New speaker agrees to take part in funding seminar

A new speaker has been added to an event aimed at helping business looking to access finance.

The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF), in partnership with TheBusinessDesk, is launching a series of breakfast seminars across the North of England.

The aim of the events is to educate entrepreneurs about the funding options available to them.

The first in the three-part series of events will take place in Lancashire, at the home of one of the region’s most famous football clubs Blackburn Rovers.

Dr Samantha Westgate, chief executive Officer of Perfectus Biomed Limited, has been added to the panel.

Dr Westgate is recognised for her passion in designing innovative and bespoke microbiological services that serve the antimicrobial community.

Perfectus Biomed offers standard and customised microbiology testing, specialising in antimicrobial, biofilm, viral, fungal, cellular and molecular research.

The company works with clients worldwide, including the UK, Europe, USA, Australia and South Africa in the wound care, cosmetic, medical device, pharmaceutical, biocides and orthopaedic sectors.

Further events will be held in Chester and in Hull in the New Year.

Delegates will hear from like-minded business owners who have grown following NPIF investment along with experts who will demystify the complexities surrounding corporate finance and offer sound guidance.

The £400m Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund was established in 2017 with the ambition to transform the funding landscape across the North of England and create economic prosperity on par with London and the South East.

To date, NPIF has directly invested more than £135m, in deals that have attracted an additional £123m of investment from the private sector.

This investment is helping business owners that had previously been under-served by traditional lenders to expand, enter new markets and create thousands of new jobs.

Also speaking at the event is:

Martin Leeming, chief executive of TrakRap.

Martin is a retail professional who joined the business after working as a director at Asda for 15 years.

Martin’s engineering background and retail experience have enabled the company to create a new type of Industry 4.0-ready packaging system that uses less packaging, less energy and generates less CO2e than traditional cardboard and shrink-wrapping systems.

Grant Peggie

A director in the Venture Capital Team at the British Business Bank, Grant has led the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund, the Midlands Engine Investment Fund and the new Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Investment Fund.
Before joining the bank he was head of strategic partnerships at Innovate UK where he was responsible for better connecting innovation and business support for innovative, high growth companies.

Amin Vepari

Amin is business finance and scale up lead for Lancashire County Council

Amin manages Rosebud, which is an £11.25m fund to assist growing businesses in Lancashire, and also oversees the Access to Finance service, which is essential to helping businesses navigate the vast array of finance options/providers available.

Sue Barnard

Sue is a senior manager for the North West UK Network at the British Business Bank.
Sue has held similar positions for over 25 years with the Greater Manchester Business Growth Hub and the North West Development Agency promoting a range of programmes from the North West Fund, The Manufacturing Advisory Service and through to North West Business Angels and the Start Up Loans Programme.

To book a ticket for the free to attend event book here.