Manchester-based DSW Ventures, the venture capital arm of Dow Schofield Watts, has announced the appointment of Chris Yeowart as partner. Yeowart brings deep commercial experience in the HealthTech sector and a proven track record of scaling high-growth businesses.
His appointment bolsters the leadership team at DSW Ventures, following the arrival of life sciences specialist Doug Quinn in 2023. It also signals the firm’s ongoing commitment to investing in and supporting early-stage regional businesses with deep sector expertise.
The new appointment has worked in blue-chip consulting with Accenture and CSC, before successfully building and exiting Wellbeing Software (now part of Magentus), a private equity-backed provider of essential services to radiology and maternity departments. He spearheaded the commercial operations and was an instrumental part of the management team which successfully scaled the company to 65% NHS market share.
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His commercial leadership materially contributed to the creation of significant shareholder value at the company, culminating in a strategic acquisition by ASX-listed Citadel Group for over £100m and delivering a strong return for investor Elysian Capital.
With hands-on operating experience and a deep understanding of commercial growth, Yeowart will play a key role as DSW Ventures expands its operations and enhances the support offered to its portfolio companies.
Yeowart said: “DSW Ventures has an excellent reputation in the early-stage VC market, and I’m particularly excited about the opportunity to work with some of the most innovative founders in UK technology. I have seen first-hand the value that a good investor can add, so the firm’s model of working closely with a select group of regional start-ups to create value is particularly appealing to me.”
Keith Benson, cofounder of DSW Ventures, added: “Chris’s exceptional track record of scaling businesses, particularly in HealthTech where we’ve collaborated extensively in the recent past, made his appointment an incredibly easy decision.
“Chris’s deep expertise and strategic approach will further augment our capability to provide founders and portfolio companies with tangible, real-world advice – helping them to scale and create significant value in their businesses.”
