Investors are being invited to “join the inner ring” as doughnut brand Project D launches its first crowdfunding campaign.
The multiple award-winning bakery is looking to raise investment capital of at least £400k through its launch this week on the Crowdcube crowdfunding platform.
Founded in 2018 by three former school friends working from a kitchen table, Derby-based Project D has already attracted partnerships with heavyweight brands like British Airways, Brewdog, Amazon and Rolls-Royce.
In less than five years the self-proclaimed “disruptive” doughnut retailer and manufacturer has grown from the three young entrepreneurs to a company of more than 100 staff operating from a purpose-built 11,000 sq ft bakery.
The firm is seeking to further accelerate its dramatic success by using investors’ funds to multiply its current £2.6m annual turnover to a figure of more than £12m in three years.
For as little as £50, anyone from professional investors to members of the public can become a shareholder in an ambition to create the world’s biggest doughnut company, in a global market estimated to be worth almost £25bn.
Finance raised from the crowdfund campaign will be invested in product innovation, retail expansion, digital marketing and e-commerce and key office hires.
Project D marketing director Max Poynton, who set up the firm with Matt Bond and Jacob Watts, said: “This is a unique opportunity to invest in a young business that has already established itself as one of the leading doughnut manufacturers in the UK.
“There is no better time than now to be involved in this market, as the popularity of doughnuts keeps growing year-on-year.
“We offer a bigger and better product, with more innovation than any of our competitors. I’d therefore urge investors to join the inner ring and enjoy our journey towards becoming the largest doughnut company in the world.”
Project D has recently expanded its senior management team, taking on a head of finance, head of HR and head of retail and wholesale. It also works with business advisor Mark Doleman, who previously spent 20 years as a partner at Deloitte.
The firm, which has to date created more than 2,500 individual product lines, works closely with food scientists and nutritionists at a state-of-the-art research and development facility in Corby, Northamptonshire.
Its rapid expansion has been aided by the company’s huge digital marketing push and social media following, with its TikTok account alone receiving 19m views, 1.1m likes and 27,000 comments in a single two-month period.
Added to that, Project D is preparing to open its first flagship store, in Sheffield’s Meadowhall shopping mall, with plans to open more permanent retail outlets in the near future.
“We’ve already received a great deal of interest from prospective investors,” said Max. “We’re extremely confident that we will smash our £400k target.
“There’s no limit to what people can invest – and we’d love to see a mix of small, £50 investments alongside some big-ticket investments.”
Max added that the firm future-proofed itself for fast expansion when it took on a manufacturing facility capable of turning out more than 17m doughnuts per year. It currently manufactures around 2m doughnuts each year at its Derby headquarters.
The crowdfund campaign has already generated £150k of lead investment prior to the official launch on Crowdcube.
