£1m raised by Sugru in 4 days on Crowdcube
Sugru, the world’s first mouldable ‘glue’, has proved a hit with the crowd; 1314 investors put in amounts ranging from £10 to £40,000, enabling the company to reach its £1 million funding target in just four days last week.
The founder and inventor of Sugru, Jane ni Dhulchaointigh says: “This has been one of the most important milestones in Sugru’s history and by far one of the most enjoyable! Firstly it’s been incredibly humbling to see so many of our longstanding customers further support the business and then to get such a positive response from people hearing about Sugru for the first time is truly rewarding. The team can’t wait to share our future successes with our many new wise and wonderful investors.”
Manufactured in East London, Sugru is an adhesive that moulds like play dough, sticks to almost anything and turns into a strong flexible rubber within 24 hours. Forbes described Sugru as “21st century Duct Tape” and this amazing British invention is fast becoming a ‘must-have’ in every household tool kit. It has now sold 5 million packs in over 160 countries worldwide and more than 1 million customers use the glue for all kinds of projects from DIY repairs at home through to customising gadgets, appliances and even toys.
The capital will be used to support the company’s rapid expansion in the UK, Scandinavia and the USA. An extensive roll out of this unique adhesive is already underway across 4,000 stores at major US retailers including Lowe’s Home Improvement and Target with the number of outlets scheduled to reach 10,000 by December 2015.
Luke Lang, co-founder of Crowdcube adds: “Sugru is one of our fastest raises to date and it’s fantastic to see people eager to support the pitch and get involved. Last week our
Sugru’s name derives from the Irish word for ‘play’ and is available in 10 different colours which can be blended to make any colour you like. Sugru is available at a wide range of retailers across the UK (including B&Q, Maplin, Robert Dyas and Homebase) and US, as well as online at sugru.com. Sold in a 3 pack from £6.99 and 8 pack from £12.99.
With such an innovative product, no wonder the investment has gone through the roof in such a short space of time. I know that I will definitely be picking up a pack for my two busy toddlers.
The pitch is now overfunding and the public can still invest via Crowdcube; details about the pitch and how to invest is available here.