Close

Jump to:

  • Navigation
  • Content
  • Footer

AliveLab

Follow

AliveLab aims to be a world leader in Augmented Reality toys, having already sold over 500,000 units

155%
 - 
Funded 3 Oct 2017
£120,001 target
£198,948 from 268 investors
More
Less

Business overview

Location London, United Kingdom
Social media
Website MardlesLife.com
Sectors Entertainment Mixed Digital/Non-Digital Mixed B2B/B2C
Company number 9450500
Incorporation date 20 Feb 2015
More
Less

Investment summary

Type Equity
Valuation (pre-money) £980K
Equity offered 16.00%
Tax relief

EIS

  • Idea
  • Market
  • Team
  • Updates
  • Investors 268
  • Discussion
  • Documents

Idea

Introduction

At AliveLab we use technology to ‘bring kids favourites to life’, which means that we design, develop, produce & market a range of Augmented Reality (AR) products, aimed at children. As well as having already sold over 500,000 units, we also licence our IP and app to third parties. We own the Mardles brand which includes 30+ lines of stickers, colouring books, story books and fancy dress masks that all come to life with our free app. We ensure that our products use the latest technology and remain very competitively priced.

The company was founded by Sharon Wyness and James Murden, after meeting at QVC, the Shopping Channel. The initial concept was originally intended for the Shopping TV market. Just 2 years later the brand is breaking into bricks and mortar retail as well as expanding internationally. The licencing opportunities for our IP and app are very exciting and there are deals either signed or in discussion that will continue to push the Mardles brand to new audiences.

Intended impact

AliveLab aim to be a global leader in AR toys that engage and educate through play.

We spotted an opportunity to fill a gap in the AR market. Whilst the market seemed to be becoming hot, it was mostly aimed at adults. We set out to combine the magic of AR with physical children’s products, to create a new craze. Two years later, the range is growing as is the consumer awareness of AR as more global brands are adding it to packaging, displays and catalogues.

Research shows that children are becoming engaged with technology younger, via smart devices. We see a change in the way children play - Mardles products still encourage creative play and parents love the link to classic toys.

AliveLab enable kids to learn through play and many parents feel happy that their kids are using a safe platform with no in-app purchases, no registration & no WiFi needed.

AliveLab aim to be a market leader in cutting edge uses of AR for kids. We see our Mardles range as the first of many brands for AliveLab.

Substantial accomplishments to date

- The business has been completely funded to date by the founders and is in profit (excluding research and development costs)*.

- We launched our first product 2 years ago and since then have sold over 500,000 units.

- We have been featured on major shopping channels around the world including in the UK, Germany, France, USA and Canada.

- We have expanded our range from 5 lines to over 30 lines in 2 years.

- We have secured major contracts for listings within in-flight magazines with major airlines including British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Emirates, and Oman Air.

- Our Mardles app has made ‘Good App Guide’ & our Mardles discovAR 4D colouring books were rated in the ‘Good Toy Guide’, both run by Fundamentally Children.

- Our Mardles stickers that come to life were placed in the ‘Top 10 toys for 2016’ by The Sun. Metro selected our colouring books to be on their ‘Lust List’ in 2016.

Working alongside James and Sharon is:

Laura Murden - Laura‘s history in marketing for TomTom and JVC for over 15 years has seen her launch products in Europe and the U.S, lead global marketing campaigns and successful partnerships. Laura was delighted to be honoured as an Ambassador at the 2015 Specsavers Everywoman in Retail Awards.

Supporting as advisors to the AliveLab team are:

Jason Higgins - Jason has been working in the Augmented Reality business for over 8 years, and has won awards along the way.

Lee Hohbein - With over 20 years of tech industry experience, entrepreneur Lee has worked with both start-ups and established global brands.

*Based on unaudited management accounts

Monetisation strategy

Our primary focus has been on getting our products into the hands of kids initially through QVC The Shopping Channel, where we quickly became one of the top 5 toys of 2015 following our sell-out debut, as well as via our own website and Amazon. This has expanded to include WickedUncle, a successful online toy store, as well as independent gift shops and garden centres.

The 2017 range is ‘retail ready’ therefore we are focused on having distribution partners for specific territories. We are in discussions with a UK Toy Distributor, and hope to have similar talks at New York Toy Fair 2018.

