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News Release Digital Asset Direct

One Rockwell Announces Key Company Milestones and Client Growth; Launch of Growth Marketing Services to Drive Revenue for Lifestyle Brands

One Rockwell

New In-house digital marketing suite includes paid search and social, strategy, influencer programs, a full suite of creative services, and more; a newly hired top creative team to support strategic growth. One Rockwell (1R), a leading ecommerce agency specializing in creative design and technical solutions for lifestyle brands, today announced a series of milestones during 2021 which helped propel the company to managing over $350M in client revenue, up 61 percent from $216M in 2020. With household names like Clairol, Carhartt WIP, LeSportsac, Vera Bradley, and others already on 1R’s roster, the company welcomed more than 30 new clients including Naturopathica, Philosophy, Victor Victor and a multi-channel agreement with beauty conglomerate, Coty. 1R was also named “Best Ecommerce Experience” finalist in Glossy’s 2021 Beauty Awards alongside client Westman Atelier. Since working with 1R, clients such as Trish McEvoy, ZO Skin Health, Vera Bradley and more have seen explosive growth, consistently adding more than 50 percent in DTC revenues YoY in the US. While the agency steered major companies through the new online marketplace paradigm amid COVID-19, it simultaneously launched a full-service digital marketing arm, 1R Digital Marketing Services, that supports brands holistically by building and developing their entire ecommerce business from end-to-end, catering to every DTC touchpoint. With digital shopping continuing to reign supreme, the new offering presents an untapped opportunity for lifestyle brands to increase revenue, customer acquisition, conversion, retention, and more by leveraging the vast opportunities of the internet. “Redesigning TrishMcEvoy.com was very exciting but a large undertaking. The 1R team really made it easy to not only collaborate but keep the project on track,” said Kristina Castaldo, Senior Global Ecommerce & Paid Marketing Manager, Trish McEvoy. “I have worked with many agencies before and my experience with their team has been one of the best!” The company also welcomed two creative industry powerhouses to support the continued buildout of its new 360-creative services. Paul Recalde joined 1R as Creative Director, along with Director of Creative Services Karly Mossberg. Over the past twelve years, Recalde has been working with some of the world’s leading luxury, fashion and beauty brands and agencies, including MAC, Burberry, Gucci, Tiffany’s, Jimmy Choo, Michael Kors, Smashbox Cosmetics, Tom Ford Beauty, Urban Decay, and Balenciaga, to craft strategic, impactful storytelling and experiences. Recalde has an exceptional background including digital design, content, branding, motion graphics, and 360-degree campaign work. Mossberg brings more than 10 years of creative experience in the beauty and fashion fields, working across a multitude of verticals with stellar brands including Louis Vuitton, Chloé, Adidas, Uniqlo, Estee Lauder and Tom Ford. In addition to the creative additions, Emily Fontana has been appointed as Head of Digital Marketing. Fontana plans to leverage her skill set from SWAROVSKI and experience working across a variety of industries to implement effective marketing strategies that align with the company's business goals and foster growth. Looking ahead, 1R will be announcing exciting new partnerships with high-profile influencers, celebrities, and brands, and plans to continue integrating updated features and capabilities into its suite of services, built specifically for brands looking to optimize and accelerate their ecommerce experiences. “During the height of the pandemic, brands were not only coming to us to design and build their websites, but to help run, optimize and grow them,” said Shelly Socol, CEO and Co-founder of One Rockwell. “Bringing digital marketing in-house and investing in exceptional creative talent further solidifies our position as an agency leader and allows us to complement our entire suite of services in driving revenue for our clients." To learn more about 1R and its expertise in driving well-rounded, scalable, and engaging direct-to-consumer experiences, please visit https://www.onerockwell.com/. About One Rockwell (1R): One Rockwell (1R) is a full-service Shopify Plus agency driving digital transformation. For over ten years, 1R has brought creatives, strategists, managers, and innovators together to create exceptional digital experiences. Through collaboration and boundless drive, 1R connects good people with big minds: agency, partners, and clients working as one. 1R approaches every challenge and hurdle with excitement – from business analysis and strategy to UX and creative design to technical execution and integrations. Powered by a decade of experience and a sharp understanding of what makes digital brands thrive, 1R has designed and implemented over 80 digital stores within the fashion, beauty, lifestyle, home, food & beverage, and luxury verticals. Contact Details North 6th Agency for One Rockwell onerockwell@n6a.com Company Website https://www.1rockwell.com/

