10,000 Champions: the Joblings; Sarah Curran; the oil rig entrepreneur
The hottest brothers in video games; the next Natalie Massenet; and the man who could have saved the Gulf of Mexico from oil disaster - four top entrepreneurs doing big deals this week.
Mark Cavanagh
oil rig worker turned MD
At 10,000 Champions we believe that a relatively small number of dynamic companies (approx 10/11,000, according to seminal NESTA research) will generate half the new jobs in the UK economy.
So who are these new British champions? In which sectors are they operating? In which regions? What kind of people are they?
Each week, Real Business brings you the individual stories of these 10,000 Champions, revealing key facts about their business profiles, personal histories and interests and, critically for any small firm accessing finance, investors.
All of our 10,000 Champions have recently successfully raised equity finance to grow their businesses. More to come later this week.
- Brian and Darren Jobling, the Gateshead brothers behind the Big Mutha Truckers video game, have raised £6m from Netherlands venture capital firm Prime Technology Ventures to move them into online games. This looks a British international success story in the making.
- Is Sarah Curran of MyWardrobe the next Natalie Massenet, building the new Net-A-Porter? This week she secured £6m from Balderton Capital. Check out this story of a serious rising star female entrepreneur.
- Mark Cavanagh, the oil rig worker turned managing director of Aberdeen-based oil and gas consultancy XPD8, has raised £2m from Maven.