Vala Capital 🌱

Welcome to this week’s Friday Round-Up of some of news from across the Vala portfolio of companies.   First up, news from the newest member of the Vala family Pipeline Organics, which made it to the final of the Royal Society of Chemistry Emerging Technology Final. We look forward to hearing how they got on but congratulations to the team for this exciting “leap forward”. https://lnkd.in/eGiRjYfA   The irrepressible founder of pirkx, Stella Smith, featured on BBC Radio 5's #WakeUpToMoney with presenter Felicity Hannah this week. You can hear Stella and her thoughts here https://lnkd.in/ecrq9XeP   We’re always delighted to see our portfolio companies growing and adding great people, and this week Qualis Flow (Qflow) announced the arrival of Simon Turvey to the team. Welcome Simon and all the best with your new role. Onwards and upwards for QFlow! https://lnkd.in/e7MUMdJm   And, on that note, we’re always delighted to play our part in supporting portfolio companies find great people too: MakeMyHouseGreen & Switchd is hiring and wants to find great sales individuals. In its words “If you, or anyone you know, are a driven & ambitious salesperson with a desire to make a genuine sustainable difference, then have a look!” https://lnkd.in/erikuUC4 And, finally, a fascinating (just over 2 minute) read from Sust Global’s Josh Gilbert on the UK’s new government’s net zero agenda, espousing his view that the government needs to urgently focus on energy transmission and distribution. An excellent and challenging couple of minutes well-spent. https://lnkd.in/ezKbjC4N OK, not quite finally, nice videos are invariably compelling and RAD Propulsion this week released a video of its RDA 40 marine electric engine. Well worth a watch! https://lnkd.in/eWKQ-S72 There was loads more news including from Revving, more from Qualis Flow (Qflow), FuturePlus, FlexSea but we can’t fit it all in! From all the team at Vala, we wish you a delightful and peaceful weekend. #venturecapital #sustainableinvestments #portfolionews

Another busy week draws to a close, and as ever there's been no let up in activity across our #portfolio companies. Here's the latest #FridayRoundup of some of the great things that have happened across the Vala-sphere: First up, a huge announcement from the team at Revving, as they shared details of their new #strategicpartnership with Awin Global. Publishers often wait months for their commissions, but this #collaboration will help Awin’s #publishers receive their #commissions in days, rather than months, which will be hugely beneficial! https://lnkd.in/e2k3M23N Next, the irrepressible Co-Founder of Qualis Flow (Qflow), Brittany Harris FICE has been selected as the #winner of High Growth Woman Founder of the Year Award at UK Business Angels Association Angel Investment #Awards 2024! Massive congratulations from us all at Vala! https://lnkd.in/eukSja7k On to PlayWorks Digital Limited now as they celebrated #NationalVideoGameDay this week, and shared details of some of their most popular titles like PAC-MAN™, Tetris®, Centipede, Asteroids, Breakout, and many more! https://lnkd.in/eebs5i55 Arksen shared a walkthrough video of the Arksen 85 by #MotorBoatAndYachting, which gives viewers a brilliant feel for what makes this #exploreryacht so impressive, leading Hugo Andreae to describe it as "arguably priceless" - https://lnkd.in/eT5aBHiX And finally, Sust Global Co-Founder and CTO Gopal Erinjippurath, joined Melissa Perri the latest episode of the Product Thinking Podcast. They discussed why #climatedata is rapidly becoming invaluable across #industries, how he tested and iterated Sust Global's cutting-edge product, navigating #risks in this fast-evolving space, balancing #purpose and #profit, and making product thinking core to the company's DNA. https://lnkd.in/eaYe_EhT That's all for this week folks. We hope you all have wonderful weekends, and good luck to the England Men's team on Sunday! 🦁 🦁 🦁 Team Vala. #venturecapital #sustainableinvestments #portfolionews