November 09, 2021 09:00 AM Eastern Standard Time

Osmo’s STEM Week Sale & Amazon Deal of the Day (11/8) Encourage Kids to Explore Reading, Math, Coding, Problem-Solving and Much More

Osmo

Osmo announces a STEM Week sale that encourages kids ages 3 to 10+ to explore reading, writing, math, coding, drawing, creative problem-solving, and more. From 11/7 through 11/13, save up to 40% off select kits, games and bundles at PlayOsmo.com, Amazon, Target, Best Buy & other retailers. Osmo’s Amazon Deal of the Day runs on Nov. 8--one day only--and features 20% off select items at Amazon.com. Kits and games up to 25% off through 11/13 at PlayOsmo.com and multiple retailers include: Little Genius Starter Kit (base included) Genius Starter Kit (base included) Coding Starter Kit (base included) Creative Starter Kit (base included) Pizza Co. (base required) Detective Agency (base required) Super Studio Disney Mickey Mouse & Friends (base required) Super Studio Disney Princess (base required) Super Studio Disney Frozen 2 (base required) Math Wizard and the Secrets of the Dragons (base required) Math Wizard and the Magical Workshop (base required) Kits and bundles up to 40% off through 11/13 exclusively at PlayOsmo.com include: Pre-School Starter Kit Explorer Starter Kit Ultimate Expansion Bundle Essential Math Bundle Osmo’s Amazon Deal of the Day (11/8) features 20% off these items at Amazon.com: Genius Starter Kit for iPad + Case for iPad (base included) Genius Starter Kit for iPad + Grab & Go Small Storage Carry Case (base included) Coding Starter Kit for iPad + Case for iPad (base included) Coding Starter Kit for iPad + Grab & Go Small Storage Carry Case (base included) Creative Starter Kit for iPad + Case for iPad (base included) Creative Starter Kit for iPad + Grab & Go Small Storage Carry Case (base included) The full list of deals at PlayOsmo.com can be viewed here. The full list of Amazon deals can be viewed at Osmo’s Amazon store. The full list of Osmo deals at Target can be viewed here. About Osmo Osmo is an award-winning STEAM brand whose products are used in over 50,000 classrooms and 2.5 million homes. It is building a universe of hands-on play experiences that nourish the minds of children by unleashing the power of imagination. The company brings physical tools into the digital world through augmented reality and its proprietary reflective artificial intelligence. Osmo is headquartered in Palo Alto, California, and is part of BYJU’S, a global leader in online learning. Learn more at PlayOsmo.com. For information about its educational division, Osmo for Schools, visit schools.playosmo.com. Contact Details Carolyn Kamii PR Carolyn Kamii +1 310-251-0550 carolynkpr@gmail.com Company Website http://www.playosmo.com

November 07, 2021 06:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time

Ethos Announces ‘100 Most Sustainable Luxury Items Of 2021’

