TLT acts for Northwest startup businesses on landmark investment

National law firm TLT has acted for Aquaint and ScrubMarine, two Northwest-based startup businesses which have received a share of £1.4m in funding from PraeSeed, a new six-week cohort-based investment programme, to support their growth and development.

Launched in May by Praetura Ventures and funded by NPIF II - Praetura Equity Finance, which is managed by Praetura as part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II (NPIF II). PraeSeed aims to identify startup and early-stage investment opportunities, while providing founders at the pre-seed stage with new opportunities for additional funding and support.

Manchester-based Aquaint is a startup company that has developed an innovative app aimed at improving communication between staff at hospitality and food services companies. ScrubMarine of Whitehaven, located in Cumbria, has developed a submersible remotely operated vehicle (SROV) to clean marine vessels.

Aquaint and ScrubMarine were part of a cohort of 12 businesses from various sectors and regions to take part in workshops and presentations on all aspects of scaling a business, including a go-to-market strategy, navigating financial modelling, and tackling fundraising. Out of the 12 businesses, seven are now receiving £200k worth of funding from PraeSeed to support their scaling plans.

TLT advised the two companies on their investment from the programme. The team was led by corporate legal director Kelly Clarke with support from corporate senior solicitor Jennifer Murphy. The transaction also involved support from the wider fast growth team including partner Nina Searle and managing associate Nicola Bilner.

Jayden Patel, founder and CEO of Aquaint commented: “Aquaint are absolutely delighted to be selected as one of the best early-stage tech companies in the north to receive funding from the inaugural PraeSeed programme. Working with Kelly, Jen, Nicola & Nina was a pleasure and they were always on hand to answer any questions that I had throughout the process. This funding is a massive step forward for Aquaint and our mission to empower the hospitality and food service sectors with smarter, easier workflow solutions. The investment will enable us to build out the premium version of our app and set the foundations ahead of a further seed round in the next 12 months.”

Kelly Clarke, legal director at TLT said: “It was a pleasure to support both Aquaint and ScrubMarine on their respective investments as part of the inaugural PraeSeed cohort. The programme demonstrates the appetite for investment into early-stage businesses in the Northwest - one of the fastest growing regions in terms of innovation and technological development. PraeSeed has also given startups the opportunity to put themselves forwards and secure the much-needed funding they need to scale.

“Both businesses are providing valuable and innovative solutions to help solve real world problems. We wish them all the best on the next stage of their growth journey.”