Consumer insights business听Vypr听is planning expansion with 拢2.5 million of new funding.听
The Manchester firm intends to move into new sectors and overseas markets with the听growth capital investment backed by YFM Equity Partners (YFM) through its British Smaller Companies VCTs.听
Founded in 2013 by Ben Davies,听Vypr听has built a cloud-based data validation platform that enables manufacturers and retailers to save time and costs on new product development by providing insight into what customers want to see on the shelves.听听
It combines research into behavioural science with听a听segmented consumer panel,听allowing the client to test every aspect of product innovation, from packaging, pricing and naming to product claims and ranging.听
Vypr听works with leading retailers such as The Co-op Food and brands like Weetabix and M眉ller.听The 15-strong team expanded its consumer panel into France and Germany in 2020.听
It has听developed a number of additional products听such as an analytics tool for profiling multiple products within a given category or classification; a function which assesses consumer value perception of products and models pricing elasticity; and a brand sentiment tracker.听
The investment from YFM will enable the business to grow its sales and marketing team as it builds on its strong customer base among food manufacturers, retailers and FMCG brands and moves into new vertical sectors.听听
Vypr听will also continue to invest in product development as well as exploring further international markets, building on its European presence.听
Chair of听Vypr, Richard Law,听an expert in data and data analytics driven disruption, commented:听鈥�With ever-increasing consumer demand for interesting products driving innovation, our clients are looking to launch fewer but more successful products as well as optimising their share of the available market.听
鈥淭he听Vypr听platform has proved able to provide them with this valuable intelligence in less than an hour – it eliminates the need for expensive research and reduces the number of failed product launches. We鈥檝e had phenomenal feedback from clients who say it has transformed the way they work.听
鈥淭he success of听Vypr听is down to the vision of our founder and the world-leading team of people that we have managed to bring together. I鈥檓 confident of听Vypr鈥檚听long-term strategy and its continued success.鈥�听