While the UK General Election has of course been the focus news-wise this week, it's encouraging to know that there is cross-party support for venture capital schemes such as the EIS to help support investment into UK smaller companies. With that in mind, we believe some exciting news from the Vala portfolio offers a welcome and worthwhile distraction, so here’s a snapshot of what's been happening across the Vala-sphere this week! Qualis Flow (Qflow) is delighted to welcome The Crown Estate as a new customer. With a diverse portfolio of properties, including Regent Street and St James’s in London, they're excited to work on high-profile projects together. https://lnkd.in/eekAAEXz Datatecnics and United Utilities shared their 6-year co-development story with the water sector, broadcasting live from the United Utilities Innovation Centre. They discussed their collaborative journey and the technology addressing the sector's biggest challenges. https://lnkd.in/e8gsCTeY Pipeline Organics made it to the Royal Society of Chemistry Emerging Technologies Final! Their Co-Founder and COO, Andrew Raslan, AMRSC is now pitching for the Energy Prize at Burlington House in London - good luck team! https://lnkd.in/eGiRjYfA Revving's Director of Strategy & Partnerships, Richard Lane, attended #iPX2024 this week, meeting with prospective #customers and sharing all the exciting developments they've got coming up at Revving. https://lnkd.in/eGJUXhcg #Collaboration has always been key at Vala, so it's nice to share news of Oxwash | B Corp™️ and FuturePlus working together. Kyle C Grant notes how the FuturePlus platform helps Oxwash constantly #innovate to find ways of becoming more #sustainable, and, importantly, analyse and #communicate their progress. https://lnkd.in/eFvUi3i8 To round off the week, more beautiful footage of the Arksen 85 Explorer Vessel was shared by Humphreys Yacht Design, showcasing the blend of #performance, #efficiency, and style in these go-anywhere #vessels. https://lnkd.in/e3Sq3t87 That's all for this week, folks! Have a restful weekend. Team Vala #venturecapital #sustainableinvestments #portfolionews

Another bustling week comes to an end, and so we’re excited to share the latest updates from our portfolio companies. Check out this #FridayRoundup for some of the standout moments and achievements across the Vala-sphere: PlayWorks Digital Limited announced their all-new #SpongeBobSquarePants Bounce game is now live on Roku! Players can now dive in with SpongeBob and experience some underwater fun, with additional #CTV rollouts coming soon! https://lnkd.in/ers5At-U RAD Propulsion CEO, Daniel Hook, gave Ben Taylor all his insights in to what makes their RAD40 such an #innovative and unique #electrified proposition. Have a watch of the video here: https://lnkd.in/eeaESfkw Arksen Founder, Jasper Smith sat down with #BOATPro for this BOAT International Media article, following the delivery of Arksen's largest #yacht to date – the 26.2m Arksen 85 – to explain why size, in fact, does not matter and how the #brand continues to infuse efforts towards #sustainability into its primary #business strategy. https://lnkd.in/eV__S9f8 FlexSea continue their #hiring spree, this time welcoming Tom Brine as their latest #Biotechnology Intern, who will be helping them #scale their processes and maximise #algae #biomass utilisation! https://lnkd.in/e2x4tJ2j Alexandra Smith, CoFounder of FuturePlus, was at was at the Blue Earth Summit, for the 'What makes the perfect impact investment?' discussion alongside Karl Lokko of Black Seed, Sophie Bidwell of RE_SET and hosted by Phil Hails-Smith of Joelson | B Corp. https://lnkd.in/e5EjrKur And finally, our own Lian Michelson was part of a brilliant panel discussion at the UKSIF #AIW2024 conference alongside 🔋 Cam Ross of Green Angel Ventures, chatting about sourcing #sustainableinvestments in a tough market, the role of #earlystage investors in #carbon impact, and the state of #venturecapital in recent markets more generally. https://lnkd.in/eTBSAvmn And that's all for this week folks! We hope you all have a great weekend, and will share more again next Friday. Team Vala #EIS #portfolionews #impactfulinvestments