Via an exclusive distribution contract, 5 airlines have raised orders for Mardles Stickers ahead of the main Cannes show in October.

Already partnered with Scribble Down, a rub down transfer company present in Europe, North Africa, Russia, and the Midde East. They have paid a development cost and up front minimum guarantee against royalties.

Promotional agencies TLC, NDL & Matrix plan to secure successful campaigns between AliveLab & big brands.

Use of proceeds

The funds raised on Seedrs are intended to be used as follows:

50% to expand the team
30% for consultation, development and roll out of Education range
20% for Marketing and Point of Sale

Expand the team
- Key hires will include a Business Development Manager and a Licensing Manager to explore and harness key partnerships with global brands.

Focus on Education Sector
- We are planning on developing a range that links specifically with National Curriculum guidelines and EYFS. We intend to re-work some of our existing content and add an educational element which will enable us to manufacture a product range specifically for schools. We plan to allocate £36,000 towards consultancy and development, and once the programme is in place, intend to appoint a member of staff to coordinate the roll out.

Marketing and POS
- We plan to support retailers with in-store displays, and digital demo screens for key accounts.

Please note that the company has a long-term loan of £20k outstanding, with an interest payment of £100 per month. None of the proceeds from this round will be used to repay this loan.

Market

Target market

Alivelab operates within the busy toy sector, specifically focusing on Augmented Reality. We have two distinct markets.
1) We sell our ranges direct to consumer, and via third parties (b2c).
2) We provide AR solutions to existing businesses seeking to use AR to support their own product and service offerings (b2b).

Our Mardles products appeal to children aged 3-8 and so we are targeting the purchaser, usually their parent/guardian, or a relative. We feel that our combination of technology and physical product makes us an easy and exciting gift or impulse buying choice.

AliveLab’s ‘Powered by Mardles’ offering is being targeted towards companies that wish to add value and experience to their products or packaging. We feel that this makes us a potential AR partner for mosts consumer brands. We are currently operating with a range of brands however, our key partnership aims are Food, Toy and Brand Promotion with focus given to ‘gift with purchase’ offers.

Characteristics of target market

Whilst AR emerged in 1992, it was the launch of Pokemon GO in July 2016 that increased global media coverage and consumer understanding. The global AR/VR market is now reported to be worth $11.4bn and forecasts show that it is estimated to grow to $143.3bn by 2020.

The UK toy market in 2016 was estimated to be worth £3.3bn and the UK has the largest percentage of online Toy sales in Europe at 37%. Last year it was estimated that around 15% of toys now rely on hi-tech software or apps to enhance their play and we expect that to grow.

Recent studies show that there are now 2.9 smart devices per household and 70% of children aged 2-5 own a tablet. Technology now plays a recognised role in assisting learning and development with NAACE’s Senior Vice Chair confirming "The use of mobile digital technologies in the classroom might be largely unfamiliar to parents, but the benefits can be huge”.

AR in marketing is now a $1billion industry, and used in everything from fashion to food.

Marketing strategy

We feel that we can add value to any brand’s existing products, services or promotions with our Mardles characters and/or our commercially licenced app which uses market leading image recognition software.

Our upcoming marketing plan is as follows:

- Increase our online presence through social media marketing & YouTube Campaigns.
- Increase our PR budget & continue our relationships with the likes of The Gadget Show & Metro.
- Attend New York Toy Fair where we’ll meet with potential distributors for the USA & Canada. We aim to sign contracts by April 2018.
- Continue to feature on QVC & other Shopping channels : TV exposure & Brand awareness.
- Target travel retail by showcasing our products within inflight magazines.
- We’ve identified over 20 brands that would fit well into our ‘Powered by Mardles’ platform & intend to meet these during our Spring 2018 trade fair season and secure 5 relationships.
- Beyond this, we aim to target promotional campaigns for 2018 FIFA World Cup & Tokyo 2020.

Competition strategy

To our knowledge, we are the only company specifically focused on AR toys. However, many other toys companies have a product or packaging that has Augmented Reality added - Hasbro’s Furby, Marvin’s iMagic, Lego packaging.

Our app has no in-app purchases, we don’t ask for registration & WiFi is not required. We feel that retail buyers are confident our range will not be overlooked because parents are happier for their children to play with ‘safe’ app toys.