Ethos

Digital media and e-commerce platform, Ethos, has launched its first comprehensive sustainability ranking: The 100 Most Sustainable Luxury Items of 2021. It kicks-off the platform’s sustainable luxury ranking series. Vetted by Ethos co-founder and creative director, Jackie Lutze, a Harvard University Sustainability MA candidate, the list evaluated individual products instead of brands as a whole—this allowed for a wider range of inclusion. Ranking included ingredients and materials, packaging and shipping practices, labor conditions, and circular sustainability efforts. All brands had to meet at least two stars in order to be considered for inclusion. “This list came to fruition much in the same way Ethos did; we knew there were luxury brands building sustainability into their core,” Lutze says. “We started with a clear-cut list of exemplary attributes and built a rating system around it. At the minimum, all products had to be ethically made with sustainable materials or ingredients.” It’s also the first comprehensive sustainable ranking list of its kind to only feature items made without any animal products or animal testing. “From there, we looked deeper into the brands themselves, rewarding points for those that went above and beyond, such as receiving B Corp Status, using certified organic materials or ingredients, Fair Trade Certification, or LEED-certified production facilities,” says Lutze. Brands earning the highest scores include Stella McCartney, Gucci, Chloé in fashion; Aether Diamonds Tiffany and Co., and Chopard in jewelry; Susanne Kaufman, Aesop, and Sana Jardin in beauty. To see the full list and rankings, click here. “It may sound strange to call the luxury market underserved, but when it comes to sustainability, that’s often the case,” says Jill Ettinger, Ethos co-founder and editorial director. “The luxury market is valued at more than $5 trillion; that is immense purchasing power and influence. These brands need to shine a greater spotlight on their sustainability efforts. And according to our research, the luxury consumer wants to make the best choices for the planet. To them, sustainability is luxury.” To celebrate the launch, Ethos is donating 100 trees to its nonprofit partner, The Fruit Tree Planting Foundation. The trees will be planted in Mococa, Brazil, in 2022. “When Ethos approached us about collaborating on one of our groundbreaking fruit tree plantings, we were thrilled to suggest an upcoming initiative to plant 100 life-sustaining trees for low-income families in Brazil later this year,” said Cem Akin, FTPF’s TreeEO. “Through this generous support, generations of families will have cleaner air to breathe and a healthy source of nutrition right in their backyards. We are so grateful to partner with Ethos in supporting sustainable, earth-friendly projects,” Akin said. About Ethos: Launched in 2021 by Jackie Lutze and Jill Ettinger, Ethos is the premier digital platform for personal and planetary sustainability filtered through a luxury lens. Through thought-provoking conversations and recommendations across fashion, beauty, travel, food, nutrition, and more, along with its e-commerce platform and its first sustainability rankings, The Ethos 100, Ethos is helping to bridge the gaps in the sustainable luxury market. the-ethos.co. Contact Details Ethos Jill Ettinger +1 213-986-7464 jill@the-ethos.co Company Website https://the-ethos.co

November 05, 2021 07:03 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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Lensbaby Announces 15% Off Sale In Anticipation of “Shoot Extraordinary” Photography Conference

Lensbaby

Lensbaby, the leader in award-winning creative effect camera lenses, is excited to announce its annual 15% Off Sale through the end of 2021. As the Portland-based company gears up for its “ Shoot Extraordinary ” conference, it will be extending savings opportunities for photographers and videographers. With 16 speakers and top Lensbaby educators from around the globe, the “Shoot Extraordinary” conference has something for everyone. Conference attendees can expect to learn the ethos of the Lensbaby “Shoot Extraordinary” motto, while learning the nuances and uncommon qualities of its photo and video lenses. At Lensbaby, “We empower artists to move through fear to discover extraordinary creative freedom.” Featured Lenses & Accessories // As part of the upcoming event, Lensbaby has hand-selected a few of its most sought-after lenses and accessories to highlight. Whether you’re new to photography or looking to hone a specific skill, Lensbaby’s line of lenses and accessories will give you that much needed boost of creativity. OMNI Creative Filter System Features: Professional & repeatable in-camera effects Use with your existing prime & zoom lenses - both auto & manual focus Available in two sizes - Small & Large Includes three unique effect wands Explore new creative possibilities by adding an Expansion Pack Sol 45 Features: 45mm focal length f/3.5 fixed aperture Sweet Spot effect Lightweight & compact Bokeh blades to add texture Obscura Optic Features: 50mm Zone Plate: f/32; Pinhole Sieve: f/64; Pinhole: f/161 Effects: Zone Plate, Pinhole Sieve, Pinhole Velvet 56 Features: 56mm focal length f/1.6 aperture Velvet effect 1:2 macro capability Composer Pro II with Sweet 50 Features: 50mm focal length f/2.5 aperture Sweet Spot effect Includes Composer Pro II Body & removable Sweet 50 Optic Part of our unique Optic Swap System Join us for the Lensbaby “Shoot Extraordinary” Photography Conference 2021 on December 7th! Click here to register and claim your free spot today. Registered conference attendees will be automatically entered to win prizes including a grand prize worth over $2500. About Lensbaby // Lensbaby creates tools that enable photographers and videographers to find their unique visual voice. For over 16 years, they have been manufacturing high-quality creative effects lenses, optics and accessories out of their Portland, Oregon headquarters. Lensbaby sells its products on its website as well as through a worldwide network of retailers and distributors. For more information, visit www.lensbaby.com Lensbaby, “Shoot Extraordinary” Contact Details Lensbaby Michael Anthony, VP Sales and Marketing Michael@lensbaby.com M&P Digital Creative Agency Andrea Larson, PR & Marketing andrea@mcmillanphillips.com Company Website https://lensbaby.com/

