Investment Criteria
Location
The South West Ventures Fund's region is the six counties comprising South West England, namely Gloucestershire, Somerset, Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, Wiltshire, Dorset and the four unitary authorities that comprised the former County of Avon (City of Bristol, South Gloucestershire, North Somerset, and Bath and North East Somerset).
For businesses to qualify for the fund, its headquarters must be located, or it must conduct a material part of its business, in the region.
Attributes
Each business is considered on an individual basis and those companies having the following characteristics will stand the best chance of attracting investment:
- a talented and ambitious management team fully committed to the success of their venture
- potential for significant growth in the marketplace
- a strong product or service with competitive advantage
- a detailed plan to achieve strong, sustainable growth in profits
- a practical exit route for investors within 3 to 5 years of funding
- effective financial systems and controls
- those not operating in excluded sectors
It is recognised that with most start-ups and early stage business looking to raise venture capital, it is unlikely that all of the above characteristics will be in place pre-investment and therefore the team at YFM Venture Finance would be pleased to discuss with you any queries that you may have before submitting a formal application.
Please note that the Fund is unable to provide monies for seedcorn, proof of concept or research and development opportunities.
Sectors
The Fund will be invested into a wide range of SME businesses and sectors across the South West region, with particular interest in businesses in the following sectors:
- computer software/hardware
- IT
- support services
- healthcare
- telecommunications
- niche food manufacturing
- electronics sectors
Please note that under the rules of the fund, some sectors are excluded.