News

19th May 2022

Aegis Veterinary Technology Secures CIOSIF Funding

Truro based, Aegis Veterinary Technology (Aegis), a business providing tech solutions in the large animal veterinary sector, is the latest company to receive funding from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Investment Fund (CIOSIF).

Aegis has received a £125,000 CIOSIF equity investment as part of a £250,000 fundraising round, which includes £95,000 from SFC Capital. The funding will enable the company to further commercialise the business and recruit additional team members over the next three years.

The large animal veterinary sector has shown strong growth and clinical innovation over the last few decades, but the way vets handle their workflow and records has remained mostly unchanged. Staff rely heavily on paper notes and directions when trying to locate rural premises and fields, resulting in wasted time and frustrated clients. The situation is further exacerbated by a lack of communication between vets and clients who are not able to update each other as vets are constantly on the go. All of this comes at a time when practices are under strain to recruit and retain veterinary surgeons.

To transform the situation Aegis has developed a platform called ArriVet (www.arrivet.app), which provides highly accurate, artificial intelligence-enabled location information and keeps the client up-to-date on where their vet is, and when they will arrive. This reduces admin and improves the quality of service and safety for the vet; gives the client more accuracy and transparency; and provides greater visibility on where vets are, easy emergency delegation and scope for advanced analytics for reception staff.

Iain Brunt, Founder of Aegis Veterinary Technology, commented: “Being veterinary practitioners ourselves, our management team know too well the frustrations that come with working on the mobile side of the sector. This drove us to develop digital tools to support vets by making their behind-the-scenes processes much more efficient. By reducing the amount of admin vets have to do on the road we can increase focus on the clinical case which creates a better outcome for everyone. Our thanks to Anna and The FSE Group for helping us to secure this funding which will help us expand our team and advance our offering.”

Anna Staevska, Investment Manager at The FSE Group, added: “Aegis has recognised the potential in the ambulatory veterinary marketplace for a product to bring workflows into the 21^st century. As a product developed by vets for vets, ArriVet clearly solves a real-world problem already experienced by the founders. We’re delighted to be supporting such a focussed and experienced team as they provide a product which has the potential to make a significant impact on the day-to-day work of vets in the field.”

Adam Beveridge, Investment Associate at SFC Capital, said: “Aegis presented an exciting opportunity to invest in a sector that is ripe for digital innovation, but has been so far relatively underserved. Iain and Andrew demonstrated great sector knowledge from the outset, with a career that supported their views of the market and we have every confidence in their ability to execute and tackle this problem.”

The £40m Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Investment Fund provides debt and equity finance from £25,000 to £2 million to help growing small businesses across the region. It has been established by the British Business Bank in partnership with the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).

Ken Cooper, Managing Director from the British Business Bank, said: “Cornwall’s tech sector continues to grow apace, and Aegis is part of a growing portfolio of local technology businesses backed by CIOSIF. The fund’s investment has helped leverage additional funding to give Aegis the capital it needs to grow over the next three years.”

John Acornley, LEP non-executive director and chair of the CIOSIF Advisory Board, said: “This is another great example of a Cornish business harnessing the latest technology in innovative ways to solve real-world problems. Arrivet helps veterinary practices save time and serve their clients better, while reducing admin time and boosting productivity.”

CIOSIF is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020.

For more information about the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Investment Fund including how to apply, please visit www.ciosif.co.uk  or follow the fund on Twitter at @CIOSIFBBB2