To date, more than 20 companies have been accelerated with a 93% success rate in fundraising and merging and acquisition deals; EUR 96 million transaction value; an average of 67% revenue growth in the first year after participation in the programme and 73% team growth in the first year after participation. Among the most significant cases are the four exit transactions involving start-ups Indigo.ai, Kippy, PayDo and Homepal; the $12.5m round of Cubbit; the €4m Series A financing for Cosmico and two buy-side acquisitions; the €4m Series A financing for TimeFlow and the €3m and €2.4m rounds for Barberino’s and TrueScreen respectively.
With these numbers, the A-Road programme designed for early-stage scale-up start-ups and realised by Growth Capital launches its sixth batch to which start-ups in the Series A round can apply until 11 April.
The programme envisages direct investments of between 200 and 500 thousand euros provided by Growth Engine and partners, mentorship activities with managers, investors with relevant experience such as Marco Ariello, Paola Bonomo, Micol Fornaroli, Tommaso Gamaleri, Milena Mondini, Alessandro Petazzi, Duccio Vitali, Andrea Zocchi, the possibility of accessing the expertise of the programme’s partners including McKinsey, AWS, Legance, Carter&Benson, Sisvel, Simon&Kucher, Studio Ricci&Radaelli, Studio CS and the possibility of being supported directly by Growth Capital to manage the process of approaching and managing the Series A round.
It is therefore a programme that is specifically designed for scale-ups, from any sector, with a strong team, validated MVP, market traction, marginality, clear competitive advantage, operating in growth markets and, of course, ready for the Series A round within the next 12 months.
The scaleups that participated in previous batches were: Barberino’s, a brand dedicated to men’s grooming with barber salons and private label products; GoVolt, a 100% electric last-mile logistics operator with a proprietary technology infrastructure; HiNelson, specialising in the online sale of nautical and fishing components; Homepal, a digital real estate agency active since 2016; and Indigo.ai, a conversational artificial intelligence platform for chatbots and customised interfaces that participated in the first batch.
The second batch involved: Freedome, a marketplace for outdoor experiences in Italy; Paydo, a solution for digital payments and fintech services; Tundr, a platform for human resources management and agile working; Yocabè, a service for selling products on online marketplaces.
In the third batch the following were selected: Cosmico, a platform for managing freelance talent in the creative sector; Cubbit, a distributed and secure cloud storage service; Kippy, a GPS tracking device for pets; Spiagge.it, a platform for booking beach resorts; and Wetacoo, a service for storing and managing personal belongings.
The fourth batch supported: Karrycar, a solution for the digital evolution of car logistics; StarTric, development of implantable medical devices for the treatment of tricuspid valve regurgitation; TimeFlow, a platform that connects companies with IT providers through artificial intelligence; and Truescreen, a cybersecurity solution that certifies digital content with legal value.
Finally, the fifth batch featured Agora Labs, a healthtech company facilitating the anonymous sharing of real-world data; Holifya, a digital health startup offering customised nutrition and prevention paths; and TextYess, an AI assistant on WhatsApp to support e-commerce growth.
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