November 04, 2021 12:51 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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MOTIS Brands Acquires Pier of d'Nort

Rotunda Capital Partners LLC

MOTIS Brands (“MOTIS”), a Rotunda Capital Partners portfolio company, has acquired Pier of d'Nort (“PDN”), a leading manufacturer of innovative aluminum pier systems. For 20 years, Pier of d’Nort has designed and manufactured their patented dock system and related accessories. PDN’s premium piers can be found all over the United States, and each is built-to-order in St. Germain, Wisconsin. For MOTIS, the acquisition of PDN adds another quality brand to its portfolio and bolsters existing U.S. manufacturing capabilities. “The acquisition of PDN expands our assortment in an important and fast-growing category,” said MOTIS CEO Rich Spratt. “Our goal remains to assemble the broadest and deepest collection of premium brands for loading, hauling, storage and productivity needs, and Pier of d’Nort is an ideal fit. We’re thrilled to add PDN to the MOTIS family.” About MOTIS Brands Headquartered in Germantown, WI, MOTIS Brands proudly designs, develops, and distributes a collection of industry leading loading, hauling, automotive and accessibility brands including Race Ramps®, Silver Spring Mobility®, Heavy Duty Ramps™, Black Widow®, Guardian Industrial Products™, Kill Shot®, Tilt-a-Rack®, Harbor-Mate®, Lucky Dog™, Big Boy®, and Mac’s Custom Tie-Downs. For more information, visit www.motisbrands.com. About Rotunda Capital Partners Rotunda Capital Partners is a private equity firm that invests equity capital in established, lower middle market companies. Rotunda partners with management to build data-driven growth platforms within its targeted sectors, including value-added distribution, asset light logistics and industrial/business services. Founded in 2009, the firm has a long history of helping management teams achieve their goals for growth. The Rotunda team actively provides guidance and draws on deep industry and financial relationships to contribute to the successful execution of Rotunda’s companies’ strategic plans. The firm has offices in Bethesda, MD and Evanston, IL. For more information, visit www.rotundacapital.com. Contact Details Rotunda Capital Partners Jill Lafferty +1 847-280-1295 jill@rotundacapital.com Company Website https://motisbrands.com/

November 04, 2021 07:34 AM Eastern Daylight Time

Improving the Lives of Caregivers

YourUpdateTV

There will be more people over 65 than under 18 by 2030 -- the boomer generation is living longer and wants to age at home. The result is more than 53 million family caregivers in the U.S., caring for more than 80 million people, and spending more than $187 billion on home health care. Recently, Bianca Padilla, CEO and Co-Founder of Carewell, participated in a nationwide satellite media tour to discuss the importance of supporting caregivers around the country. A video accompanying this announcement is available at: https://youtu.be/Z8i-N0yyx30 One-fifth of Americans will act as informal caregivers at some point in their lives, but there is little in the way of vetted products, product knowledge, guidance, and service to help those in the position of caring for a loved one. The biggest trend in caregiving over the past few years is aging at home. 90% of Americans want to stay in their homes for the rest of their lives. They don’t want change, and it’s up to the younger generations to help them do this safely and comfortably. 84% of caregivers report needing more information, so providing access to educational resources is vital for this audience, especially as conditions change - and usually worsen - over time. Carewell is redefining home healthcare by helping caregivers manage their loved one’s conditions, as well as their own lives. Carewell strives to make this population feel seen and understood by providing the products, service, and community support they need along with a level of customer service and convenience rarely found in healthcare. Carewell offers support to family caregivers with a library of information and caregiving guides to remove guesswork. For more information, visit Carewell.com About Bianca Padilla: Bianca Padilla is the CEO and co-founder of Carewell, a family-founded company that simplifies life for caregivers by providing personalized service, compassionate content, and expert-vetted home care products. A graduate of New York University with a B.A. in Economics, Bianca attended the Disney Institute and formed the Charlotte chapter of Aging 2.0, for which she currently serves as an ambassador. Prior to founding Carewell, Bianca worked as a software engineer at LiveNinja and as an analyst for CCMP Capital Advisors and Pantheon Ventures. A Miami native, Bianca enjoys spending time with her co-founder husband Jon and dog Henry, traveling, being an unabashed foodie, and reading books about entrepreneurship, leadership, tech, and comedy. About YourUpdateTV: YourUpdateTV is a social media video portal for organizations to share their content. It includes separate channels for Health and Wellness, Lifestyle, Media and Entertainment, Money and Finance, Social Responsibility, Sports and Technology. Contact Details YourUpdateTV +1 212-736-2727 yourupdatetv@gmail.com

