mtrx portfolio

mtrx syndicate has invested in UK startups across a range of sectors at seed / pre-series A since 2016

Current investments

Looper Insights

Looper is the market leader in tracking and analytics on video aggregator platforms serving the world’s largest media companies.

CEO: Lucas Bertrand

  • Looper is a Video on Demand analytics service providing insights to content providers on the visibility of their titles on the digital shelves of aggregation platforms such as Samsung, Google TV and Playstation

  • Each platform is distinct in each country, creating the need for global media companies to find an easy way to track the performance of their titles across thousands of routes to the consumer around the world

  • Looper helps to audit and price this screen real estate - guiding media companies to identify the best returns for their marketing spend and help them track the compliance of aggregation platforms in displaying their content

  • Looper’s customers include Amazon Prime Video, Disney, ITV, Hulu, HBO, and is in discussions / trials with most large media companies

  • As the fight for consumer attention between media companies intensifies, Looper’s insights are seen as increasingly critical to maximise securing eyeballs on their content

  • Looper’s revenues have grown from under £20k/quarter in 2020 to more than £700k/quarter in 2023 - with a very high level of recurring custom

  • We invested in Looper in 2021 and followed on in 2022 and regularly participate in Looper’s monthly board meetings

Stitched

Stitched is a direct-to-consumer retailer of bespoke curtains and blinds made from eco friendly and sustainable materials offering an augmented reality experience to enable customers to visualise the products in their homes.

CEO: Elly Pitt

  • The market for bespoke curtains and blinds remains one of the least disrupted by online retail due to the plethora of choices, the generally poor online experience and the risk of ordering the wrong product / size

  • Stitched is disrupting the £1bn UK curtain and blind industry with a major focus on augmented reality that improves the customer buying experience enabling them to visualise the products on their app in situ at home

  • Fabrics are ethically sourced and all curtains and blinds are made in the UK. Stitched is a B-corp, meaning that it is recognised for having social and environmental outcomes as part of its mission. Again, the home furnishings market has not yet caught up with current consumer trends / ESG demands, and will be disrupted in the coming years

  • Since launch in 2018, Stitched generated sales of over £3m with 20% of its sales coming from repeat customers and has developed a number of successful collaborations with adjacent players in the home furnishings market

  • In recent years, the rebrand of Stitched to a more elevated and aspirational look has been well received in the market and the team has demonstrated excellent execution during challenging circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent cost of living crisis

  • We invested in 2019 and followed on in 2021 and enjoy a regular dialogue with Stitched during and outside board meetings

StayOne

Stay One is a curated peer-to-peer booking platform with some of the world’s most incredible holiday homes and is now in partnership with Mandarin Oriental.

CEOs: Tom Bennett & Jorge Munoz

  • The peer-to-peer property rental space is rapidly growing with luxury travel the fastest growing and highest margin niche

  • Trust in the listing is critical given the risks of ‘fake homes’ listed on larger platforms - and at the top end of the market users have the most to lose if things go wrong

  • In marketplaces where users generally face an inconsistent quality offering between choices, all homes have to adhere to StayOne’s meticulous quality standards, providing the reassurance needed for high-end customers to trust a listing and make a booking - typically costing $25k+ for a week

  • StayOne has grown since launch in 2018 to c. 5,000 homes and 65,000 registered members generating annual booking revenue of c. $8m (vs < $1m in 2018)

  • mtrx syndicate introduced Mandarin Oriental to StayOne in 2020 who subsequently made a multi-million dollar investment and developed a joint venture for ‘Mandarin Oriental Exclusive Homes’ - whereby Mandarin Oriental brings its exceptional service offering to StayOne’s finest homes, providing furher assurance to customers of what service levels to expect for those homes

  • We invested in StayOne in 2019 and followed on in 2020, 2021 and 2022 - encouraged by strong execution and consistently strong feedback from customers

  • Kash and Tom began their careers in investment banking together over 20 years ago, and we continue a strong dialogue with StayOne, guiding them through their growth journey in regular discussions and board meetings

Century

Century is a platform using Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and advanced data science in providing a personalised learning experience for schoolchildren.

CEO: Priya Lakhani OBE

  • Century is a learning platform developed by an award-winning team of experienced teachers, neuroscientists and technologists

  • Century augments school teaching, automates much of the admin teachers currently have to do - and uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to assess the development of students, identify their learning needs and give them the tools to plug these gaps

  • Century helps save teachers valuable time and enhances the personalised learning paths for each student - with 93% of school leaders that use Century recommending it to other teachers

  • Since launch in 2018, Century has grown to over 1,100 schools across 50+ countries with annual recurring revenue of c. £5m (with annual growth of c. 25%) and a team of over 110 FTEs

  • Century has successfully developed several strategic collaborations including with exam boards and major educational publishers and local organisations around the world helping to drive sales into schools

  • As AI begins to impact the educational sector through platforms such as Chat-GPT, Century is well positioned to benefit from this increasing awareness, positioned as an innovative yet safe and trusted technology, legitimately and effectively used across the world in Education

  • CEO Priya is a serial entrepreneur, a regular keynote speaker at educational conferences and leverages her political and media connections to drive recognition and awareness for Century

  • We invested in Century in 2017 and have sat alongside Pret A Manger co-founder Sinclair Beecham for several board meetings

Desmond & Dempsey

D&D’s exclusive prints, designed in London are inspired by Joel and Molly's Sunday adventures. Made from luxury cotton, their premium pyjamas are made to last.

