A Ripon-based online platform has secured a £250,000 investment from NPIF – Mercia Debt Finance, which is managed by Mercia and is part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF).
The funding will enable Digital Converters, founded in 2016 by friends James Palliser and Sean Parle, to launch a new cloud-based platform where families can store their memories.
Digital Converters transfers videotapes, photos and cine film to digital formats including memory sticks and DVD.
The company has also transferred films for businesses, including fashion designer Stella McCartney.
The new online platform will set out to be a service for safe storage of family archives, accessible via web browsers or Apple, Android and TV apps.
Sean Parle, director at Digital Converters, said: “For decades, memories were captured on formats which are now inaccessible and deteriorating. Our existing service helps people reconnect with their memories by converting them to digital. The new platform is a natural extension of this, enabling customers to store their memories online and build an archive that can be easily viewed and shared with other family members.
“This round of funding will allow us to launch the platform and step up our marketing to target new regions such as Europe, with the ultimate aim of rolling it out worldwide.”
Jonathan Craig, senior investment manager at Mercia said: “Sean and the team are driven young entrepreneurs who have grown the business rapidly over the past five years. With the pandemic having accelerated the demand for digital services, they have now spotted a gap in the market for a dedicated hosting service. The funding will enable them to pursue this opportunity.”
The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund project is supported by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
