Tag Archives: ethical

News

GOODFOLIO Partners with Tumelo to Give its Users a Voice on Corporate ESG Issues

GOODFOLIO, a simple, transparent and customisable platform for impact-driven investors, has launched a new partnership with Tumelo to give its users a voice on key environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues within companies where their money is being invested in.

By incorporating the Tumelo Voting API (application programming interface), GOODFOLIO users are given a voice on the defining issues of our time. Users can express their vote preferences to their fund managers to influence global companies on a range of issues including: gender equality, climate change, inclusion, and human rights. Users receive access to recommendations for and against proposals before a vote and data on the outcome of their engagement.

GOODFOLIO is an innovative solution which aims to empower impact-minded investors to overcome the unreasonable difficulties in making and implementing values-driven investment decisions. This includes avoiding greenwashing, achieving transparency, and having sustainability data available at the point of use. Having developed tools for users to efficiently scan and scrutinise investments for more effective alignment with values and preferences, GOODFOLIO is targeting the global ESG and impact funds market forecast to reach $55 trillion in value by 2025 (source), growing at 40% per year in Europe (source).

The London-based company behind the platform is currently crowdfunding and has raised nearly £300K, double its initial target. This additional investment will go towards bolstering GOODFOLIO’s team and supporting further product development, marketing and customer acquisition.

GOODFOLIO was founded by its CEO Omid Pakseresht, an Oxford-educated entrepreneur with a successful track record in finance and technology product commercialisation, and his brother and Chief Technical Officer, Nima Pakseresht, a computer science technology leader with more than 15 years of experience in big data, AI and ML.

The senior management team also includes Harvard-educated social entrepreneur Farahnaz Karim, with experience in the UN and World Bank, who serves as GOODFOLIO’s Chief Impact Officer.

CEO Omid Pakseresht comments: “We are delighted to partner with Tumelo and aim to become one of the first investment platforms to bring the Voting API function to market. This will enable impact-driven investors who use our platform to directly express their views to their fund managers about what kind of change they would like to see in the corporate world. Our community views this as an important component in the equation of creating impact through investment.”

“The partnership with Tumelo marks the beginning of a journey to empower our users to create more impact through collective action.

“The success of our current crowdfunding campaign is also a significant development for GOODFOLIO. This additional investment will enable the business to further develop its unique position, better serve its community, and reach out to a larger audience of impact-driven investors.”

Georgia Stewart, CEO of Tumelo, said: “We are very excited about the partnership with GOODFOLIO, a company as passionate about providing investors with a voice as we are. Tumelo’s Voting API functionality is ideal for GOODFOLIO’s ESG-focused platform as it enables users to closely interact with companies within their investment portfolio through their fund managers, giving them a voice on the hottest issues of our time. This progressive and positive step forward empowers investors to balance financial returns and ensure their investments align with their values.”

More details on GOODFOLIO’s crowdfunding round on Seedrs can be found here.

News

New Platform Address ‘Intention-Action’ Gap for Impact-Driven ESG Investors

GOODFOLIO launches 2nd crowdfund targeting investors in $55tr global ESG-Impact funds market

A simple, transparent, and customised investment platform which enables DIY investors to back companies and industries that share their ethical values has launched today.

Inspired by the thought of overcoming the unreasonable difficulty of making values-driven investment decisions and implementing these, GOODFOLIO was conceived to help investors manage this challenge. Having developed in-house tools to efficiently scan and scrutinise investments for more effective alignment with values and preferences, GOODFOLIO is now onboarding clients.

Global ESG and impact funds are forecast to reach $55 trillion in value by 2025 (source), growing at 40% per year in Europe (source). However, while a UK study revealed that 77% of people with over £25K in investable assets would choose sustainable investments, only 13% have actually done so (source).

GOODFOLIO was created to help overcome this intention-action gap and increase the flow of capital into impactful investments. It does this by providing values-driven investors with essential data, including categorised lists of ESG funds with meaningful insights and an ability to search and compare different offerings. GOODFOLIO enables users to channel their assets into funds that are aligned with their values, focusing on core areas that matter to them such as gender, climate, health, and water. This targeting of impactful capital can send a powerful signal to businesses to change their behaviour for attracting capital.

With regulatory permissions secured, GOODFOLIO empowers investors to build and manage Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) compliant and impact-driven investment portfolios that work for the benefit of people, planet, and prosperity.

