DSW Ventures, the venture capital investment business of the Dow Schofield Watts group, has promoted Eleanor Boardman to Investment Manager in a period of significant growth for the regional VC.
Eleanor joined DSW Ventures from KPMG in 2019 and has been pivotal in the expansion of the business which has gone from start-up to a prominent provider of venture capital across the UK. In that time, the firm has more than tripled funds under management, successfully implemented its £10m funding partnership with British Business Investments on the Regional Angels Programme, and increased the monthly number of applicants companies to consistently more than 100 start-ups per month.
The promotion of Eleanor is part of an aggressive growth strategy being executed by the DSW Ventures partners, Keith Benson and David Smith. The firm has recently recruited a new investment associate to join in early 2022 and is actively recruiting for a senior investment professional.
These appointments will underpin a national plan to invest in the best start-ups and scale-up companies outside of London. DSW Ventures has recently completed its first Midlands deal with the addition of Nottingham-based 4D Biomaterials to its portfolio, has a Welsh portfolio company in women-focused brand ACAI Outdoorwear, and has five portfolio companies across the North of England.
The firm expects its next investments in 2021 to further consolidate DSW Ventures’ position in the North and add its first Scottish business to the portfolio.
Keith Benson commented: “Ellie has been a stand-out performer in the two years since joining us. This is a very well-deserved promotion for an outstanding professional. Ellie’s contribution to our growth and the support of our investors, portfolio companies and wider stakeholders has been invaluable. We are incredibly excited about the next phase of growth for our firm and Ellie is a fundamental part of our strategy for building the DSW Ventures business.”
David Smith further added: “It’s been an incredibly busy and rewarding two years since Ellie joined us. Our investment agenda continues to gather momentum with our portfolio now supporting over 250 jobs in the regions of the UK. Ellie’s scalability and professionalism has been a huge asset and we are very confident in her ability to become one of the leaders in the UK investment market.”
