Communication company Natterbox has raised £5m in Series A funding from Octopus Investments.
Natterbox pegs itself as the ‘world’s first global business phone system’, and is managed entirely within cloud computing firm Salesforce.
Founded in 2010 by CEO Neil Hammerton, CTO Neil Burgess and Jim Page, Natterbox provides businesses such as Groupon, Canon and Legal & General with integrated cloud-based telephone services. They can be used to run a call centre, record calls and provide voice analysis.
The company claims that over 450 organisations around the world use its services, and it will use these funds to expand into North America and the Nordics, as well as continuing to fuel growth in existing markets; the UK, Germany and Australia.
The money will also go towards sales and marketing.
Self-funded to date by its founders, this latest round from Octopus Investments brings the total that Natterbox has raised to £8m.
Neil Hammerton, CEO and co-founder of Natterbox, explained the aims of his company: “Our goal is to help brands provide the ease, flexibility and personalisation of service over the phone that customers get when interacting online. There is a huge opportunity, that many businesses are missing out on, to take insights from phone calls and use them to better inform customer service agents and sales teams when speaking to customers.
“We believe we are one of the most disruptive business in our sector, and our success to date shows the market need for what we deliver,” he added.
Octopus Investments is a UK fund, which backs early-stage companies within energy and healthcare among other things. It recently raised a further €230m ($284m, £199m) to invest in European startups.
Natterbox claims it chose to partner with Octopus Investments based on its track record of successfully supporting high-growth technology firms.
Grant Paul Florence, head of Intermediate Capital at Octopus Investments, praised the move: “Natterbox is a really exciting business. It has a compelling, disruptive proposition, which is supported by a strong customer base that makes it perfectly poised for rapid growth.
“With its experienced management team and customer-first approach, it is a great addition to our portfolio.”