Another benefit GOODFOLIO users enjoy is the low and transparent pricing structure where they are charged an all-in fee of 0.45% for the first £50,000 invested through the platform and 0.35% for anything above. Compared with IFA, or legacy investment platforms like Hargreaves Lansdown that charge per transaction, it can be significantly more cost-effective.

The London-based company behind the platform raised £160K in pre-seed funding last year and since that time has built a high-valued waiting list with around £30m of investable assets. While catering to the UK B2C investment market and increasing its impact-driven financial products and tools, the long-term vision of GOODFOLIO is to target pension providers and investment managers within the B2B market.

The company is now seeking to raise a further six figure sum through crowdfunding and is also planning an institutional investment round in 2023.

GOODFOLIO was founded by its CEO Omid Pakseresht, an Oxford-educated entrepreneur with a successful track record in finance and technology product commercialisation, and his brother and Chief Technical Officer, Nima Pakseresht, a computer science technology leader with more than 15 years of experience in big data, AI and ML. The senior management team includes Harvard-educated social entrepreneur Farahnaz Karim, who serves as GOODFOLIO’s Chief Impact Officer.

Among the company’s board of advisors are Bob Noyen, an institutional investment expert whose long career in Finance includes taking a boutique UK based asset management firm through to IPO and making the firm one of the first in Finance to become Carbon Neutral, and Steven Hamblin, an angel investor and technology leader who built one of the first AI teams at Babylon Health.

CEO Omid Pakseresht comments: ‘After extensive work in developing our platform and crossing the regulatory milestone, we are now delighted to launch GOODFOLIO to support the UK’s growing, engaged and vibrant community of values-driven investors who want more control over what their capital does.

A majority of UK investors want to consider ESG factors but there is currently no effective investment platform to present clear and concise data at the point of decision making and provide tools for how investments can be aligned to values. With GOODFOLIO, we address that issue by making it easy for users to invest, as well as manage and monitor the social and environmental impact of their portfolio via intuitive reports and tools.

Led by demand from investors, and the sheer need to build a better world, we believe that impact-driven investments will eventually become the norm. GOODFOLIO is doing its part to get us there, and we are doing this with a fairer, transparent and cost-effective fee structure.

Through our crowdfunding round we aim to grow GOODFOLIO’s presence in the UK market by bolstering our team and investing in further product development, marketing and customer acquisition.’

To join GOODFOLIO’s growing community or learn more, visit www.goodfolio.com. For more details on the GOODFOLIO crowdfunding campaign, click here https://www.seedrs.com/goodfolio1/coming-soon  

Food & Drink, News, South East

Ethical Artisan Cafe Chain Announces Investment Round to Fuel Expansion

Canteen Collective aims to double revenues with new outlets planned across London and South East 

Canteen Collective, a fast-growing, climate positive hospitality group that offers a planet-conscious menu focusing on local provenance and seasonality, has launched a £400,000 investment round to help drive forward its ambitious growth plans. The London-headquartered business, which is on target to turnover 2.5m this year, is set to more than double its revenues by 2025 as it expands its sustainability-focused brand.

Canteen Collective provides all day dining with a local artisan café restaurant experience where customers can also enjoy a diverse range of specialty coffee. Founded in 2019 by former British Army Commander Tim Grant, the company is underpinned by a core focus on Community, Environment and Quality. Initially opening in London’s Notting Hill district, the group has expanded, opening two further locations in the capital, including its flagship outlet in Putney, and one in Kent. Despite the impact of the global pandemic, the company generated more than 60% revenue growth last year.

Canteen Collective operates with a clear strategy to measure, reduce and offset carbon, working with carefully selected suppliers which are committed to an environmentally responsible supply chain. These include UK sustainable meat providers The Ethical Butcher, London-based brewers Mondo Brewing Company and local artisan bakers Sciascia & Storey.

The company is involved in a number of net zero programmes including an initiative where it plants a tree for every kilo of coffee sold, offsetting 150% of its carbon footprint in the process. Canteen Collective is also a member of the global network 1% for the Planet, contributing one per cent of its annual revenue to support accredited projects that tackle critical environmental issues.

With a commitment to providing high quality and sustainably sourced food for its customers, Canteen Collective is also a people-focused business. The company pays its staff the London Living Wage or better and provides free private health insurance to full-time colleagues. Through the communication platform Yapster, it encourages open and engaging feedback from its team.

Canteen Collective aims to use some of the funds from this investment round to open two new locations in London the next year. The company is already working with a number of sustainable landlords to identify suitable locations that would complement its brand. With Canteen Collective managing external catering and coffee sales at a number of major events and festivals, additional funds will also go towards growing its presence within that market. The company will also further invest in its B2B coffee sales and e-commerce.

