Alasdair Bremner, chief executive of Alusid, a portfolio company of Frontier IP Group PLC (AIM:FIPP), joined Proactive's Stephen Gunnion after the company raised £1.1 million, including £500,000 from Octopus Investments.
Bremner said the company will use the funding to expand its product range, including a new floor tile made from 98.5% recycled material, boasting one of the lowest carbon footprints in the market. Alusid's mass-produced product 'Principle', consisting of 91.3% recycled material, is already available nationwide. The company also plans to grow its team, focusing on international distribution to leverage global opportunities.
Bremner revealed plans for an initial public offering (IPO) later this year, highlighting their scale production in Spain and Italy and a strong validation from Octopus Investments.
The company's patented technology significantly reduces the energy mix in the production process, cutting carbon footprint by 60-69% compared to other market products, according to a study with the Materials Processing Institute.
Alusid's future includes strengthening relationships with major clients like H&M and Starbucks, expanding distribution in Europe, and launching innovative products like a wall tile using recycled glaze. Bremner expressed excitement about these developments and their environmental benefits, promising to keep stakeholders updated on the company's progress.
Stephen Gunnion (SG): You've raised £1.1 million, including £500,000 from major investor Octopus Investments, how are you going to use the proceeds?
Alasdair Bremner (AB): It's really exciting to have Octopus Investments join the team. We will be expanding the product ranges.
Obviously, we launched our first mass-produced product last year, called 'Principle', made from 91.3% recycled material, available in Topps and nationwide. We'll be adding to that product range with our floor tile later this year, which will be made from 98.5% recycled material and will be one of the lowest carbon footprint products available on the market.
We will be expanding the team, initially our sales team, to look at international distribution software for global product opportunities. So, we will be focusing on that.
SG: You're also looking to IPO later this year. How's that progressing?
AB: I'd say that Octopus Investments' involvement is a strong validation of our patented technology and our capital-efficient model. We have our scale production set up in both Spain and Italy, making our production fully scalable.
We're looking to push this into international markets. So, yes, it's progressing well. We're planning to expand the sales team and also to augment the board with expertise in certain areas where we're currently lacking."
SG: Can you take us through the environmental benefits please?
AB: Obviously, we use recycled materials. Our patented technology allows us to significantly reduce the energy used in the production process. For example, we avoid spray drying, enabling us to reduce the carbon footprint by substantial percentages.
We've conducted work funded by Innovate and completed a full lifecycle analysis with the Materials Processing Institute. Their findings show that our carbon footprint is between 60% and 69% lower compared to other types of products on the market. We've compared this with around 43 other products so far, using TPD as a benchmark.
SG: What else does 2024 and beyond hold for the company?
AB: We're aiming to strengthen our relationships with existing customers, including talks with H&M and Starbucks, who we've already supplied to.
Additionally, we're looking to expand our international distribution. We've been in discussions with a number of partners in Sweden, the Netherlands, and Germany, and we're excited about pushing forward in these areas.
In terms of product development, we have several other exciting products in the pipeline, which we hope to launch later this year. This includes a new wall tile made using a recycled glaze. This is our first product to use a recycled glaze. Previously, we've always had to use commercially available glazes, but this will be our first product with a recycled glaze, maximizing our recycled content. So yes, that's coming along well.