November 03, 2021 02:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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Marquee investors tuck into Tre’dish with $10m investment as home-to-home food economy grows

Tre'dish

Home-to-Home food technology platform and community marketplace Tre’dish has today announced a $10m seed funding round as it commercializes and scales operations across the U.S. and Canada. The funding round was led by Tre’dish Founding Team Members; Peter Hwang, Jay Wilgar, Srin Sridharan and lead investor Wes Hall. The group of marquee investors with their past experiences in the round include: Wes Hall – Founder of BlackNorth Initiative, Dragons Den, Kingsdale Advisors, KSS Group of Companies Luis Javier Castro - Founder of Mesoamerica and Alejandria JP Rangaswami - Chief Scientist at Salesforce and British Telecom. Previously Chief Data Officer, Deutsche Bank. Steve Smith – CEO of Recipe Unlimited (Formerly Cara Operations). EVP - Loblaw Andrea DelZotto – Founder of Concrete Cardinal and Director, Tridel Group of Companies Qamar Qureshi – President and CBO - Knowledgehook Tre’dish has created a food tech marketplace platform that focuses on bringing the home-to-home food sharing economy together. Home Chefs have the opportunity to sell to consumers right in their own community, a diverse selection of authentic meals prepared by the person who makes it best. With the home-to-home market growing significantly during the pandemic, home chefs have been selling their meals through social media platforms in an unstructured grey market without proper processes to instil trust for the consumer. Furthermore, other platforms that are coming into the market have simply created a marketplace where Home Chefs meet Consumers, and no support is provided for the Chefs to build a sustainable business. Embedded in the Tre’dish technology is our Chef Education Platform and Chef Portal that allows Home Chefs access to some of the most innovative tools in the hospitality space. Our EdTech platform provides a Home Restauranteur guidance and support to build a business right from their own home kitchen safely and profitably with little to no investment required. The success of the Tre’dish model has been driven by two central trends. Firstly, the hospitality industry for small owner-operated restaurants has been at a breaking point for several years with high overhead running costs (i.e. rent, labour, marketing and delivery) and very low margins making it difficult to sustain a profitable operation. Moreover, to make a living they must sacrifice everything with zero work-life balance. Secondly, the pandemic brought into sharp focus the reality facing 3 million hospitality industry workers in the US and Canada when over 130,000 restaurants were closed disproportionally impacting the BIPOC community. For some, this provided the impetus to take to social media and sell food prepared from their home kitchens. For others, Tre’dish will now provide a new path for opportunity, employment and entrepreneurship. Peter Hwang, CEO and Co-Founder at Tre’dish, commented, "The pandemic was very difficult on small businesses especially owner operated restaurants. Tre’dish was built to level the playing field providing equal access and opportunity for all individuals to once again flourish in the hospitality industry regardless of their cultural background, gender, experience, or financial ability. The only thing anyone requires is an amazing recipe and the desire to share their food with the world” Tre’dish aims to build a global, impact-focused, food tech unicorn by providing equal opportunities for all cultural groups and new immigrants through access to a platform for any food entrepreneur to grow their presence and start a profitable business. Currently, 4 of the 5 largest shareholders represent BIPOC standing as it seeks to elevate a minority owned entrepreneurial movement. Tre’dish has built a bona fide business model, that authentically and organically creates a movement to empower and encourage historically underserved and underprivileged communities to become burgeoning food entrepreneurs and social media food influencers. “Tre’dish is redefining what it means to be a professional chef by taking the hospitality industry beyond its historical confines of bricks and mortar restaurants,” said Wes Hall, Executive Chairman and Founder of KSS Group of Companies Inc. “I am proud to back such an innovative business model not only because of the tremendous future potential this company has but because of the thousands of jobs and opportunity Tre’dish will create for minority and BIPOC community members who have too often been left behind. Tre’dish will connect talented chefs with customers but also provide them with business knowledge and skills that will help them be successful for the long term.” Tre’dish is not only a marketplace for home chefs and consumers but has set out to create a platform which empowers them to create successful businesses and have choice in what they eat respectively. For Home Chefs, Tre’dish is a technology portal that offers: Home restaurant consulting and business optimization technology tools such as, Menu Card Development, SKU Optimization, Consolidated Group Ordering and Geo-Targeted Data Tracking so they can build efficient and profitable businesses from day one. A real time food and safety platform A media content platform and technology training system which teaches home chefs how to become food influencers and content creators. Helping them build user created content and dissemination strategies to maximize engagement and views of their social posts. For Consumers, Tre’dish provides: A marketplace platform allowing individuals to support their local home chefs knowing they are preparing their meals safely with the highest quality restaurant standards that are digitally documented. An amazing culinary experience in your community. The ability to support local chefs and try their authentic, healthy, and home cooked meals delivered conveniently to your door. A technology and data platform that remembers your personalized food preferences to create the best experience possible – dietary, fitness, allergen and personalized meal customization that is geo-targeted in your area. A food content and media platform allowing users to view content from Tre’dish Home Chefs across the globe including Chefs in their own geo-targeted Virtual Food Court. Peter Hwang concluded, “As we launch our commercial operations, we see a massive opportunity to become thought leaders in the growing home-to-home food sharing economy. We are not only creating a disruptive technology, but we are creating a mainstream platform that can positively impact cultural diversity, mass job creation and entrepreneurial growth for generations for the foreseeable future” About Tre’dish Tre’dish is a foodtech marketplace platform that enables and unites home chefs in the home-to-home food sharing economy. It allows individuals the opportunity to monetize their home kitchens and sell home cooked meals to local consumers in their community. Media images can be found here. Contact Details Tre'dish Bilal Mahmood +44 7714 007257 media@tredish.com Company Website https://tredish.com/

