A supplier of incontinence products is planning a national advertising campaign after securing a six-figure investment from a North East jobs fund.
Lylalife, based in Durham, provides a range of urinary incontinence products which are delivered direct to customers, with a monthly repeat order service available in addition to one-time purchases.
The company, which was founded 18 months ago, has increased its orders via Facebook adverts but is now planning a major radio and TV advertising campaign after securing a £100,000 investment in the Small Loan Fund of the North East Fund.
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The company hopes to increase its customer base from 5,000 to around 50,000 over the next two years, with the aim of creating 20 jobs at its Durham and Newcastle offices.
Lylalife has been developed by a team of directors who combine experience in supplying similar product ranges to the care home sector and the NHS with financial and marketing experience.
Managing Director Wayne Dobson says: “The products we supply are quite expensive to buy in stores and experience shows that the quality can be variable, while some customers may understandably feel a little embarrassed to be seen. remove them from supermarket shelves.
“My existing business relationships with manufacturers in the industry have allowed us to source quality products very economically and have enabled us to build an initial range of premium products.
“Our team of e-commerce marketing experts then developed our website and digital marketing strategy to see if we could build a business. Customer response was extremely encouraging and the challenge for us now is to expand our operations, to increase brand awareness and to ensure that the maximum number of potential customers understand the quality and breadth of what we offer.
“Our new year marketing campaign is the starting point for this campaign and we are confident that we can grow our customer base tenfold over the next two years, with the added benefit of new jobs in the North East to follow as we grow.
“Being able to access capital in the region was an important factor for us. When we looked at what was available here, the scalable model offered by NEL was the obvious choice and we are already thinking about how we might use other growth investments in the future.
The Small Loan Fund is part of the larger North East Fund and is administered by NEL fund managers. The overall £120m North East Fund aims to provide financial support to over 600 businesses, creating around 3,500 jobs and offering a legacy of up to £80m for new investment in the region.
Jonathan Armitage, Head of Investments at NEL Fund Managers, said: “Lylalife has already demonstrated customer demand for its high quality products and its business plan clearly shows how it can grow significantly over the next two months. years. ”