A bumper Friday Roundup this week that coincides with the longest day of the year! Take a look at what's been happening at some of our portfolio companies over recent days... Qualis Flow (Qflow) has proudly been shortlisted for the #Construction News Specialists Award! They are finalists in the "Technology Innovation of the Year" category, which recognises their work #decarbonising construction. https://lnkd.in/g-BNaVE9 Sticking with #award news, the Pelorus team are delighted to have been nominated again in the Condé Nast Traveller Readers Choice Awards, in the "Tour Operators and Specialists" category! Please help and vote for them! https://lnkd.in/gdN3m3mt Arksen announced their latest #partnership to further their #marine distribution in the Channel Islands! South Pier Marine recently become part of the Arksen #Adventure Series #Dealer network, and took delivery of their first Arksen 28 and 30 vessels to display. https://lnkd.in/gFzudZYG eFaraday Group continue their education drive around EV charging, this time exploring the costs of #EVcharging and whether they are justified by the benefits. They've produced a handy blog about this for you to read more about it, so please have a read - https://lnkd.in/g3KS_Qyt FlexSea welcomed a new starter this week, with Katie Ford joining as their new Biotechnologist and Applied Chemist intern. We're sure everyone will have made you feel welcome, Katie, and hope you enjoy your #projects working towards solving our #plastic problem! https://lnkd.in/ghc8EMjp And finally, FuturePlus CoFounder, Mike Penrose, has been in #Ukraine this last week with the #RidneFoodConsortium, which is #IMPACT CERTIFIED by FuturePlus. Mike has been meeting with producers, #farmers, and partners, and really capturing the essence of their hard work and dedication in exceptionally trying circumstances. Go to the link to see more about his week there, and please follow the FuturePlus page too for further updates about their incredible efforts - https://lnkd.in/gEKFuD8Z That's all for this week folks! We hope you all have restful weekends, and we look forward to sharing more with you next week. Team Vala. #sustainableinvestments #venturecapital #taxefficiency

Another week filled with activity across the Vala portfolio! Here's the latest edition of our Friday Roundup, showcasing some of the highlights this week: First, exciting news from our friends at FuturePlus, as they announced they're now a proud #partner of the brand new Virgin StartUp Community! The Virgin #StartUp Community is a #digital platform that allows UK #founders to connect, share, learn, and grow together. You can read more about it here - https://lnkd.in/e65uVWkP Dizzie (and BLOND) were celebrating this week as they won first prize for #Sustainable Design in the prestigious Dieline awards! This is a really well respected award in #design circles, and testament to their mission to cut #plastic from #supermarket shelves without compromise of design or performance. https://lnkd.in/e_jsYQRh The Qualis Flow (Qflow) team were in attendance at Digital Construction Week, discussing their simple solution to decarbonise construction through a photograph! Not only that, but Co-Founder Jade Cohen was part of a panel at the event too! https://lnkd.in/eXUw9Q2y Next, Shackleton spoke with Jo Royle, who has been spearheading global #marine programs and #sailing ventures for over 20 years. She designed and built the Plastiki, a 60ft catamaran made out of #reclaimed plastic bottles which she skippered across the Pacific. She focuses on identifying critical marine issues and finding ways to reduce human #impact on the #sea in a film that can be watched here - https://lnkd.in/eerU9m9u eFaraday Group highlight that for many organisations, integrating #EVcharge points into their #business is still new territory. Rising demand presents a unique opportunity for companies to adapt their #business models to include #EVcharging services though, and their latest blog explores how - https://lnkd.in/e2SXKawa And we round the week off with Arksen once again showcasing more of their amazing design and #technological expertise, this time introducing Project Ituri from the Arksen Overland division. This Mojave Silver Arksen Land Rover Perentie P110 is ultra-capable and crafted with performance and comfort in mind when seeking #adventure. Check out more about Arksen Overland here - https://lnkd.in/e62GMASj And that's all for this week, folks! We hope you all have restful weekends and we'll be back with a bumper edition in two weeks time! Cheers all, Team Vala #sustainableinvestments #venturecapital #portfolionews

Though it’s been a shorter week there's no shortage of activity and news from across our portfolio. Here’s our weekly round-up of some of the highlights:   First up, in award news, Qualis Flow (Qflow) was announced as the winner of The Pitch, a new initiative brought together by UKREiiF, Patch, and Pagabo Group. An honour that will no doubt open even more doors for the company. Congratulations! https://lnkd.in/eccMB6rF   PlayWorks Digital Limited announced that the Play.Works #CTV Games Framework is now driving into the exciting world of cars. Play.Works has now featured as part of LG Electronics Advanced Content Platform in Kia Worldwide's newest #electricvehicle. https://lnkd.in/e5cuUWbq   Arksen founder Jasper Smith chatted to Donald Leggatt about its recent fundraise and the strategy to further scale the business in the years to come. Some great insights shared and you can watch the full interview by following this link https://lnkd.in/eRCgm3-u   eFaraday Group challenged us on how well we comprehend EV #ChargingCapacity. To help understand the nuances of #EVcharging capacity it has produced a blog that takes a deep-dive into its impact on business. https://lnkd.in/eT5VzZiA   FuturePlus has been shortlisted in the 'Most Successful #Scaleup' category for this year's Hustle Awards presented by Startups Magazine. This follows on from winning the #Sustainability category at last year's awards, so best of luck on the night to the team! https://lnkd.in/eM3KbmC3   And finally, FlexSea Co-Founder Carlo Fedeli spoke with Btomorrow Ventures about his business journey so far and his vision for a more #sustainable future. It's a great read, and you can access it here - https://lnkd.in/e9ZHNWYk   That's all for this week folks! We hope you all have a restful weekend and look forward to sharing more with you again next week.   Team Vala   #sustainableinvestments #venturecapital #ukstartups #enterpriseinvestmentscheme

