Leicestershire tech platform bags £675k capital injection

Andrew Allen and Kieran Headley

A Leicestershire tech business has raised £675,000 in an investment round led by venture capital specialist DSW Ventures.

Hike SEO, of Lutterworth, has also received funding from Jenson Funding Partners. The firm will use the cash to further develop its search engine optimisation platform and make a number of key commercial and operational hires.

Its platform, aimed principally at small businesses and digital agencies, tells users how to build a bespoke SEO strategy – and then guides them through the execution of that strategy.

The company was founded by CEO Andrew Allen and CTO Kieran Headley, who worked together as SEO experts before starting the business in February 2017. Since then, Hike has grown rapidly and now has over 1,000 customers and generates annual revenues of over £1m.

The firm recently strengthened its board with the recruitment Jim Hodgkins company – former managing director of ContentCal – as chair and Deborah Jones, former finance director of PE-backed software firm MLS.

Allen said: “We’re thrilled to have the support of DSW Ventures and Jenson Funding Partners in our mission to empower small businesses with the tools and knowledge they need to succeed online. With this investment, we’ll be able to develop the product and grow our team to ensure that even more small businesses can benefit from the Hike platform. This funding round marks an exciting new chapter for us at Hike and is a big step forward in achieving our goals for the business.”

Hike becomes the eleventh company to join the DSW Ventures portfolio.

Emma Cassidy of DSW said: “We were immediately drawn to the scale and speed of growth that Andy and Kieran had achieved with minimal capital, as well as the potential of their product in an underserved area of the SEO market. We are delighted to support such a talented founder team from another very exciting regional software company.”

DSW Ventures was advised by Weightmans and Panamoure Consulting while Founders Law advised Hike SEO.

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