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M&A reports on growing new ventures from seasoned entrepreneurs, including howto.tv, Third Financial, Lovely Bubbly and Lattice Voice Technologies.

How to do anything

The new Website backed by YouGov entrepreneur Nadhim Zahawi will help you do just about anything.

Nadhim Zahawi, millionaire founder of AIM-listed Internet pollster YouGov, has backed another Internet venture and this time has enlisted the help of celebrities to get the message across.

The Website, howto.tv, could revolutionise the way people learn day-to-day tasks and bring instructional videos into the mainstream.

The free, non-subscription site features clips on practical tasks from changing a car tyre to making the perfect cup of tea.

Harold Kosky is founder of the Website and claims it was a result of his frustration at his lack of DIY skills around the house.

“I thought up the idea about two years ago and secured the backing of seven investors before launching the site,” Kosky says. “Britain is a nation of experts. Invaluable practical skills can be lost from generation to generation. This site aims to reverse that trend and give people a chance to share their skills with others.”

The plan is to generate profits through brand marketing, with paid-for videos produced and sponsored by various manufacturers. Wickes and Vodaphone are currently sponsoring howto.tv. But their uploaded videos do not feature any of their products, only general helpful information around mobile phones and DIY respectively.

“The site will be free from advertorial content [and] will remain independent with complete editorial integrity,” Kosky added.

“We welcome contributions from members of the public, building on our base of already 100 clips on the site, featuring actors and celebrities like Denise Van Outen. She’s featured in a how to recycle clip and is paid by the Recycle Now company featured.”

Launched in early June, it’s estimated that it will take almost a year before howto.tv makes a decent return. But Kosky doesn’t see this as a problem: “The response has been fantastic. We’ve had no negative feedback, just people wanting to get involved.”

The site has 10 permanent staff in its London office, with a professional production team producing TV quality material. Initial signs are that howto.tv could be a huge a success and in its first week attracted 10,000 “individual visitors” a day.

Kosky has ambitious plans. “Imagine if the NHS were one of our clients, producing clips for our site that could be viewed via your WAP enabled mobile devise. Any phone or devise with Internet ability could quickly view an instructional video on how to treat a variety of injuries, sometimes removing the need to call 999.

“We’re approaching car manufacturers and trying to persuade them to produce their own car maintenance manuals. The capacity to download videos onto your devise will give the customer the ability to pause and play the videos as needed.

“There’s no limit to the scope of this product. We welcome public contributions, which we thoroughly screen to ensure quality and integrity.

“There won’t be the same system as youtube and other sites that allow sometimes unsolicited contributions.”

Old dog, new tricks

Veteran financial software entrepreneur Roger Foster is back in the market with new venture Third Financial, which has been set up to acquire distressed or early stage financial software businesses.

His partner in this project is his son, Stewart, who he worked with at AIM-listed financial services software provider Financial Objects until May, when Roger retired as chairman.

This is Roger’s third venture in the industry in a career stretching back some 40 years. He founded ACT Group plc in 1965 and was chief executive until 1995, overseeing its growth into one of the world’s largest packaged software companies before selling it to Misys for £210 million.

Later, as founder, chairman and CEO of Financial Objects, he built a company that now has a market cap of £26.9 million.

Third Financial will make investments between £1 million-£10 million, possibly partnering with other private equity firms in larger deals. The company is looking for opportunities mainly in the private sector, and intends to make an investment later this year. “I can¹t see us being idle for very long, we’re keen to get going,” Stewart says.

After completing an acquisition, Third Financial will install management teams to support and build the businesses, possibly alongside incumbent managers. “We’re not interested in putting money up and being a silent partner,” Stewart adds.

Indeed, the Fosters plan to use their own experience. “The first vehicle [Third Financial] acquires I will be managing and I will look to bring people in that I know that have proven themselves,” Stewart says.

“The financial technology landscape is diverse and fragmented, which means there is enormous potential for acquisition and integration,” he adds. “We aim to be instrumental in turning specialist companies around not simply through financial investment, but also with the injection of market knowledge and practical management capabilities. This, in turn, will generate vast improvements on a commercial and operational level enabling challenged companies to develop and flourish.”
Daniel Parton

Champagne supernova

PLUS-listed Lovely Bubbly hopes to exploit the market for corporate get-togethers.

With the arrival of summer and the usual round of corporate country bashes, champagne merchants Lovely Bubbly hope to supply the sparkle to a function near you.

The company, a little over a year old, already has a steadily increasing base of clients for its personalised champagne service, delivering vintage bottles for any occasion.

Lovely Bubbly, a subsidiary of the AIM-listed Tanfield group, fills a rare position in the market. It adds the option of personalised bottle labels and other services such as hosting and wine tasting, along with exclusive champagnes.

The brains behind the operation is Roy Stanley, chief executive of the Tanfield Group, who is also a shareholder in PLUS market advisers St Helen’s Capital.

Financials for the first six months of 2006 revealed a £102,775 turnover and pre-tax profits of £30,573, with a share price of 20.5p and an approximate market cap of £2 million.

The share price is currently 24.5p, with a market cap of around £2.45 million.
Managing director Fiona Wilson spoke of the successful company strategy that has seen profits increase in what she claims is an untapped market.

“We feel we have the opportunity to fill a gap in the market, but remain aware that there is competition out there, as always,” Wilson says.

“We host parties and functions as well as supplying the champagne; we’ve had no problems of supply from the champagne-producing region in France.”

The company started trading last May from its office in Newcastle, supplying to the Northeast without a client base. Now Lovely Bubbly has six network partners across the UK, each receiving between 5%-10% of the wholesale profit at hosted events.

The scope of service aims to have no boundaries. “Our products and hosted events will go wherever the demand takes us, after initially starting off in the Northeast,” Wilson adds.

“We now host at least five events a week across the UK and recently one in Spain, we¹ll go wherever the demand takes us.” Lovely Bubbly also offers a range of champagne accessories, which account for some 5% of revenue.
Paul Driscoll

Lost in translation

Imagine answering a 999 emergency call and not being able to understand or even recognise the language of the caller.

This is the reality for operators across the globe when trying to provide prompt advice or the appropriate emergency response in a variety of instances.

Neil McCutcheon, founder of York-based Lattice Voice Technologies, possesses the solution and has just received £150,000 backing.

By implementing revolutionary translation software initially within emergency service call centres, time, money and essentially lives can be saved.

The Yorkshire and Humber Equity Fund, managed by YFM Group, provided the investment after carrying out due diligence reports.

The product, named ‘First Contact’, started development late last year, initially designed by McCutcheon¹s friend and software expert Brian Stafford.

The programme will communicate with the caller and telephone operator in their respective languages, running from an existing script and tailored to the individual needs of the client.

McCutcheon, with a history of product management in communications, said:
“We’ve had a lot of interest from and are working with several police forces across the UK to develop the software before full implementation.

“There’s a huge scope with this product, which identifies the language of the caller and in the case of the emergency services quickly ascertains whether an immediate emergency response is needed.”

McCutcheon has ambitions to launch the product globally, with any telephone information service or Website benefiting from the software.

“We’re developing hand-held software again initially to be used by police officers who would be able to perform the translation tasks on the street,” David Livesley, investment manager at YFM Group, said: “We saw a gap in the market and the potential of the software.

“After receiving positive feedback from potential customers and gauging this as a very interesting and useful product, we were happy to invest.” YFM currently has investments in 28 different funds and has an operating bracket of £100,000 to £6 million.
Paul Driscoll

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