Latest news with #GreshamHouseVentures
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Spinners raises £4m to meet demand for 'competitive socialising'
A leisure chain which aims to capitalise on Britons' enthusiasm for 'competitive socialising' has secured a multimillion-pound funding injection to accelerate its growth. Sky News understands that Spinners - which offers games such as bowling, crazy golf, darts and shuffleboard - has struck a deal with investor Gresham House Ventures to provide the new capital. Spinners, which opened its first site in Reading in 2021, now trades from three venues and says it wants to become a UK-wide chain. Money latest: Its expansion plans reflect the growth of experiential leisure activities, with technology-led innovation in crazy golf and shuffleboard fuelling consumer spending at a time when many traditional pub and nightclub operators are experiencing significant financial pressure. Other businesses which have raised capital to fund rapid growth include F1 Arcade, the Formula One simulator chain, and Red Engine, the group behind Electric Shuffle venues. Jamie Bylett, founder and director at Spinners, said the funding would "enable us to accelerate our growth, and we look forward to announcing the location of new Spinners venues over the next few months". Francis Ireland, an associate at Gresham House Ventures, said: "With demand for competitive socialising growing rapidly, Spinners has built a strong base of customers at its existing sites. "We think the business has huge potential for continued expansion as customers seek out activity-based social experiences, so we are excited to be supporting Spinners as it continues to roll out its fantastic venues up and down the country." Gresham House Ventures invests on behalf of the Baronsmead and Mobeus venture capital trusts and is part of Gresham House, the specialist alternative asset management group. The valuation at which it was making its £4m investment was unclear.
Sky News
6 days ago
- Business
- Sky News
Spinners raises £4m to meet demand for 'competitive socialising'
A leisure chain which aims to capitalise on Britons' enthusiasm for 'competitive socialising' has secured a multimillion-pound funding injection to accelerate its growth. Sky News understands that Spinners - which offers games such as bowling, crazy golf, darts and shuffleboard - has struck a deal with investor Gresham House Ventures to provide the new capital. Spinners, which opened its first site in Reading in 2021, now trades from three venues and says it wants to become a UK-wide chain. Its expansion plans reflect the growth of experiential leisure activities, with technology-led innovation in crazy golf and shuffleboard fuelling consumer spending at a time when many traditional pub and nightclub operators are experiencing significant financial pressure. Other businesses which have raised capital to fund rapid growth include F1 Arcade, the Formula One simulator chain, and Red Engine, the group behind Electric Shuffle venues. Jamie Bylett, founder and director at Spinners, said the funding would "enable us to accelerate our growth, and we look forward to announcing the location of new Spinners venues over the next few months". Francis Ireland, an associate at Gresham House Ventures, said: "With demand for competitive socialising growing rapidly, Spinners has built a strong base of customers at its existing sites. "We think the business has huge potential for continued expansion as customers seek out activity-based social experiences, so we are excited to be supporting Spinners as it continues to roll out its fantastic venues up and down the country." Gresham House Ventures invests on behalf of the Baronsmead and Mobeus venture capital trusts and is part of Gresham House, the specialist alternative asset management group.
Finextra
22-05-2025
- Business
- Finextra
Digital pensions fintech Penfold raises £3.9 million
Digital pension provider Penfold has raised £3.9 million in a funding round led by Gresham House Ventures. 0 Penfold offers a digital workplace pension via a proprietary platform, which enables businesses to sign up or switch their pension in minutes. The number of employers using Penfold's workplace pension have tripled since the start of 2024 - from 1,200 to over 4,000, Assets under administration have grown by 91% to nearly £700 million by the end of Q1 2025. The company last raised £7 million in Series A funding in 2022 and in February it drummed up just over £1 million via an over-subscribed crowdfund campaign. Rohit Mathur, investment partner at Gresham House Ventures, says: 'We have been impressed with Penfold's commercial traction as it leads the charge in disrupting the pensions industry. With significant potential to further boost its customer base and bolster its digital offering over the coming years, we are excited to support Penfold's continued progress as it enters the next phase of its growth.' Penfold says the fresh funds will boost its drive to reach profitability, by growing its presence across the UK SME and accountancy markets and accelerating the development of its pension app with new features for savers and businesses.
