19 December 2022 – London, UK: IW Capital, a leading private equity house, has announced its latest investment in ‘Scan Pay Go’ (SPG) pioneer, Ubamarket by investing an additional £800,000. This latest tranche of capital brings total funding from IW Capital investors to circa £4.4 million.

Ubamarket has developed a market leading SPG app, with its patented ‘Magic Shopping List®’ technology which allows shoppers a frictionless shopping experience, using a mobile device. The SPG app offers an affordable, low-touch, easy-to-use app which gives retailers the ability to grow basket size, increase loyalty, reduce overheads, and analyse purchasing data.

Since the pandemic, Ubamarket has seen consumer behaviour change dramatically which IW Capital also recognises. While delivery and Click & Collect channels have experienced significant growth over the last two years, over 90% of food shopping remains within convenience, grocery, and roadside stores. Consumers now, more than ever, seek speed and convenience and minimal interaction in-store, alongside the ability to pay on mobile devices. 

Ubamarket improves convenience, speed and minimises in-store interactions. As industry disruptors, Ubamarket provides retailers with a solution that increases sales, reduces costs, and directs customers towards app-exclusive offers and deals with little or no in-store staff involvement. 

Since IW Capital’s first investment, Ubamarket has successfully developed a high-tech, feature-rich app which is now ready to be rolled out at scale. The investment will allow Ubamarket to expand its market leading position and its app development team as new retailers are onboarded. The funding will also enable Ubamarket to deliver personalisation for larger retail group rollouts. The SPG app is currently on course to go live in several retail stores, with current partnerships including SPAR, Budgens and Central Co-Op.

Luke Davis, CEO of IW Capital, commented: 

“Ubamarket is disrupting the traditional shopping experience with their Scan Pay Go technology seen across the retail industry today. It has developed a compelling Scan Pay Go app with its patented technology and is now ready to roll out at scale. IW Capital is excited to be backing Ubamarket at a fundamental time as they scale up their technology offering and expand globally. Their technology improves businesses and customer experiences alike.” 

Will Broome, founder and CEO of Ubamarket, said:

“Our success has been built on revolutionising the hospitality and retail sectors, providing them with a solution that can increase sales and reduce costs. We would like to thank IW Capital for its support over the past 5 years. This latest investment from IW Capital marks a significant milestone in our journey as Ubamarket scales up and we develop our strategic partnerships and teams.”

-ENDS-

Notes to editors

About IW Capital

IW Capital is one of the UK’s best-connected private equity houses, focusing on providing growth capital to UK small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). It invests on behalf of a well-established, network of high-net-worths, ultra-high-net-worths, family offices, institutions and wealth managers who share IW’s passion for supporting entrepreneurs with inquisitive, growth-oriented mindsets and a commitment to doing well by doing good.

IW Capital invests in entrepreneurs with businesses that are selected through its rigorous investment process. The entrepreneurs who lead those companies are focused on making the lives of people better. Current IW Capital investments include a business which provides services and products to reduce carbon, energy, and water consumption; a business which uses innovative technology to improve the efficiency of plastic recycling and another which treats wastewater to eliminate harmful pollutants. In addition, the portfolio has strong investments in several healthcare businesses, providing services and innovative consumer products. IW Capital is a long-term partner to all its investee companies and is focused on ensuring it gets the right exit, not just any exit for its investors. This means having the flexibility, structuring capability, and patience to maximise gains for both.

IW Capital – Investing Well by Investing With Purpose.

IW Capital: https://iwcapital.co.uk

About Ubamarket

Ubamarket is a UK-based private company whose ‘Scan-Pay-Go’ (‘SPG’) app allows shoppers a frictionless shopping experience, using a mobile device, with little or no in-store staff involvement. The SPG app offers an affordable, low-touch, easy-to-use, and feature-rich sophisticated retail app. https://ubamarket.com/