 

Founder Tim Grant said: “Canteen Collective was founded as a triple bottom line company committed to People, Produce and the Planet. This is a core aim of the business that sits at the heart of everything we do. Our growth plans are entirely focused on expanding this mission, enabling the business to do more to promote sustainability while offering customers a great dining and socialising experience within our venues.

“We’re delighted with the progress of the business which, despite the challenges of Covid, has been phenomenal and we are determined to achieve more on the back of this investment round. With a growing demand for high quality, ethically sourced food and drink and rising consumer expectations over hospitality providers committing to sustainable practices, we believe there is huge scope to expand the Canteen Collective brand across London, the South East and beyond.”

Link to Crowdcube’s Canteen Collective pitch page:

https://www.crowdcube.com/companies/canteen-collective/pitches/b65npZ

Fashion, Logistics, News

Segura Partner with Phase Eight to Ensure Transparent and Ethical Supply Chain

Phase Eight, the go-to destination for empowering, feminine style that inspires, has partnered with Segura – the leading platform for next-generation supply chain transparency – further strengthening its longstanding commitment and approach to ethical trade. Segura’s solution will enable Phase Eight to modernise and improve the quality of its supply chain management, supporting its aim to embed full transparency throughout all tiers in its supply chain.

As part of the TFG London family, Phase Eight is aligned to the Group sustainability strategy which is based on UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, ETI Base Code and uses the ETI Human Rights Due Diligence Framework to improve the working conditions for the people in its supply chains.

As an established collaborator since 2019, the TFG London Group have partnered with Segura to support the development of the platform, recognising that the first step to enabling a successful ethical trade programme and decent work is transparency.

Segura’s threefold management platform allows Phase Eight to contain all supplier processes within one system that enriches supplier data and tracks updates in real-time, enhances how purchase orders are issued, embedding traceability into the linked trims and labelling requirements, and hosts a compliance suite that enables audits, corrective action plans, policy requirements and communications to be streamlined and automated.

Justin Hampshire, Group Managing Director at TFG Brands (London) Limited says: “As a purpose-led business that aims to put people and the planet first, it is important to us to continue to protect the human rights of those who help make and sell our products and services. We take our responsibilities seriously; when we champion higher standards and practices, we can have a real impact on the lives of millions of people across our value chain.”*

Francesca Mangano, Head of CSR and Sustainability at TFG Brands (London) commented: “We understand it’s the nature of supply chains to be continuously evolving, but it’s crucial to us to ensure we partner with suppliers who share our values. Our aim for 2022 is to focus on continuing to map our supply base beyond our second tier and the Segura platform will allow us to do this.”

Peter Needle, Founder & President at Segura, said: “We were delighted to partner with Phase Eight who share our belief in the importance of building ethical and sustainable businesses. We will continue to support Phase Eight with their evolving corporate sustainability targets.”

*TFG Brands London Limited Modern Slavery Transparency Statement 2020-2021.

FInance, Finance and Banking, News

Unity Trust Bank Partners with Elavon to Enhance its Payment Proposition

Unity Trust Bank has extended its customer proposition by launching a new partnership with global payments provider, Elavon.

Customers of Unity Trust Bank will now have access to a full range of payment solutions, including face-to-face, online and cross-border capabilities.

Elavon was chosen to provide payment services for Unity’s customers based on its devotion to customer service, diverse product suite, and commitment to providing innovative technology solutions.

The partnership follows publication of the bank’s half year financial results for 2021, which reported a growth of 25 per cent per annum and pre-tax profits of £5.2million – up by 65% compared to the first six months of 2020.

As it continues to increase support for socially motivated organisations across the UK, Unity’s new payment service is the first step of Unity’s roadmap designed to enhance the customer experience.

Deborah Hazell, CEO of Unity Trust Bank, commented: “We are continually developing our services in response to the growing needs of our customers. This new partnership with Elavon will enable Unity to introduce its customers to a wide variety of integrated payment services, including seamless contactless payments, e-commerce and a variety of money movement solutions.

“Elavon’s depth of experience and broad capabilities, industry knowledge, customer focus and, importantly, its shared core values and focus on ethics made it a natural choice for our payments provider.”

Hannah Fitzsimons, president and general manager of Elavon Merchant Services, Europe, continued: “We are delighted to be Unity Trust Bank’s payment services partner and look forward to supporting them and our joint customers in their growth strategies.”

