Food packaging manufacturer iPac has secured a £2.2m investment that will fund expansion of its production lines and the creation of 42 new jobs.
Gateshead-based iPac, which specialises in food and pharmaceutical packaging, received the funding injection from Maven Venture Capital Trusts and the North East Development Capital Fund (NEDCF), supported by the European Regional Development Fund and managed by Maven.
The investment will see iPac increase its production lines from three to 13 within five years and increase the size of its workforce from 51 to 93.
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It follows recent news that iPac would investment £730,000 - including £200,000 from The Growth Fund, part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) - to ramp up production of its sustainable iCard product.
The NEDCF first provided funding to iPac in 2019 to help it invest in equipment, including new thermoform machines. The business has since tripled its revenues to more than £10m.
Jonny Catto, managing director and co-founder at iPac said: “We are delighted to welcome Maven back to the business as a key funding partner. Maven’s 2019 funding package was instrumental in driving our growth from £3m to £10m within three years.
"The current funding deal underpins our continuingly ambitious growth plans which will see us invest in additional thermoforming capacity and site improvements allowing us to further support new and existing customers as we continue iPac’s exciting growth journey.”
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IPac operates from a 28,000 sqft factory in Gateshead, turning out more than 300 million units each year including products for several tier one food suppliers.
David Nixon, senior investment manager at Maven, said; “Maven is delighted to continue our support for iPac having first backed the team in 2019. We have been impressed by the growth of the business and its performance track record. iPac is led by an experienced team who have grown and exited businesses in this sector, and their latest venture has built up a strong reputation in the industry for product innovation, quality, service and environmental responsibility.
"Through a combination of funds Maven manages we have structured an investment to support iPac through its next growth phase, helping the business to further scale its operations to enable it to capitalise on the positive market conditions.”
Maven was advised on the transaction by Weightmans, Cook and Roebuck, and iPac was advised by Sintons LLP.