£2m fundraise delivered for pregnancy and childbirth brand

Venture capital trust Pembroke VCT plc has invested in Harrogate-based My Expert Midwife, a midwife-founded brand for pregnancy, birth and beyond.

The £2m fundraise was led by Pembroke, which invested £1.5m alongside existing shareholders and angel investors.

My Expert Midwife was established in 2017 by registered midwife, Lesley Gilchrist and massage specialist, Claire Charlton.

Drawing on their personal experience and professional expertise of caring for women throughout pregnancy, the brand launched a range of products developed to tackle taboos around pregnancy and childbirth for new and expectant mums and new babies.

At the heart of the business is a team of midwives with more than 140 years of combined experience.

The brand currently has a portfolio of 19 products all designed to help women prepare and recover during pregnancy, birth and early parenthood alongside midwife-developed webinars, antenatal classes and e-books.

The investment will help support My Expert Midwife scale the business through new product development and channel expansion.

Fred Ursell, investment director, Pembroke Investment Managers LLP, said: “We are excited to be backing such a knowledgeable and experienced team to provide amazing products and expert advice to new and growing families around the country.

“This is a sector with huge potential and we are looking forward to helping the team explore new opportunities for the My Expert Midwife brand in future.”

Gilchrist added: “Our driving vision is to help all parents-to-be on their journey to parenthood, every step of the way, from preconception, through pregnancy and birth, to recovery and caring for their new baby, whether that be through our expert information guides and eBooks, our midwife-developed products or our antenatal education services.

“We’re pleased our new partnership with Pembroke will help us to springboard those plans and help more parents-to-be than ever before.”