hedgehog lab plots to double revenue following £900,000 investment

Digital product consultancy, hedgehog lab, has raised £900,000 from the North East Development Capital Fund, supported by the European Regional Development Fund and managed by existing investors Maven, as it plots to double its growth again over the next two years.

The investment, which brings total funding in the business to £2.2m, comes after a successful 2019 for the company which saw it reach global revenues of £5m for the first time and launch successful projects with household names including Kodak Moments and Deliciously Ella.

hedgehog lab’s global footprint has also gone from strength-to-strength in the last 12 months with its US business now contributing nearly 25 percent of the group’s revenue having grown revenues around 300 per cent in the past year. 

For Maven, it marks further backing for the business which it invested in back in 2017 during which time hedgehog lab has doubled revenues and is now targeting to double them again within the next two years.

Underlining the tech firm’s ambitions, hedgehog lab has also unveiled a new management team that will drive its ambition to double revenue to £10m by the end of 2021 by supplementing their current team with experienced professionals who have a track record of scaling rapidly growing businesses.

Experienced tech growth advisor, investor and former Sun Microsystems UK Sales Director, Charles Andrews, joins the business as hedgehog lab’s new Chairman. Charles will be drawing on the wealth of experience he’s gained working across various roles at the likes of IBM and Globant to support the company with its future growth plans.

Martin Porton also joins as hedgehog lab’s Finance Director from RTC North bringing over 20 years’ experience working with high growth businesses. The fully qualified chartered accountant has a strong track record in the creative industries having previously held the position of Finance Director at marketing communications company Cravens and creative agency TH_NK.

hedgehog lab is also set to announce the appointment of a new Global Managing Director within the first quarter of 2020 to oversee the organisation’s global operations alongside further internal hires as the company continues to grow.

Following the announcement of hedgehog lab’s latest investment and new management team, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Sarat Pediredla, commented: “A few years ago, we decided to accelerate our scaleup journey by seeking an investor partner who shared our ambition of building a world-class technology consultancy in the North East.

“With the hard work of our team and support from our customers and Maven, we have made incredible progress but we knew we could do more. This latest round of investment allows us to invest in boosting our leadership team and go-to-market strategy to ensure we set the business up for the next stage of growth.”

Michael Vassallo Investment Director of Maven Capital Partners added: “An innovative player in the technology market who we first backed in 2017, we’re delighted to support hedgehog lab as it embarks on an exciting programme of growth. A dynamic and well managed business, hedgehog has already proven their ability to consistently design and build great software and we look forward to working with Sarat and the team to drive the business forward.”

Charles Andrews, hedgehog lab’s new Chairman, said: “hedgehog lab has already built an impressive fan base of clients through their ability to build compelling digital experiences. I am really excited to be joining them as they continue to deliver engaging digital products with more clients across various international markets and grow their digital expertise.”