RSS

Hoberman's new venture gets seed funding

Article Date:  Feb 04 2008 Nick Britton

Interior decoration website mydeco.com has received seed funding from a syndicate of investors including venture capital (VC) firms, corporate partners and private individuals. Mydeco’s founder and executive chairman is Brent Hoberman, who co-founded consumer travel website lastminute.com.

The exact amount of the funding was not disclosed, though SPARK Ventures tells GrowthBusiness it invested more than £5 million for a 25 per cent stake in the company. The SPARK team, which led the financing of lastminute.com in 1998, first invested in mydeco early last year.

Other investors include VC firm Arts Alliance (which also backed lastminute.com), the Rothschild family, and property design and investment company Yoo.

Hoberman says: ‘As a nation, we spend about £14 billion a year furnishing our homes, yet until now the internet hasn’t been used to bring it all together and make the customer’s shopping experience easier and more enjoyable.’

SPARK chairman Tom Teichman joined the board of mydeco as a non-executive director following the firm’s original investment in the buisness. He comments: ‘The mydeco team [has] a proven track record of building market-leading, sustainable online businesses.’

Mydeco’s CEO is David Kelly, the former chief operating officer of eBay Europe and lastminute.com. Martha Lane Fox and Paul Chudleigh, respectively the co-founder and former head of technical architecture at lastminute.com, take the roles of non-executive director and chief technology officer in the new business.

Comments 

There are currently no comments on this article

Sign up and get...

  • Regular GrowthBusiness newsletters
  • Post comments on articles
Sign up

Trying to raise business finance?

The Vistage Guide to Raising Finance in The New Economy. It tells you what your options are and how best to present your case for business finance. Simply visit www.neweconomyblog.co.uk/rf2 to request your free copy.

Hiscox Business Insurance 

Life’s full of uncertainties, but you never want to be in any doubt about your business insurance. Hiscox offers broad and inclusive business insurance available online. You can tailor a policy to suit your business needs from a broad range of covers. Find out more.

Selecting the right IT strategy in 2010

Owner managers and CEOs of fast-growing companies want IT-applications that accelerate competitive advantage and improve operational efficiency. This free whitepaper helps you plan and choose the right IT strategy for your business in 2010. Download ‘Selecting The Right Software Vendor’.

Research

  • Directors' Pay AIM 2009

    What should an AIM company pay its CEO or FD?
    What should a non-executive director or chairman expect to be paid?
    What benchmarks should AIM remuneration committee members be using when
    setting pay?

VCT Special Report 2009

This reports principle aim is to provide business owners seeking funding with information about the amount of funds that VCTs have to invest.

Cash Shells Special Report 2009

A comprehensive overview of cash shells on AIM and PLUS, companies that have become a significant feature on the market landscape.

More

Events Calendar

The Media Magnate Awards 2009

26th March, Vinopolis, London

More

More News: Fundraising Deals

Kromek raises Series D round

A Durham University spin-out with technology to help detect terrorist threats is now valued at £52 million following a fourth round of financing.

ControlCircle raises £6 million

A company which manages data centres and internet connections for websites including KPMG and Rightmove has raised £6 million in growth capital.

HG Tech Fund opens for investment

A new fund is being launched under the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS), planning to secure tax breaks for its investors by backing growing companies.

Advertisement

Related articles

Dream team: PROfounders Capital

After quitting one of Europe’s major venture capital firms in the summer, Sean Seton-Rogers decided to set up a brand new fund with a little help from his friends, Michael Birch and Brent Hoberman. GB meets him.

Agassi and Graf invest in Viagogo

Secondary ticketing company Viagogo has secured US$15 million (£10 million) from investors including tennis greats Andre Agassi and Stefanie Graf.

Business Logic Systems gets funding to go global

A provider of customer intelligence tools to mobile network operators has secured US$4 million (£2.8 million) to open more international offices.

Cleantech fund raises further £18 million

Ludgate Environmental Fund (LEF), an AIM-listed investment company focused on clean technology, has raised £18 million of new capital.

Poll

What should Alistair Darling deliver in the Budget?




Have your vote on current issues

People who read this also read

  • Buy.at joins AOL stable

    Web services company AOL, a subsidiary of media behemoth Time Warner, has made its fifth acquisition in 12 months. The US company paid an undisclosed sum for UK-based affiliate network buy.at, which will now operate as a wholly owned business unit of AOL’s online advertising arm Advertising.com.

  • Most large companies miss financial forecasts

    Two-thirds of large European and US companies are unable to forecast quarterly earnings within a five per cent error margin, according to research from advisory firm The Hackett Group. Despite harsh penalties from the market for getting it wrong, companies still miss the mark by up to 30 per cent, claims the study.

  • Hospital operator sold for £145 million

    Classic Hospitals, which owns and operates ten hospitals across England, has been sold to Spire Healthcare (formerly BUPA Hospitals) for £145 million. The deal involves two private equity firms: LGV Capital, the vendor of Classic Hospitals, and Cinven, which owns Spire.

  • Double-digit returns emerge from Chrysalis

    Chrysalis VCT, which invests primarily in unquoted companies, generated double-digit returns for its investors in the year to October. But the kind of lucrative exits that boosted profits in 2007 may prove more elusive this year due to a 'less buoyant climate', according to the company's management.

  • New fund targets tech ventures

    Bank of Scotland Corporate, in partnership with business angel network Oxford Investment Opportunity Network (OION), has launched a co-investment programme to fund early-stage technology businesses. The bank has set aside £2 million which it will use to match investments made by members of OION and its sister networks.

White Papers

Better Roads

Serves the information needs of governments and construction contractors involved in Federal, State, County, City and Township highway, road and bridge construction, winter maintenance, roadside and vegetation management and other highway-related projects.

Defense Technology International

Is the one publication focusing on the critical role of defense technologies in programs, policies, programs and funding, providing readers with integrated intelligence and global perspective in Land, Sea, and Air.

FierceGovernmentIT

Is a free, three times a week email briefing for government employees and contractors on the latest government technology news.

More