2nd August 2023
Nottingham, 07 August 2023: Foresight Group (“Foresight”), a leading listed regional private equity and infrastructure investment manager, is pleased to announce a £700,000 growth capital investment into We Are Fulfilment Limited (“WAF” or “the Company”), using equity finance from the Midlands Engine Investment Fund (“MEIF”).
The Company connects e-commerce businesses’ sales channels - such as Shopify, Amazon, eBay and others - with WAF’s warehouse management system so that businesses can receive and ship customer orders. It was founded in 2022 by business partners Trent Peek and Richard Ardis who spotted an opportunity after failing to find a fulfilment service for their own e-commerce businesses.
In its first year, WAF experienced rapid growth by partnering with over 60 e-commerce businesses and reached full capacity at its current warehouse facility. The investment will enable WAF to open a second fulfilment centre, improve automation of its systems, optimise supply chain processes across its two fulfilment centres and create high-quality, local jobs.
Following investment, the Company has appointed Jamie Clark, a supply chain specialist, as Chief Operations Officer, and Sarah Gilling, former Managing Director of Ocean Saver and an existing partner of WAF, as Chief Finance Officer.
Commenting on the investment, Trent Peek, Co-Founder and CEO at WAF, said: “We’ve experienced meteoric growth in the last year. As the e-commerce markets continue to show double-digit growth in the UK, the need for reliable, transparent fulfilment is enormous. With this support from Foresight, we’ll strengthen our offering to existing clients and we’re poised to deliver even better customer satisfaction for our growing number of partners.”
Line Kristine Gauteplass, Investment Manager at Foresight, added: “We are delighted to support Trent and Richard and the rest of the team at WAF to enable them to achieve their business ambitions. The Company has demonstrated significant growth, attracted a growing customer base and built an excellent reputation within the fulfilment and e-commerce markets. With our investment and support, WAF is well placed for its next stage of growth, and we look forward to being part of its growth journey.”
Keira Shepperson, Director, Regional Funds at the British Business Bank, said: “The MEIF invests in ambitious and innovative SMEs in the Midlands and this recent investment in We Are Fulfilment highlights the MEIF’s commitment to supporting growth focused businesses. This investment will help the Company expand its operations, create new jobs and contribute to the overall economic development of the region.”
Will Morlidge, Chief Executive, D2N2 LEP, said: “I was delighted to support this new investment that will enable the business to expand, improve processes and create high quality, sustainable jobs in the D2N2 region. It is great to see WAF going from strength to strength.”
Foresight has invested in WAF through The Midlands Engine Investment Fund - East Midlands Equity Finance, which 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.
Foresight continues to be one of the UK’s most active investors in growth companies. In the past 18 months, Foresight Private Equity announced four new funds, a ventures fund acquisition, and expanded its office network - opening offices in Dublin, Leeds and Newcastle. So far in calendar year 2023, Foresight has invested into over 35 SMEs and has announced a number of successful exits, including Datapath (11.7x money), Mowgli (3.5x money) and GovGrant (4.5x money).
If you would like to meet with one of our appointed Fund Managers to talk in more detail please go to Funds Available to find the Fund Managers operating in your area
Just add your details below to receive the latest Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund news and information
