People’s Champion finalist 2018: GoodBox

Start-up name: GoodBox
Founders: Francesca Hodgson, Andrew O’Brien, and Tibor Barna
Started in: 2016
Based in: Manchester
Business description: Creator of a suite of contactless payment devices built to replace traditional charity cash buckets

Shortlisted category:

Crowdfunded Business of the Year

The GoodBox story:

The team at GoodBox believe both traditional charity cash buckets and the fundraising methods historically adopted by charities are ailing. And they have good reason to think this.

2016 research from PWC found GDP contribution from Britain’s non-profit sector had dropped from 0.6% to 0.4%, while recent CAF research showed that individual charitable giving has fallen by 20%.

Intent on reducing this shortfall and enabling charities to better adapt to recent advances in technology – namely the rise in contactless payments – GoodBox has built a range of proprietary contactless technology devices for the charity sector.

With no other company offering the same service, the business -which launched in 2016 – has enabled huge charities to incorporate contactless into their fundraising with notable results.

Boasting a client list of 60 names including the National History Museum, Tate Galleries, Teenage Cancer Trust, and Save the Children, GoodBox has helped charities raise over £500,000 – equating to 112,0290 donations. The Natural History Museum alone has increased it’s yearly fundraising by 25% using the start-up’s hardware and software.

With over 100 of its units active across the country, GoodBox and its 26-strong team are keen to do more to help charities better connect with tech-savvy audiences.

Having recently secured a £2.64m crowdfunding round via Seedrs – surpassing its initial target by more than £200,000 – the start-up will shortly be launching new products, including the GBx Core and GBx Mini, which have already received early interest from NHS Trusts, UK charities, and museums.

Why GoodBox made our shortlist:

With its crowdfunding campaign giving it a company valuation of £10m, GoodBox is one the top 10 most successful campaigns in Seedrs’ history with over 700 investors participating, including AU Capital Partners, PNFT Social & Community Investments Ltd, and Wimbledon’s very own Andy Murray.

But it’s not surprising that GoodBox has made investors stand to attention.

Its product suite is having a tangible social impact and it has the potential to add value to the UK’s 185,000 charities who are unable to source tech funding solutions independently.

Where to find out more about GoodBox:

Website: www.goodbox.com
Twitter: @_GoodBox