Aveni Equifax partnership, Sea Dyes Spin-in, Fintech Scotland's challenge winners
Plus, progress on percentage of investment going to female founders?
Here's your Campfire for the 24th of February, 2025.
💼 Johnston Carmichael are a leading accountancy and business advisory firm, with offices throughout Scotland, in Newcastle and London. A partner owned firm for over 85 years, they have grown to offer core and specialist services to business of all sizes. With specialist sector teams, they are fast becoming one of the most trusted advisers for entrepreneurs, founders and businesses that are successfully scaling. Talk to the team today to discuss what growth stage your business is at.
🌊 Updates
🤖 Edinburgh-based fintech Aveni.AI has been chosen as Equifax’s strategic AI partner in the UK. Its ‘detect’ solution automates compliance monitoring, streamlining quality assurance and reducing manual checks. Congrats! FS
💰 FinTech Scotland has awarded £50,000 each to five fintech firms to enhance financial inclusion, resilience, and consumer engagement. The winners include Docstribute, (simplifies complex financial documents) Ask Silver, (helping vulnerable consumers report scams) NestEgg AI, (improving access to affordable credit) MyArk, (using data insights to detect financial distress early) and Profylr (providing AI-driven risk and compliance insights). DGT
🚀 Glasgow-based HealthTech startup Infix Support is rolling out its AI-powered software across NHS Scotland to cut waiting times and boost theatre efficiency by 20%. Expanding into NHS England and global markets, it’s also preparing for a new investment round. SS
🔎 A new report from Charles Stanley and Beauhurst highlights gender disparities in UK entrepreneurship, revealing that female-founded businesses receive less than 2% of equity funding. Despite doubling in number over the past decade, women-led firms face significant funding gaps, bias, and limited networking opportunities. The technology sector has seen growth in female-led startups, yet women hold only 5% of leadership roles. DGT
⚓ Sustainable dye startup SeaDyes (algae-based dye innovation) has joined the James Hutton Institute as a spin-in company, securing £75,000 from Scottish Enterprise. SeaDyes develops seaweed-based dyes as an eco-friendly alternative to synthetic dyes, aiming to reduce pollution in the fashion industry. SE FS
🌱 Cambridge-based Pulpex (sustainable packaging) rasied £62 million to launch a fibre-based packaging factory near Glasgow, backed by the new National Wealth Fund fromthe UK government and the Scottish National Investment Bank. The funding—£43.5M from the NWF, £10M from SNIB, and the rest from other investors—will scale up biodegradable bottle production, replacing single-use plastics with recyclable wood pulp alternatives. ST
🗺️ Mapify Logistics (asset management to optimise maintenance and reduce operational disruptions) was featured in a BBC Radio Scotland programme about AI for asset managment and SMEs. SBCC
💡 Opinion: DIGIT sat down with Alan Robertson of Maven Capital Partners, a growth equity and PE fund with offices in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, and Glasgow. He highlighted three key criteria they look for: product traction, strong leadership, and market size.
Private equity activity in Scotland up 33% in 2024 and VC up 14% in Q4 2024, and sectors like AI, medtech, and cyber are attracting global investors. Read more here (DGT)
📣 Asks & Offers
🚨Start to Scale by Shepherd and Wedderburn is offering eligible subscribers of Campfire exclusive access to their ‘Start to Scale Hub’ which helps companies create template legal agreements in minutes for free. To learn more and request access click here.
🎙️ If you're interested in attending the Globally Connecting Scotland Conference, email jamie@sbn.scot and mention Campfire to get a discount!
📈 Growth mentoring for businesses with £1m+ rev: Baclays Eagle Labs is offering a new mentoring programme for companies who are at seed/series A, and are growing between 10-20% per year who’ve crossed that milestone. More info here.
👭 Interested in connecting with possible co-founders? Fill in your listing on Cofounder Curious today! Connect with others for possible cofounder matching here.
👷Are you hiring? Send us a blurb and we’ll include it in the next newsletter!
✍️ Want to write something for Campfire? Have an opinion you'd like to share? get in touch!
