Northern Bloc vegan ice creams

Natural ice cream manufacturer Northern Bloc has reached out to the crowd for £400k to increase distribution.

The Leeds-based supplier has “doubled sales” in the past 12 months and is now seeking a cash boost to invest in sales distribution, marketing and NPD.

The crowdfunding campaign on Crowdcube is offering investors 8.3% equity at a pre-money valuation of £4.4m.

Northern Bloc produces ice cream “focusing on fresh natural ingredients” and has recently expanded its portfolio with vegan and kids’ ranges.

Later this year it will launch a high-protein range, developing on the rapidly growing demand for healthy ice cream in the category.

Sales for the first quarter of 2018 rose to £203k, double the same period in 2017. Co-founder Josh Lee said he expected this growth to continue with the support of more funds to increase brand awareness.

“We are looking to build the brand nationally,” he said. “There’s a real push through the marketing at the moment - we have a strong product but feel there is limited awareness of the brand so we want to invest in that area.”