Investment into early stage businesses is not for the faint hearted . At one end of the spectrum the failure rate for new businesses is 50% within three years of setup. At the other extreme the number of big winners i.e. £1b exits is as rare as the legendary Unicorn. There is a lot to learn from the failures and successes.
Building on this broad theme, Alan will introduce the Octopus Titan ‘Venture Capital Trust’ (VCT) investment philosophy and unique process which has uncovered some great businesses over the last decade. These include LoveFilm, Graze, ITM Power PLC, e-therapeutics PLC, Secret Escapes and Zoopla - the first Unicorn in the Titan portfolio.
Speaker: Alan Wallace - Octopus Investments.
As Senior Investment Director in Octopus, Alan brings over 30 years of experience in marketing, general management and strategic planning to the selection and development of management teams. Prior to founding Katalyst with his colleagues and its subsequent sale to Octopus Investments, he held senior marketing positions in fast moving consumer goods companies: Sara Lee, Rank Hovis McDougal, Cambridge Nutrition and Great Universal Stores.