A start-up which develops game-inspired software for business use is set for growth following a £150,000 seed investment by Mercia Fund Management.
Birmingham-based Stormburst Studios was founded by Derry Holt and James Heath, two former students from Leicester’s De Montfort University who have also worked as developers within the video games industry.
Their first product, OneUp, allows sales teams to pit themselves against each other in a fantasy sports competition.
By using gaming concepts such as leaderboards and dashboards to replace spreadsheets, OneUp offers a revolutionary approach to sales management, helping to motivate and engage employees while allowing managers to gain detailed performance insights.
The company, which is based in Birmingham, will use the investment to further develop the OneUp platform, fund key hires across marketing and business development and build relationships with clients across a range of sectors including recruitment, insurance and telesales.
Stormburst Studios is one of only a handful of companies that are focused on developing game-inspired software in the UK, and the company is confident it can become a market leader.
Derry Holt, CEO and co-founder of Stormburst Studios, said: “It’s fantastic that Mercia have seen the value in what we’re building here at Stormburst Studios.
“For a long time we’ve spoken about the void between the video games industry and conventional business software – and our belief in there being a happy middle ground that benefits all parties.
“The future is looking incredibly bright for the company and we can’t wait to see how far we can take Stormburst Studios with Mercia’s support.”
Chris Kilroy, Investment Associate at Mercia, said: “Gamification has the potential to offer considerable benefits across a wide range of business sectors, and our advisory board of independent digital experts have identified it as one of the potential ‘breakthrough’ technologies for the years ahead.
“Founders Derry and James have a unique mix of sector expertise and business acumen.
“They have both the drive and skills necessary to build a highly valuable and successful company and we look forward to supporting the team as they continue to scale over the coming months.”