A Crowdcube fundraisier to help a triathlon clothes and accessories business expand its reach has now raised close to £1 million.
Derby-based Huub – which has been backed by the Olympic medal-winning Brownlee brothers – has raised £951,000 from 995 investors in exchange for a little over 6 per cent of its equity.
The appeal, which valued the business at £14.6 million, originally set out to bring in £250,000.
The money will help the business expand its range and target international growth.
Huub makes clothing and accessories such as wetsuits, triathlon suits, cycle wear, goggles and rucksacks.
Alistair and Jonathan Brownlee, who won triathlon medals at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics, became the first to put their names to the funding round.
They have worked with Huub since founder Dean Jackson asked them to try one of his wetsuits and now have their own Huub ‘Brownlee’ range.
The business said it saw 32 per cent year-on-year growth between 2015 and 2019 and last year had a turnover of £4.8 million.
Huub wants to tap into a recent boom in outdoor and endurance sport which has been boosted by the temporary closure of gyms during the coronavirus lockdown.
According to the Crowdcube pitch: ”HUUB is a premium apparel brand driven by an obsessive focus on performance and innovation.
“Originating in the swimwear and triathlon categories, HUUB now embraces all endurance sports – with recent gains made in the cycle clothing space.
“Our products embrace the latest scientific research, alongside continuous athlete feedback.
“Founded in 2012 by sports industry leader Dean Jackson – the HUUB brand takes its name from human movement specialist Professor Huub Toussaint, the brand’s head of innovation and design.
“Olympic gold and silver medallists the Brownlee Brothers have been brand partners since 2013.
“HUUB has also supported IRONMAN champions, British track cycling team HUUB Wattbike and has built enduring relationships with high profile individuals such as Professor Greg Whyte OBE and chef Gordon Ramsay.
“With revenue of £4.8 million and EBITDA of £420,000 in 2019, HUUB has delivered double-digit revenue gains in consecutive years. HUUB is a leading brand in the £60 million Ƶ triathlon apparel & accessories market.
“Growth into international markets and targeting the $5 billion global bike apparel market is a next step.
“Expansion for HUUB is ongoing. We are targeting all endurance sports through a combination of retail and distributor partnerships, as well as a rapidly expanding direct-to-consumer online business.”
Founder Dean Jackson said: “Alistair and Jonny have been pivotal in our trajectory to get to where we are now and their feedback from an athletic standpoint will continue to be fundamental in producing the best products for our customers.
“We are at a really exciting stage of our growth, with new categories performing incredibly strongly and our product range across the board continuing to appeal to professional and amateur athletes alike.”