📅 Events
🔎 13/03, 13:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Geovation Scotland Annual Showcase 2025!: Join us at Surgeons Quarter, Edinburgh as we hear from the latest cohort of exciting, disruptive and innovative property, land & location technology start ups. MORE INFO
🥂 25/02, 10:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Co-Work Club Edinburgh: Tired of the home office grind but not ready for the daily commute? Say goodbye to crowded coffee shops and the endless search for a quiet Zoom spot. We've got the solution: Welcome to Co-Work Club @ Kimpton Hotel, Edinburgh. MORE INFO
⚡ 25/02, 10:00 🗺️ TBA: Marketing Bootcamp for product-based businesses: Want to solve your marketing headaches? Reach a bigger audience, create a bigger impact? This marketing bootcamp is for you! MORE INFO
🎯 25/02, 18:00 🗺️ Dundee: Dundee Data Meetup: February 2025: Whether you're a data practitioner, a student, or simply interested in how data shapes our world, come along and be part of our growing community! MORE INFO
🤔 26/02, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Understanding co-ops (online): Learn how becoming a co-op could help your business thrive at this free online workshop hosted by Co-operative Development Scotland. MORE INFO
💡 26/02, 10:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Inside Track: Tips and tricks from PR pros: Get the insider knowledge you need to make the media notice your growing business. MORE INFO
🤝 26/02, 18:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Entrepreneurs Social Club (ESC) - Edinburgh Startup Meetup: The social club for founders and aspiring entrepreneurs - skip the talks, presentations and lectures - and go straight to networking! MORE INFO
🚀 27/02, 08:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: ITSX Summit 2025 – Edinburgh: The Summit hosts 280+ IT Leaders, 20+ speakers and 15+ exhibitors. The programme will contextualise the evolution of the service desk and the future of customer experience and IT support with live presentations looking at actionable ways to improve process, operations, observability, and customer experience. MORE INFO
📈 27/02, 10:00 🗺️ Hawick: Expand your Ecommerce business via Online Marketplaces - Hawick: Learn how you can take an ecommerce business to the next level by registering for this one day event. MORE INFO
🩺 27/02, 10:00 🗺️ Aberdeen: Barclays Eagle Labs at One Tech Hub Drop in Clinic Feb 2025: Drop in and let’s have an open discussion about your business goals and ambition and learn more about how your ecosystem manager here at Eagle Labs can support you and your business here at One Tech Hub. MORE INFO
💼 27/02, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Online Office Hours with Lawrie: Managing and Protecting Your IP: Meet with a Director and Patent Attorney from Lawrie for direct, personalised advice on IP! MORE INFO
🎯 27/02, 10:00 🗺️ Aberdeen: Barclays Eagle Labs at One Tech Hub Drop in Clinic Feb 2025: Drop in and let’s have an open discussion about your business goals and ambition and learn more about how your ecosystem manager here at Eagle Labs can support you and your business here at One Tech Hub. MORE INFO
💡 27/02, 18:00 🗺️ Dumfries and Online: Ideation Workshop – Hybrid Event: Got the seed of an idea for a tech startup but want more guidance on what to do next? Got too many ideas to choose from and want to narrow it down? Not got an idea at all, but are interested in how you could find one? Join us for this interactive workshop which will show you how ‘falling in love with the problem’ can set you up to create an amazing tech solution. MORE INFO
🫂 27/02, 18:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: MLOps Meetup Feb 2025 (Two Talks!): This talk provides a high-level overview of the ML infrastructure at Skyscanner, covering essential components such as Databricks Unity Catalog, Feature Store, Model Serving, Databricks Asset Bundles, and more. MORE INFO
🤝 28/02, 09:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Founder Friday Coworking: Join us for a day of networking and inspiration! this is your chance to connect with fellow founders, share ideas, and maybe even spark your next big project. MORE INFO
🎯 04/03, 09:30 🗺️ Glasgow: Female Founders Co-Working Club: Stay inspired, motivated and connected throughout 2025 with the Female Founder Co-Working Club at Glasgow Eagle Labs! MORE INFO
👨💻 04/03, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: nocode.scot meetup #18: This month we'll be hearing from Liam Sanipe, who'll be joining us remotely from Canada to talk about build an AI-powered personal assistant, AI Jim! MORE INFO
🤝 04/03, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Tech Meetup Edinburgh - March 2025: The Tech Meetup is a monthly excuse for the tech community around Scotland to network, learn and share new ideas! Enjoy informative tech presentations from your peers, hear about exciting community projects and create new connections. MORE INFO
☕ Unfiltered: Open to everyone, join CodeBase to connect with members of the local tech community. Come for a coffee, networking and build connections, and stay for the hotdesking!