We can add an AR element to any toy company’s product or packaging without them taking on the full expense of building their own app.

With our free, parent friendly & commercially licenced app and over 60 characters, we are ideally placed to quickly adapt existing product lines to broaden the use of Augmented Reality.

The toy market can be a crowded place, we are competing with regular toys and books. Innovation is important as retail buyers and consumers are always looking for the next big thing. We believe AliveLab is the next big thing.

Open an account to get access to the team members of AliveLab

Sign up

Already have an account? Log in

To comply with financial regulations, we can only show full campaign details to registered users.

Only shareholders can access this page

If you successfully purchase a share lot of this business, you will be granted access.

Buy shares

Only shareholders can access this page

If you successfully purchase a share lot of this business, you will be granted access.

Buy shares

Only shareholders can access this page

If you successfully purchase a share lot of this business, you will be granted access.

Buy shares

Only shareholders can access this page

If you successfully purchase a share lot of this business, you will be granted access.

Buy shares

Share on:

Investing involves risks, including loss of capital, illiquidity, lack of dividends and dilution, and should be done only as part of a diversified portfolio. Please read the Risk Warnings before investing. Investments should only be made by investors who understand these risks. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and is subject to change in future.

This webpage has been approved as a financial promotion by Seedrs Limited ("Seedrs"), which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. It is not intended to be a promotion of any individual investment opportunity and is not an offer to the public. The summary information provided about investment opportunities on this webpage is intended solely to demonstrate the types of investments available on the Seedrs platform, and any investment decision should be made on the basis of the full campaign. Full campaigns are available to investors who have become authorised to invest on the Seedrs platform. All investment activities take place within the United Kingdom, and any person resident outside the United Kingdom should ensure that they are not subject to any local regulations before investing.

Seedrs does not make investment recommendations to you. No communications from Seedrs, through this website or any other medium, should be construed as an investment recommendation. Further, nothing on this website shall be considered an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any security to any person in any jurisdiction to whom or in which such offer, solicitation or sale is unlawful. Seedrs does not provide legal, financial or tax advice of any kind. If you have any questions with respect to legal, financial or tax matters relevant to your interactions with Seedrs, you should consult a professional adviser.

Tax Relief (SEIS)

This business is eligible for SEIS relief - providing qualifying investors with income tax relief of 50% of their investment and certain other tax reliefs. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and is subject to change in future. Click to learn more.

Tax Relief (EIS)

This business is eligible for EIS relief - providing qualifying investors with income tax relief of 30% of their investment and certain other tax reliefs. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and is subject to change in future. Click to learn more.

Valuation (pre-money)

Valuation rounded from £980,000

This is the fully-diluted pre-money valuation of the business (i.e. before the new investment comes in and including issued options and other equity interests). In contrast, the post-money valuation is based on inclusion of the new investment in the value.

It is calculated as the pre-money valuation plus the amount of new investment. e.g. If Company A is ascribed a pre-money valuation of £1,200,000 by prospective investors investing £300,000, its post-money valuation is £1,500,000.

Pitch type

There are 5 types of investment pitch available on Seedrs.

  • Equity
  • Convertible
  • Fund
  • Cohort
  • Secondary

Investing in a regular equity campaign is the simplest and most common way to invest in a startup. You decide which business you want to invest in, and if the campaign hits its funding target then you will become one of their shareholders. As the company becomes more valuable, so do your shares; allowing you the opportunity to share in the future success of the business.

Learn more about pitch type on Seedrs

Equity Offered

The equity offered is the percentage of the company’s shares being issued in return for the amount of investment raised.

When the amount raised is less than 100%, the equity offered is based on the target raise. Once the company has raised over 100% it is based on the total raised.

In some scenarios, entrepreneurs may accept additional direct investment after closing their Seedrs campaign. Provided this is within 6 months of the closing and on the same terms, we do not typically offer pre-emption rights on that extra investment (where you have the opportunity to invest again to maintain your percentage shareholding).

Learn more about investing and pre-emption rights.

Warning

You are following a link outside of www.seedrs.com.

None of the information in constitutes part of the campaign and it has not been approved or reviewed by Seedrs.

ContinueCancel