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Vala is an investment advisory business founded by a team of serial, multi-exited entrepreneurs that over a 30+ year period has invested in more than 70 companies and generated an aggregate track record of 3.5x with an average hold period of 4.5 years.

Vala’s mission is to back, build and embolden start-ups that can have an impact in their markets and on society, supporting them on their sustainability journey at the same time.  It believes that companies that focus on operating and trading more sustainably will be more robust and valuable that those that don’t.

Vala aims to put capital to work where it’s needed most: mentoring founders, optimising products, creating go-to market strategies, and bringing together outstanding teams. A key part of the philosophy is the desire for the portfolio companies to become more sustainable, no matter what their sector.

Vala has two principle EIS strategies, focussed on venture building and impact, building diversified portfolios of 8-12 companies. It targets a fund-level return of 2.5x (excluding the tax benefits), over a 6-8 year period.

Founded in 2015, Velocity looks to invest in high capital appreciation digital distribution business providing value beyond the provision of capital. For the businesses that the fund looks to invest in, there is a point in time when marketing becomes their largest expense. Getting it right can be transformational for these businesses, whilst getting it wrong can be a very costly mistake. Through the significant experience of the founders of Velocity, support in and around marketing provides a cornerstone of value-add provided to investee companies, although it is by no means limited to this. Each potential fund investment goes through a rigorous six-stage selection process, which includes an assessment of market need, given that there being insufficient market need for a particular product or service is, according to CBInsights, the second most common reason why businesses fail. Velocity has a multidisciplinary team with a balance between those with entrepreneurial experience (having started, scaled and exited businesses) and professional experience including fund management, accountancy and law. Our view is that the breadth of team experience enables us to provide holistic support to the businesses we invest in, providing them with an unfair advantage and thereby a greater likelihood of success.