⛾ 05/03, 08:30 🗺️ Dundee, MORE INFO
⛾ 05/03, 08:30 🗺️ Inverness, MORE INFO
⛾ 05/03, 08:30 🗺️ Glasgow, MORE INFO
⛾ 05/03, 08:30 🗺️ Stirling, MORE INFO
⛾ 05/03, 08:30 🗺️ Aberdeen, MORE INFO
⛾ 05/03, 08:30 🗺️ Edinburgh, MORE INFO
🎤 05/03, 13:30 🗺️ Dumfries and Galloway: Pitch It To Me: This workshop will allow participants to develop and practice their pitching skills in an informal and collaborative setting. You will leave this workshop feeling closer to pitch ready. MORE INFO
💻 06/03, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Online Office Hours with Archangels: Meet with an Investment Manager from Archangels for direct, personalised advice! MORE INFO
🥂 06/03, 10:00 🗺️ Gretna: International Women's Day Celebration: A full-day event to inspire, connect & empower women to drive change and accelerate action. Don’t miss it! MORE INFO
💼 07/03, 15:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Office Hours: Get Funding Ready with Hybridan: Meet with Hybridan to find out how to get ready for funding! MORE INFO
🌱 10/03, 09:30 🗺️ Duns: Seeding Enterprise across our Communities workshop - Duns: Two-day course aimed at exploring early stages of starting a business aimed at women and under-represented groups in our communities. MORE INFO
🌿 10/03, 10:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Edinburgh Greentech Futures: GreenHack: No hacking, tech or environmental experience is required, just a curiosity to learn and an interest in coming up with creative solutions to some of the most pressing environmental issues we are facing today. MORE INFO
🌱 12/03, 09:30 🗺️ Dumfries: Seeding Enterprise across our Communities workshop - Dumfries: Two-day course aimed at exploring early stages of starting a business aimed at women and under-represented groups in our communities. MORE INFO
📈 12/03, 14:00 🗺️ Online: Margins and momentum: How to balance profit with growth: The tech landscape is not what it used to be. The challenging macroeconomic environment and greater emphasis on cost discipline means CFOs must rethink their strategy — balancing rapid growth with profitability. But where should startups invest, and where should they cut back? How can founders and CFOs navigate these trade-offs? How is AI supporting the drive to profitability and expansion? Join this Sifted Talks as our panel of CFOs share their top revenue strategies. MORE INFO
🍽️ 12/03, 18:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Founders Dinners: Where founders & execs of product startups relax together and connect with peers over food and drinks. MORE INFO
🧩 13/03, 08:30 🗺️ Perth: Perth Tech Mornings: This is an opportunity to meet and connect with people from across the tech ecosystem. We like to run these events with minimal structure, to allow conversations to flow naturally over a coffee. You don’t need a background in tech to join us, we welcome anyone who is interested in chatting to our community and learning more. MORE INFO
💼 13/03, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Office Hours with Potter Clarkson: In this 25 minute one-to one session, you will receive direct, personalised advice from an IP Attorney for Potter Clarkson. MORE INFO
🌐 13/03, 10:00 🗺️ Dumfries: Selling Internationally via Ecommerce - Dumfries: Whether you are starting out, or expanding your retail operations, there are multiple opportunities to going global. MORE INFO
🥃 13/03, 17:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Barclays Eagle Labs and CodeBase Quarterly Pub Quiz (March 2025): Join us for this month's pub quiz - bringing together the CodeBase and Edinburgh community for a bit of fun! MORE INFO
🌐 13/03, 19:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: AI Networking Evening in Edinburgh: Join Andersen for the AI Networking Evening in Edinburgh! MORE INFO
💼 17/03, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Online Office Hours with SEIS-GO: Securing SEIS/EIS Advance Assurance: Meet with an expert Legal Consultant from SEIS-GO for direct, personalised advice on S/EIS! MORE INFO
🎯 18/03, 09:00 🗺️ Dundee: SMAS Best Practice Visit to Direct Soccer Ltd: Visit Direct Soccer Ltd and discover how SMAS supported the company on its continuous improvement journey. MORE INFO
💡 18/03, 09:30 🗺️ Glasgow: Clean Heat Retrofit Innovation Challenge Showcase: We’ll bring together public, private, and third-sector organisations to share their expertise and show what’s driving clean heat’s growth. MORE INFO
💰 18/03, 14:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Becoming an Angel Investor (Edinburgh): UKBAA and British Business Bank are launching a series of regional activation events designed to broaden access to angel investing and empower investors to build more inclusive portfolios. MORE INFO
💻 18/03, 18:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: March Meetup - Immersive experiences in the browser: Our talks aim to introduce members of the community, fostering networking, mentorship, learning, and collaboration. Everyone is welcome—whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned engineer. MORE INFO
🍺 19/03, 19:00 🗺️ Aberdeen: Aberdeen - Small99's People, Planet, Pint™: Sustainability Meetup: Pop down to your local People Planet Pint meetup to find more about what's going on locally with sustainability and how you can get involved. MORE INFO
🍳 20/03, 08:30 🗺️ Edinburgh: Continuous Improvement Business Breakfast Workshop: Join our breakfast workshop and learn how lean manufacturing can help engage staff and create sustainable changes that benefit your company. MORE INFO
🚀 20/03, 10:00 🗺️ Online: Selling Your Business Masterclass: Do you have a business succession plan in place? Have you considered selling your business to an Employee Ownership Trust? MORE INFO
💼 20/03, 10:00 🗺️ Edinburgh: Hiring an effective leadership team: Looking to hire the right leadership team or senior executive? Not sure where to start or been unable to attract the right person? MORE INFO
Think someone would like this issue? Forward it to them! Check out previous issues by subscribing.
That’s all for this week - have a great one!
Team 🔥 Campfire