CEO: Joel Jeffrey

  • Desmond and Dempsey was founded by a husband and wife couple who developed a unique brand of designer pyjamas featuring beautiful prints - aspiring to be the Vilebrequin of the pyjama world

  • We chose to invest in them for two simple reasons - we loved the product and we loved the passion of the founders to focus on the customer

  • In recent years, the company has developed sales channels in the UK, the US, Australia and other key markets such as Germany, as well as wholesale and corporate channels

  • The drive to work from home post-pandemic has increased demand for ‘premium comfort wear’ at home and D&D has been well-positioned to benefit from this trend

  • Annual sales are now c. £7m with a high gross profit margin - having grown from a base of just £100k sales in 2015 - in this time they have expanded from women’s sleepwear initially to men, children and a growing range of adjacent products

  • We first invested in 2016 and are continually impressed with their drive to continue growing the business through various channels globally

Coconut

Coconut is an open banking accounting app for sole traders and freelancers to help with their bookkeeping and tax returns.

CEO: Sam O’Connor

  • The freelancer and sole trader market in the UK is a large population with over 3 million people, however the current accounting packages are generally too complex and lack the functionality needed to serve this segment well

  • Using the open banking access platform, Coconut’s software enables customers to plug their bank accounts into the app and get insights on their spend and estimate their tax liability at the end of the year

  • Customers find the categorisation and invoicing functions very useful and the team focuses carefully on the right notifications at the right time

  • As part of HMRC’s Making Tax Digital modernisation programme, it will expect sole traders and freelancers to submit quarterly tax returns in the future, directly through software such as Coconut

  • Coconut is a software-as-a-service product primarily sold to accounting firms who then pass this software onto their end-user clients - the software automates much of the labour intensive bookeeping accounting work they need to do, saving time and resource

  • The founders are chartered accountants from PwC and created and exited their previous startup before founding Coconut, initially as a bank account and then pivoting to an open banking SAAS platform

  • We first invested in 2017, and followed on in 2019, 2020 and 2021 and hold a board seat as one of their largest investor groups

Previous Investments

LiveSmart

LiveSmart combines blood analysis, technology and health coaching to create a next generation health improvement platform.

  • LiveSmart is a B2B heath assessment company offering blood tests and lifestyle analysis providing a ‘health MOT’ sold to corporates as a benefit provided to employees

  • User demand for health data is on the rise and people want to know more details of their own personal health profile in order to make / track lifestyle improvements and avoid chronic diseases

  • LiveSmart’s biggest customer was AXA who offered this service to their health insurance customers with a multi-year guaranteed minimum volume commitment to LiveSmart

  • Other customers included Universal Music, HCA, FieldFisher and Airbus

  • LiveSmart expanded operations into Malaysia and France in collaboration with AXA

  • We invested in 2018 and followed on in 2020

  • LiveSmart was acquired in 2023 by Inuvi, a health data, insight and lab company

FanBytes

FanBytes enables brands to reach Gen Z audiences through influencers on social media platforms.

  • Fanbytes is a social media and influencer marketing consultancy, helping brands to reach Gen Z audiences through social media influencers on Snapchat, instagram, TikTok, YouTube

  • The team initially started with YouTube but were quick to spot the early trends of other emerging platforms and quickly developed expertise in those ahead of slower competitors

  • Building on top of the influencer campaigns, they also developed analytics capabilities to measure the performance of campaigns and analysed trends in the market to help brands understand the rapidly changing landscape

  • We invested in 2017 and saw the team achieve impressive revenue growth winning multiple large, repeat clients, securing further investment, and growing a great team

  • Fanbytes has delivered over 2,000 campaign activations, serving over 500 brand partners with over 5,000 influencer collaborations

  • Fanbytes was acquired in 2022 by Brainlabs, one of the UK’s fastest growing digital media agencies

Nobly POS

Nobly is an EPOS system focused on serving restaurants and coffee shops and provides linked inventory and staffing management tools.

  • Nobly is an electronic point of sale system focused on the hospitality sector - restaurants and coffee shops

  • Their software and hardware combines everything retailers need to take payments on card from their customers, plus a direct inventory and staffing management system based on sales of product and utliisation of staff - so each time a product is sold, the stock levels are adjusted and automatically ordered when needed

  • The EPOS space is fiercely competitive but the relentless focus of the management team on their niche customer segment stood out as a key differentiator

  • We invested in 2017 and helped the company in developing its growth and exit strategy

  • Nobly was acquired in 2021 by fintech unicorn Revolut

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