitious growth strategy. The deal comes just over a year after the company secured investment from Leeds based Comhar Capital, as part of a £10m deal to support the first phase of its international growth plans.
The soft furniture firm operates from Cramlington, steadily growing sales of its bean bags, thanks to being a top performer on large ecommerce platforms including Amazon, eBay and Wayfair. Seven years ago it moved into its third manufacturing and commercial premises, 17 times the size of the original at 42,000 sq ft.
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Since CEO Mark Dolder secured the majority share investment from Comhar Capital in January last year, the partnership has put a plan into action which includes an aggressive European expansion project. The company has signed a long lease on a manufacturing and distribution hub in Hamburg, Germany, which will be focused on meeting the rising demand from rising numbers of customers in Europe.
The 35,000 sq ft unit will serve as a fulfilment operation, allowing the company to access a market of 165 million people within a 48-hour delivery window.
A North Tyneside software business raised £3.1m in new equity to ramp up development of its workplace safety platform.
Notify Technology was founded five years ago by Duncan Davies and Andy Dumbell to drive an online platform enabling businesses to improve health, safety and wellbeing in the workplace.
Now the firm has completed its latest funding round led by Calculus Capital who invested £1.85m alongside the North East Venture Fund (NEVF), supported by the European Regional Development Fund and managed by Mercia, and private investors, in one of the largest recent VCT investments in the North East.
The Wallsend-based business will use the funds to accelerate investment in sales and marketing, as well as product development to deliver artificial intelligence capability to the Notify platform. It will also make additions to help Notify’s clients to meet the growing demands of ESG reporting.
The company, based in Cobalt Business Exchange, created the mobile-first software platform so clients can deliver improvements to their safety, wellbeing and sustainability culture and compliance. It counts the likes of Travis Perkins, Siemens Mobility, Birmingham City University and Cazoo as clients and has users in over 100 countries.
Incoming investors, Calculus Capital and Gavin Disney-May, will also join Notify’s board, bringing valuable sector experience. The funding round marks the third investment involving Mercia, coming two years after it secured £370,000 from the Mercia-managed North East Venture Fund.
A Tyneside firm has merged with a West Yorkshire rival to create an expanded national recruitment and consultancy firm.
Tech Search Associates, based in Leeds, and Brownlee Dean, based in Newcastle, have joined forces to create Brownlee Cale, a strategic partnership aimed at delivering better results for customers.
The newly-formed business has plans to grow its established consultancy services while also increasing turnover in the coming years. The business now has a combined workforce of 22 across three offices in Leeds, Birmingham and Newcastle, and is being headed up by directors Richard Dobson and Peter Walker.
The company leaders said they decided to merge after realising their companies’ shared values and potential for growth and further success.
Mr Dobson said: “We merged businesses because we believe the recruitment industry needs to improve. We share the same belief that commission-motivated recruiters are incentivised to put short term profit before sustainable recruiting.
“The merger has been a fantastic experience and an opportunity for us to transform our overall business model, enabling us to deliver people solutions to some of the largest projects in Europe.
Radiator manufacturer Stelrad has announced a £24m deal to acquire a European competitor, just over six months after floating on the Stock Exchange.
The company, which has its headquarters in Newcastle and its main manufacturing facilities in South Yorkshire, has agreed to buy Italian firm DL Radiators for €28.3m.
DL produces and sells radiators into the Italian heating market and employs around 350 people at its site in Moimacco, near Udine. It generated €86.9m (around £75m) revenue and €5m (£4.3m) normalised EBITDA in 2021, with gross assets of €62.9m (£54m).
Stelrad, which also has sites in Holland and Turkey, said the deal would extend the range of radiators available to its sales and distribution network and expand its routes to market.
It said the cash deal would be funded from its existing facilities and it expected the acquisition to be earnings enhancing in the current financial year.
DL Radiators’ management team will continue to run the Italian business, with oversight from Stelrad.