November 03, 2021 12:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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British fintech Nimbla attracts £5.1m investment as embedded insurance takes off

Stockwood Strategy

Fintech business insurance startup Nimbla has today announced a £5.1m funding round led by Silicon Valley venture fund Fin VC with participation from Barclays Bank. The funding comes as Nimbla seeks to scale its operations with increased demand from embedded credit risk solutions through its API with banks and alternative lending platforms. Founded in 2016, the Nimbla platform has given businesses the confidence to trade with a peace of mind using invoice insurance with quotes provided within seconds. Their proprietary digital automated credit risk platform is able to process requests immediately and provide real time quotes. Nimbla has processed over 67m invoices worth £2.5b. During the pandemic, volumes of invoices tripled as economic uncertainty and supply chain concerns increased and Nimbla continued writing new business. Flemming Bengtsen, CEO at Nimbla commented: “We have been growing steadily over the past few years, ramping up our technology and team to better understand businesses, the nature of B2B debt and to make faster decisions to serve our growing customer base. 2020 was a seminal year for Nimbla, at a time of global crisis, we were there for businesses enabling them to trade with a peace of mind and giving them confidence to carry on. This funding round will enable us to expand our platform, grow the team as we enable a confident and trusted trading environment for businesses across the UK and beyond”. Nimbla has worked directly with businesses and brokers to provide invoice insurance cover and more recently has launched a new API for Banks, fintech lenders and B2B platforms to enable more business to access the service. Nimbla partnered with Barclays Bank in 2020 to give their one million small business customers the ability to take out insurance against individual invoices, rather than the whole book. “We have built a powerful and robust credit risk model, automated large parts of the process and have now launched a new API to enable others to embed seamless credit risk solutions into their platforms” added Flemming Bengtsen. On investing in funding round Henry Cashin, Head of EMEA at Fin VC, commented: “Nimbla is giving businesses the confidence to trade again. They have a proven credit risk model and its tech is being adopted by top tier banks and a host of lending platforms. We believe this will scale their reach and help more businesses benefit long term”. Looking ahead, Flemming Bengtsen commented: “UK companies have added £1.9tn debt in 2020 to their balance sheets, taking the total amount outstanding to over £6.6tn. This number was inflated by the various government loan schemes. Over half of them are carrying ‘toxic debts’ which carries enormous risk for their trade creditors, there is a huge opportunity and responsibility for Nimbla to give companies a peace of mind and insure their invoices against insolvencies”. About Nimbla Nimbla makes sure businesses get paid for their hard work, even if a customer becomes insolvent. Founded in 2016, the company is on a mission to give SMEs the confidence to trade with a peace of mind using invoice insurance. Nimbla’s digital insurance platform backed by expert risk analysts, allows businesses to check a buyer’s ability to pay and insure individual invoices against non-payment in a fast and affordable way. This will enable business owners to safeguard against insolvent customers, expand into new and existing markets and secure better borrowing terms. The platform can be accessed directly (www.nimbla.com) and through partnerships with Barclays and insurance brokers. Based in London, Nimbla aims to bring the trade credit industry into the 21st century. Challenging traditional insurance models, the cover is flexible and adapts to fit your business — whether it’s a one-off invoice or multiple transactions. Contact Details Nimbla Bilal Mahmood +44 7714 007257 b.mahmood@stockwoodstrategy.com Company Website https://www.nimbla.com/