Another busy week draws to a close and, with a General Election in the offing, we think that what happens to the UK’s SMEs and high-growth businesses will be far more crucial to the UK economy. So, as we play our part, here's a snapshot of some of the great things that have been happening across the Vala portfolio:   Datatecnics CEO Suhayl Zulfiquar answered questions from Jack Lomas of the Future Engineering Club's podcast about the state of UK's #waterinfrastructure, whether we need more sensors in networks and where the water sector should strive to be by #PR29. Check out the full interview here!  https://lnkd.in/eR9nNVYW   Arksen shared more incredible footage of an Arksen 85 Explorer vessel, this time from the perspective of the designers, Humphreys Yacht Design. They discuss the challenges around creating a go-anywhere #yacht that is comfortable and safe whilst still being incredibly efficient. This is well worth a watch. https://lnkd.in/eMsPbAN7   FuturePlus announced its latest partnership, this time with CorpCare, to enhance #sustainability offerings in the Caribbean. Fantastic news for all involved. It was also covered in Startups Magazine. You can read the full article by following the link in this post. https://lnkd.in/eNVZGrDB   pirkx has been out and about again, this time at the Fast Growth Icons London 2024 evening. Looks like a brilliant event celebrating the growth and innovation shown by so many amazing businesses - https://lnkd.in/ePykY438   RAD Propulsion announced that Adam Mills from Flow Marine Ltd has joined its sales team. With his successful background in business development within the #marine sector, he's a fantastic addition to the team. https://lnkd.in/eisAcryk   And finally, John Oliver was representing Vala at the well-organised Vision Independent Financial Planning Ltd conference at the fascinating Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. Lots of great conversations and excellent to be working with the advisers at Vision IFP.   That's all for this week folks! Hopefully the wet weather has passed and you all enjoy some sunshine and rest over the long bank holiday weekend.   Team Vala   #sustainableinvestments #venturecapital #EIS #portfolionews  

After a self-imposed week off due to holidays, here's a bumper Friday Round-Up of what's been happening across Vala-land.   PlayWorks Digital Limited announced the arrival of the most iconic game of all time - PAC-MAN™! Experience the classic game optimised for a TV and CTV remote control. https://lnkd.in/eK6ZJNhC   Homethings has shaken things up with some real innovation in the washing up liquid arena(!). Its refillable solution, which uses a world first enzyme technology and innovative powder-to-gel formula, can be found in Waitrose & Partners stores and online - great work team. https://lnkd.in/emd7FC3P   Revving Co-Founder Christopher Pettit spoke with Lee-Ann Johnstone about how Revving's solution can help amplify affiliate business and unlock some of the billions of pounds worth of working capital that is owed to businesses. https://lnkd.in/euUbnBvf   Arksen are set up and ready to go at the British Motor Yacht Show. On display is the Arksen Adventure Series, Arksen Apparel and a vessel from their sister company RING POWERCRAFT. https://lnkd.in/eU3cDadV   RAD Propulsion has won an Innovative UK grant alongside Aqua superPower Limited and RS Electric Boats, and international partners in Canada for their Vessel-to-Grid project. ⁠This R&D study focuses on harnessing battery power stored in electric boats for grid stability and efficiency. https://lnkd.in/ec3xa6zz   FuturePlus Co-Founders Alexandra Smith and Mike Penrose released the latest episode of the Business of Sustainability podcast this week chatting to Andrew Wordsworth, Managing Partner at Sustainable Ventures. https://lnkd.in/eBvGe-hn   Pelorus hosted a day of clay shooting at EJ Churchill. Offering guests activities, delicious food and corporate networking while fundraising for wildlife conservation and other charities, raising over £33,000! Well done to all those involved. https://lnkd.in/eDsQDWzQ   That's all for this week folks. We hope you all have restful weekends.   Team Vala   #sustainableinvestments #venturecapital #taxefficiency #enterpriseinvestmentscheme