YFM joins new investment collective to break down barriers to investment for female-led businesses across the North

Laura Sisson of YFM is one of 28 female investment and business experts who have joined forces to create a new collective, Fund Her North, with the objective of helping female entrepreneurs throughout the region to overcome obstacles and secure the funding they need to develop their businesses.

Laura, an investment manager who joined YFM in April, has been working with founder Helen Oldham of NorthInvest and a carefully-chosen group of women in investment who are able to provide expertise in all stages of financial backing from seed to angel funding, venture capital and buyout. Together, they will tackle the challenging landscape faced by women founders, with less than 1% of all UK venture funding estimated to be awarded to all-female teams.

The launch of Fund Her North will take place on 14^th October at a virtual event designed to provide essential pitch advice for start-ups and scale-ups. Sara Davies of Dragon’s Den will be the key speaker, and there will be a panel of female founders from across the North, including Zandra Moore, founder and CEO of Panintelligence, a YFM-backed tech business.

Laura explains: “As a woman in investment, I’m well aware of the huge pool of female talent out there, but, traditionally, this has been under-represented and I want to play a part in creating a  real presence in the North to support female entrepreneurs. We plan to host a range of events and I will be helping to shape these as well as lending my expertise to answer queries about venture capital, and acting as a mentor and a connector.

“I’m excited to join this ambitious initiative and help female founders across the North to access the backing they need, whatever the stage in their entrepreneurial journey.”

Designed to help entrepreneurs who have just started up or established businesses, Fund Her North’s reason for being is to invest in local, thriving female-fronted organisations, provide a network to help women gain the confidence to navigate complex investments and offer timely and appropriate support. Fund Her North will also be able to give a voice to struggling businesses with influential female investors and inspirational entrepreneurs, united to tackle the many barriers facing women accessing investment.

To find out more and register for the launch event, visit fundhernorth.com.