Tech entrepreneur launches late payment product
TECHNOLOGY entrepreneur Paul Haydock, co-founder of MyParcelDelivery.com, has launched a new venture which aims to solve burning issue of late payment for small businesses.
Mr Haydock, who exited MyParcelDelivery 18 months ago, is chief executive of Manchester-based DueCourse.com, which has developed and launched an invoicing tool for small firms to use.
He has raised a six-figure sum including seed backing from an angel investor based in London to support the new venture. DueCourse allows small businesses and freelancers to agree on a payment terms before they start work and then get paid automatically by direct debit on the dates agreed.
He is working on developing partnerships with small business lobbying groups the Forum of Private Businesses and the Federation of Small Businesses to highlight the benefits of DueCourse to their thousands of members.
The 30-year-old from Bolton said: “The first business I launched after university was a business to business supplier of promotional goods and I experienced first-hand the difficulties late payment can cause. It can really hurt cashflow and cause you huge headaches as you have to spend time chasing debtors instead of growing the business.
“Late payment is a huge blight on the economy and we believe we have found the answer by using technology. Our software integrates with customers’ existing accounting software so it is easy to use.”
“We’ve recently come back from the Web Summit in Dublin – where DueCourse made it through to the semi-final of a global pitch competition.”
DueCourse has four staff, led by Mr Haydock, the chief executive. His two partner investors are Tim Borden, a Canadian software developer who has relocated to the North West and a former Jon Grove, a former colleague at MyParcelDelivery.
Mr Haydock added: “I am really excited about this venture, it’s totally scaleable and the feedback from our initial customers has been very positive.”
