Campus Capital to back Lancashire startups in latest uni deal

Expanding venture capital firm Campus Capital has struck a new partnership with Lancaster University.

The deal will see Campus plough between £50k and 200k into early stage Lancashire businesses with high-growth potential.

The firm said all companies in the county will be eligible to pitch for investment – not just those run by students, graduates or staff at the university.

The on-campus element of Campus Capital represents an experiential learning programme involving teams of student venture capitalists, who are part-running some early aspects of the fund pipeline.

Once trained, the students make many of the early investment decisions, gaining experience in assessing a business’ investment readiness while receiving ongoing mentoring from Campus Capital’s partners and investor network.

Earlier this year, Campus Capital signed a similar partnership with the University of Manchester.

Campus Capital founding partner Michael Howe said: “There are a lot of investable companies already out there in the region so this isn’t about helping to create new startups.

“Our focus is on making sure these existing startups who are already doing great things get the investment they need to scale.”

He added: “Our connection with world-renowned universities such as Lancaster makes us particularly well-placed to support companies within the science and technology sectors.”

Jon Powell, Lancaster University’s head of enterprise and innovation services, commented: “We are delighted to join forces with Campus Capital and build on our fantastic links with regional businesses by bringing much needed investment into the Lancashire economy.

“Lancaster University has a pivotal role to play in supporting innovation. We want to develop employable graduates and the graduate employers of tomorrow as well as supporting businesses through consultancy, joint research and co-location. Now we can support direct investment into those businesses with growth potential.”

Campus Capital will open to Lancashire startups in the New Year, but the firm is encouraging businesses that are considering fundraising in the next six months to get in touch sooner.