Cheshire-based life sciences startup Cryoniss secures £500,000 investment from NPIF – Maven
The funding will allow Cryoniss, a specialist provider of temperature controlled storage and logistics management services for the life sciences sector, to scale up their operations and sales team.
Cheshire-based life sciences startup Cryoniss is targeting accelerated domestic and international growth after securing a £500,000 investment from NPIF – Maven Equity Finance, managed by Maven Capital Partners and part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF).
Founded in 2018 by Sonia Houghtion and Phil Hargreaves, Cryoniss provides temperature-controlled biological sample storage and logistics solutions to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors, universities, and clinical research organisations.
The company has sites at the Alderley Park bioscience campus near Macclesfield and The Heath Business and Technical Park in Runcorn.
The funding will enable Cryoniss to create new jobs, expand its service offering and invest in green technology as it seeks to create new jobs in the North West and grow its customer base initially in the UK and Europe.
Gavin Bell, senior investment manager at Maven, said: “We are delighted to invest in this growing North West business within the life sciences sector that is aiming to revolutionise a delicate and critical variety of outsourced activities. Sonia and Phil are both highly skilled operators and are complemented by an experienced board to help steer the growth plan. We look forward to working with them as they embark on an ambitious programme of growth.”
Sonia Houghton, co-founder and CEO at Cryoniss, said: “Cryoniss has always been passionate about enabling exceptional science – taking the headaches and the stresses away from the scientists at the bench, so that they can continue to put patients first. With this investment, we can extend the range of services we offer and broaden our customer base as a truly global provider.
“We plan to more than double our workforce, ensuring that sample integrity remains at the heart of what we do and that our standards are never compromised, and also to invest in greener technologies and sustainable solutions for our storage facilities. It’s a massively exciting time for the whole team, who are looking forward to building on the strong foundation we’ve established in order to make Cryoniss a world-class bio-service provider.”
Sue Barnard from the British Business Bank, said: “Cryoniss is the latest in a series of life sciences businesses to secure backing from the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund. Operating out of Alderley Park – one of a number of hubs for scientific excellence in the North – this deal demonstrates how support provided by our fund managers can help to facilitate business growth in the region, create new job opportunities and catalyse innovation, in turn creating a more prosperous regional economy.”
Bamburgh Capital advised Cryoniss on the transaction, with Alex Clarkson and Edward Thompson leading from the team.
Alex Clarkson, Director at Bamburgh Capital, said: “We are delighted to have helped Cryoniss secure prominent investors capable of supporting management’s exciting ambitions in the UK and internationally. This investment validates the strong foundations that have been laid by the team as they seek to deliver the growth plan.”
The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.
Slater Heelis provided legal advice on the transaction, with partners Rhian Owen and Simon Wallwork, and Solicitor Mark Warburton from the North West law firm’s commerical division overseeing the deal.
The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund project, which is designed to boost SME growth in the North of England, is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.