Investment - PLATFORM

Our Founders, Neil Stephenson & Paul Lancaster, are two of the most active entrepreneurs, business growth advisers & early stage investors in the North of England (see their bios below).

They also have strong links with funding organisations, angel investors, VCs & private equity firms across the UK.

If you’re looking for funding or investment to start or grow your business, they can help you find the money you need in return for a small, upfront fee & then %age success fee of any amount raised via their introductions.

You have 3 options to choose from:

£2,000 upfront fee & 2.5% success fee of any money raised (+ optional retainer fees & / or equity)
£1,000 upfront fee & 3% success fee of any money raised (+ optional retainer fees & / or equity)
£500 upfront fee & 5% success fee of any money raised (+ optional retainer fees & / or equity)

To discuss this further, please complete the short form below. Once completed you will be given the option to book a FREE 30 minute video consultation:

What experience do Neil & Paul have?

Neil Stephenson is one of the most active entrepreneurs, business growth advisers, Non-Executive Directors & early stage investors in the North of England.

A seasoned leader with a proven track record in scaling businesses & delivering transformational growth, Neil’s current & previous portfolio includes some of the leading tech, digital, marketing & sales-focused businesses in the North of England.

As former CEO of PE-backed Onyx Group, he grew the company from £1M to £30M before a successful exit in 2016. With over two decades of experience, he has been directly involved in 40+ acquisitions totalling hundreds of millions of pounds, backed by Angels, VCs, PE Houses & debt funds.

Today, he actively invests in & supports high-potential tech or tech-enabled companies, helping them navigate growth & scale effectively. Passionate about strategic leadership, he serves as a Chair & Non-Executive Director, offering trusted advisory expertise to ambitious businesses & leaders looking to accelerate their success.

Paul Lancaster is an award-winning ‘SuperConnector’ & business growth consultant who also created & runs our popular monthly PLATFORM events & 5-day, multi-venue UK Startup & Scaleup Week festivals.

Over the past 28yrs, Paul has worked in a wide range of high impact advisory, marketing & business development roles for local enterprise agencies (North East BIC & PNE Group), youth enterprise schemes (Shell LiveWIRE), Government organisations (Tech North / Tech Nation plus consultancy for Newcastle City Council & the North of Tyne Combined Authority), international corporates (Sage & British Airways), social enterprises (Generator North East, North East BIC & PNE Group), academic institutions (‘Entrepreneur in Residence’ for Newcastle College & guest lecturer for Newcastle University & Sunderland University), recruitment agencies (Nigel Wright Recruitment) & his own events, coaching & consultancy business (PLATFORM | UK Startup & Scaleup Week | Stellar Business Events | Plan Digital).

He won ‘Collaborator of the Year’ at Dynamo North East’s Dynamites awards in 2016 & 2017, was runner up in 2018 & won the ‘PROFILE’ category in the North East Times ‘Impact Awards’ for the work he did to promote the business community in the North East of England on a regional, national & international level in 2019.

More recently, he won a ‘High Sheriff’s Award for Meritorious Community Service’ in April 2026 (from the High Sheriff of Tyne & Wear) for the work he has done to support the business community in the North East of England over the years. He was also a finalist in the ‘Ecosystem Growth & Opportunity’ category at the ClimbAwards (part of the ClimbUK festival in Leeds) in June 2026.

In addition, he is co-author of the ‘Small Business Marketing For Dummies‘ book published by Wiley & a former semi-professional electronic music DJ, producer, label owner & club promoter (listen on SoundCloud here).