Diamond Shines Brightly with Angel Investment
With £60,000 from the Viking Loan Fund and £100,000 of private equity from eight business angels, Diamond has raised its profile by re-branding, attending high-profile expos and making sure its at the cutting edge of technology crucial for a small company in a sector dominated by large players. Diamond takes organic pigments and disperses them in water using specialist milling equipment that takes the particles down to the nanometric scale. With this method, the dispersions remain stable, guaranteeing bright, vivid and permanent colours. The dispersions are then sold to the ink industry for use in printer cartridges, packaging and posters.
The security of the investment has enabled Diamonds Executive Directors, Peter Callahan and Sue Wright, to make overseas business development trips. We're combining exhibiting at an expo in Shanghai with visits to a customer in Hong Kong and a distributor in South Korea, says Sue. Ninety per cent of our current output is exported and we're hoping to open up new markets in South America and India, where we already have contacts. Another big step forward would be to break into Russia, but that's for the future.
Newly-acquired accreditation for ISO 9001:2008 adds formal recognition of Diamond's quality-driven approach. Angel investor Kit Bird is a Non Executive Director of the company and has monthly meetings with Sue and Peter. €œKit is extremely useful, says Sue. The investment has benefited us hugely and made a phenomenal difference to our growth and Kit has been an integral part of our development.
