FDBusiness.com

Piccolo, the Med-inspired organic baby food brand that has successfully challenged its category with fresh flavours and artisan design, has been selected for the new crowd-funding initiative from AllBright – a unique funding platform committed to investing in and supporting female founders.

As a brand that already has two influential female investors, Jan Woods, former head of HR for Pepsi Co, and food campaigner Prue Leith; in addition to its own founder having herself invested in two start-ups led by women, the relationship with AllBright was a natural fit.

Piccolo’s founder, Cat Gazzoli (pictured) demonstrates an unfaltering drive to succeed. Starting the venture at her kitchen table less than two years ago, she has been on a phenomenal journey. Since hitting the shelves in April 2016, Piccolo has secured multi-national distribution across Asda and Waitrose stores, as well as achieving listings in Whole Foods Market, Planet Organic, Abel & Cole and Booths.

On track to hit its projected turnover of £2 million in its first year, Piccolo’s early success is credit to Cat’s entrepreneurial vision and passionate approach to business. Forging key partnerships has been fundamental in targeting the millennial parent and thanks to Cat’s personable nature she has secured relationships with Water Babies, the world’s biggest swim school, as well as being the first baby food brand ever to partner with the National Childbirth Trust, the UK’s largest parenting charity.

Government statistics reveal that 10% of women in the UK are considering starting their own business, but many need some extra help to get them going in what is widely recognised as a male dominated investor market. The statistics speak for themselves, with only 10% of all capital being invested in female-led businesses, and often aspiring businesswomen can find themselves overwhelmed by the sheer level of male dominance in this area. Cat Gazzoli was fortunate to have two fantastic female angels join her early on and now becoming one of Allbright’s debut campaigns she is firmly cementing her presence in the UK business scene.

Having been deemed outstanding during AllBright’s selection process Cat was clearly a great fit. Commenting on why AllBright was attracted to Cat, co-founder Debbie Wosskow says: “AllBright exists to unearth exceptional female talent. We invest in and support women with sound business ideas that are committed to driving change. Cat demonstrates all the qualities we are looking for and her business Piccolo, which has had a board of female investors since launch, is the perfect match for us.  Breaking into the fast moving consumer goods industry is no mean feat for any brand, but Cat has managed to succeed and scale in this marketplace whilst retaining Piccolo’s strong ethical values and commitment to giving back.”

Speaking about her involvement with Cat and Piccolo, Food campaigner Prue Leith says: “Cat Gazzolli is a force of nature. A good one. She is obsessed with good food, cooking and feeding children properly. I’ve worked with her for years, at Slow Food and the Food Education Foundation, which we started together. I’m generally wary of involvement with start-up food businesses, but I know Piccolo will succeed as long as Cat is at the helm. It’s a great concept, nutritious, delicious and ethical. I’m delighted to be involved.”

Cat adds: “Being one of AllBright’s debut campaigns is fantastic. The figures speak volumes with regards female founders and to be part of something which is so committed to supporting women in business is an honour. I certainly appreciate the support to help grow Piccolo. I don’t believe that you can start a brand now without thinking about what you want to give back, in fact this is a core part of Piccolo’s DNA. We commit 10% of our profits to food education so the better we do the more we can give back to the community.  AllBrights platform is a significant development for Piccolo to ensure we stay on track to succeed and truly make a difference in more ways than one.”