Children’s food company Benjoy Nutrition announces new investment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) September 24, 2010 -- Two years ago, inspired by her own experiences as a mother of a toddler, Benjoy’s founder, Michelle Daniells started developing a unique range of nutritious and convenient snack foods for young children along with an innovative, anti-spill packaging solution for her products. She teamed up with experts in children’s nutrition and food science to develop healthy, delicious and convenient foods, made from 100% natural ingredients that would help to make parents’ lives easier and children’s diets better.

The initial range of seven snacks includes freeze-dried fruit slices, breadsticks with vegetables and seeds, multigrain bites and unsalted root vegetable crisps. Single portions are packaged in Benjoy’s exclusive anti-spill MUNCHCUPS - the first anti-spill packaging of its kind anywhere in the world. The products have received positive feedback from parents, children and trade buyers and will be launched in Ocado and Morrisons in October this year.

Michelle Daniells commented: “Like many toddlers, my son was a very fussy eater and, like many mums, I was worried about my child’s diet and didn’t want him eating junk food. I was particularly disappointed with the limited choice and poor quality of snack foods available for children, many of which had artificial ingredients and too much salt and sugar added. I was aware that young children have particular dietary needs and that it was important to give them the right foods with high nutritional value. I was also frustrated by the inconvenient packaging and portion sizes of many snack foods and the mess and waste created by toddlers spilling food from conventional packets. I discovered many other mums had similar concerns and I was convinced there was a gap in the market for healthier, age-appropriate snack foods in convenient, less mess packaging. We set out to create delicious, nutritious products that children would enjoy and parents would be happy with. After a huge amount of research and development work, it is incredibly exciting to see our products ready-to-launch and to have received the financial backing and support of the South East Seed Fund and the co-investors.”

The South East Seed Fund, managed by Finance South East, supports the development of businesses at an early stage, operating on a commercial investment return basis and seeking to invest only in opportunities that it believes have the highest potential for success. Sally Goodsell, CEO of Finance South East recognised Benjoy as a concept with big potential and commented:

“By entering a growth market with a unique range of foods and very clever packaging that will fill a gap felt by many parents, Benjoy have positioned themselves strongly. It is exciting to see the South East Seed Fund continuing to invest in early stage businesses and we are proud to have brought together several investment sources, including a group of business angels, to complete this deal.”

Furthermore Michelle represents an increasing number of female entrepreneurs who, due to the nature and stage of their personal lives, are tapping into new and different market opportunities, distinct from their male counterparts. Finance South East has always shown a commitment to encouraging successful female led businesses and Benjoy is a great example of this. We are now also working to engage more women into angel investing - despite holding almost half of the UK’s wealth, women currently represent less than 5% of angel investors. We recently launched our female investor network, ‘Inspire’, and I urge any potential female angels out there to get in touch”.
For more information about Benjoy contact Michelle Daniells on 07949 153319.

Finance South East (FSE) is an independent fund management organisation which provides growth finance to ambitious young businesses. It is authorised by the FSA and backed by the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA).

The organisation has a strong track record of achieving significant results through relatively small investments. An economic impact study in 2009 found the companies that FSE invested in grew almost five times faster than the national average. FSE has a unique business model. Whilst its funds are managed on a commercial basis to meet investor requirements FSE is a not-for-profit entity that does not distribute surpluses. With offices in Camberley and Ipswich, the organisation works across the South East of England and surrounding areas. The team has won many awards for its innovative approach to funding SMEs. The South East Seed Fund is actively open for business and continues to seek innovative early stage companies that demonstrate the potential for growth. This £7.1m equity fund invests between £100,000 and £250,000 on a ‘matched-funding’ basis in small and medium-sized enterprises based in the South East, which may include university spin-outs.
For more information about the South East Seed Fund, contact Julie Silvester on 01276 608521.

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