November 03, 2021 08:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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SMEs “keep calm and carry on” despite rising costs from suppliers

Stockwood Strategy

Supply chain issues and increasing costs have impacted SMEs countrywide and yet they seem to be handling it in their usual resilient stride. Fintech business lender MarketFinance asked 1,000 SME owners 1 across the UK how they are managing rising supplier prices, what measures they have put in place and sought their long term outlook on the increasing costs of doing business. Supplier costs Four out of five (79%) SMEs have faced increased prices from suppliers over the past 6 months. An increase of cost of raw materials was the top ranked rationale for price increases by suppliers, most keenly felt by businesses in the north west of England (85%). This was followed by staff shortages, the ongoing impact of the pandemic slowdown and supply chain disruptions owing to a shortage of truck drivers. Across the UK, a quarter of SMEs reported supplier prices have almost doubled over the past 6 months. Impact A third of SMEs (32%) have been able to absorb the increased costs without passing them on to customers, suggesting that these businesses have the necessary cash reserves to handle the impact. Only a fifth (21%) are passing a portion of the increased costs onto customers. Businesses in the south west of England and Northern Ireland are least likely to absorb the costs while businesses in the north west and Yorkshire are the most likely to do so. Their customers are proving to be equally understanding of the wider supply chain situation with only a fifth (20%) challenging business owners about the price rises. Outlook Looking ahead to the festive season, SMEs feel they will be able to manage the situation but some could increase prices if the pressure gets too much. Two fifths reported they could increase their prices by as much as 10% in the run up to Christmas. Longer term, three quarters (73%) of SMEs are already preparing for the current higher prices to be the norm until at least the end of 2022. A third of SMEs (34%) have taken out loans or are using other finance facilities to manage the increased cost of doing business. Anil Stocker, CEO at MarketFinance, commented: “ The current economic environment with rising costs is presenting some headwinds and headaches for SME owners but they are proving to be as resilient as ever. The vast majority have been thinking ahead and accounted for the longer term scenario, which will hold them in good stead to do business. It’s great to see that SME owners are taking the long view and preserving their customer relationships and managing suppliers by having a finance facility in place to deal with the overhead for now. The British Business Bank announced last week that it will extend its Recovery Loan Scheme to June 2022. This extension will give SMEs easier access to more affordable finance they need to continue running and growing operations in the face of ongoing challenges such as staff shortages and supplier price increases.” 1 Research findings based on a survey of 1,000 UK companies (who are employers with a minimum turnover of £100,000) conducted for MarketFinance in October 2021 by LMRMC Research (a Market Research Society approved partner and ESOMAR corporate member). About MarketFinance MarketFinance is a fintech business lender which believes that SMEs are building the world. By making finance frictionless, they’re solving the cash flow issues getting in the way of progress. MarketFinance uses smart technology to deliver better access to faster, more affordable finance; with one-to-one help whenever businesses need it. Since 2011, MarketFinance has advanced over £2.6 billion worth of invoices and loans, enabling thousands of UK businesses to bridge today’s funding gaps and fuel tomorrow’s big ambitions. MarketFinance is an accredited Recover Loan Scheme lender and has a wide-reaching network of strategic partners including Barclays Bank UK PLC, Tide, Equals Group and Ebury. MarketFinance is backed by Barclays Bank UK PLC, Mouro Capital, Paul Forster (co-founder of Indeed.com) European venture capital fund Northzone (invested in Klarna, iZettle and Trustpilot), Viola Capital and private equity group MCI Capital (also invested in iZettle, Azimo and Gett). Contact Details MarketFinance Bilal Mahmood +44 7714 007257 b.mahmood@stockwoodstrategy.com Company Website https://marketfinance.com/

November 02, 2021 10:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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