The British Enterprise Financial institution has dedicated as much as £45m as a cornerstone investor in Redrice Ventures’ £75m Fund II, aiming to strengthen early-stage funding throughout the UK’s inventive industries.
The dedication, made by the Financial institution’s Enterprise Capital Funds programme, builds on a earlier £36m cornerstone backing for Redrice’s first fund in 2021, which helped catalyse extra personal capital into what turned an oversubscribed automobile.
Based in 2018, London-based Redrice specialises in seed-stage investments in premium, purpose-driven client manufacturers and associated B2B expertise. The agency focuses on corporations working on the intersection of creativity and commerce, with investments spanning media, sport, well being and wellness, sectors the place model identification, storytelling and cultural relevance are central to development.
The inventive industries stay a major contributor to the UK financial system, using round 2.4 million individuals and producing £124bn in gross worth added. Shopper manufacturers play a important function inside that ecosystem, driving demand for design, promoting, content material manufacturing and innovation, whereas the broader inventive sector enhances model attain and worldwide attraction.
Redrice’s portfolio additionally extends into sport and leisure, supported by its Redrice Sports activities Collective, led by Sir Andy Murray and Alistair Brownlee OBE. Sport is thought to be a core inventive export sector, combining reside efficiency, media manufacturing and digital storytelling into globally marketable experiences.
The British Enterprise Financial institution mentioned its function as a cornerstone investor allows funds to attain first shut and scale extra successfully. The Enterprise Capital Funds programme has backed 51 funds thus far, representing greater than £3bn of finance.
Christine Hockley, managing director and co-head of funds on the Financial institution, mentioned the funding was aligned with the federal government’s development agenda. “The inventive industries are central to the UK’s development mission,” she mentioned. “As a cornerstone investor, we purpose to crowd in extra capital and broaden finance choices for corporations trying to scale.”
Tom March, founder and companion at Redrice Ventures, mentioned the UK’s depth of inventive and technical expertise positioned it properly to provide globally bold manufacturers. “In a content-saturated world, the manufacturers that win don’t simply purchase prospects — they construct fanbases,” he mentioned. “Fund II is about backing founders who perceive that genuine connection is every little thing.”
The funding underscores rising institutional help for inventive and consumer-focused startups as policymakers search to strengthen high-growth sectors throughout the UK’s fashionable industrial technique.