“This new partnership is a great example of how Elavon is well placed to deliver an array of payment solutions to banks and financial institutions in the UK and across Europe. We continue to enhance the range of propositions and models offered, including e-commerce, open banking and API integration capabilities.”

Elavon will be the sole provider of payments acceptance and acquiring services for Unity’s UK customers. A long-standing payments partner to more than 550 banks and financial institutions worldwide, Elavon is rated among the top-five global payment providers in the world. It is a subsidiary of U. S. Bancorp, named as one of the world’s most ethical companies by the Ethisphere Institute for seven consecutive years and as a recognised leader in diversity, equity and inclusion.

To find out more about Unity Trust Bank, visit www.unity.co.uk.

Finance and Banking, News

HOST building back better in revolutionary partnership with the Salford Credit Union

A new post-Covid landscape is being shaped in Salford as local residents saving with the Salford Credit Union will be backing diverse entrepreneurs with ethical and affordable lending to help them build and launch sustainable businesses, create jobs and add social value to the region.

Social enterprise Salford Credit Union will offer early-stage entrepreneurs from innovation hub HOST, the Home of Skills & Technology at MediaCityUK, loans and savings services to scale their businesses, ensuring they achieve strong growth.

This first-of-its-kind business model aims to help founders from diverse and disadvantaged backgrounds access funds at affordable rates as many start-ups and technology entrepreneurs struggle to secure credit from mainstream lenders. The loans will be subject to entrepreneurs enrolling on HOST’s business and innovation growth programmes.

HOST provides innovative programmes for entrepreneurs, from start-up to later-stage, and actively supports entrepreneurs to generate revenue and secure investment to repay loans, lowering the risk for the credit union.

This means the dividends paid to Salford Credit Union savers will come directly from local entrepreneurial success, establishing a truly organic and ethical place-based, enterprise ecosystem.

Credit unions support and educate people including low-income families like single parents, or those who are financially vulnerable, by encouraging them to save what they can and only borrow what they can repay.

All HOST members and entrepreneurs will be encouraged to become savers with the Salford Credit Union and as well as benefitting from the loans that will be produced, they will also be supporting the local economy.

Established over 30 years ago, Salford Credit Union is a not-for-profit cooperative owned by more than 4,000 members and provides a local, ethical alternative to traditional banks and payday loan companies.

There are almost 3,500 social enterprises across Greater Manchester that reinvest between £45-90 million back into the region every year.

Mo Isap, CEO of IN4 Group, operator of HOST, said: “I am so proud to be partnering with Salford Credit Union to establish this unique social business model, which is unprecedented in a post-Covid world. People, place and culture are at the heart of everything we do, and this is how technology, innovation and entrepreneurship in a place needs to be supported. Salford is truly leading the way.

“We are nurturing entrepreneurs from the grassroots up and with the savers of Salford investing in the future of Salford, they have a real stake in its recovery from the pandemic. By supporting entrepreneurs to succeed, create new jobs and new opportunities for their local community, residents are providing valuable help towards building back better for the region.”

David Warburton-Broadhurst, Chair of Directors of Salford Credit Union, said: “All Credit Unions are about people helping people. By repaying their loans to Salford Credit Union, local entrepreneurs will be helping to build local wealth in our city. When we can share dividends with our members this encourages the savings habit, which ultimately helps people get more control over their finances. As an ethical lender, Salford Credit Union are proud to be able to support local innovation and employment through this new partnership.”

Salford Credit Union will also be delivering a session about alternative finance as part of HOST’s Fund Your Tech, a free to access masterclass on Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 September. To register, visit: https://www.hostsalford.com/programmes/fund-your-tech/

Children and Childcare, Finance and Banking, News

Lancashire mum acquires her second pre-school nursery following six-figure funding from Unity Trust Bank

Victoria Adams established Teddy Towers in Leyland in 2016 and following a £345,000 refinance loan from Unity, has acquired Toddlers in Whitefield.

Her ethos is to inspire, develop and really engage with children, and both nurseries have private gardens where youngsters can explore and enjoy nature.

Andy Ball, Relationship Manager at Unity Trust Bank, said: “Unity is proud to support businesses that provide access to quality early childhood care and development so that children are ready for primary education.

“We’re delighted to be able to assist Victoria as she expands her business and offers outdoor learning experiences to more children.”

Both nurseries cater for 0-5 year-olds, with Teddy Towers offering 30 places and Toddlers 43.

Victoria, who employs 14 staff, said: “I was introduced to Unity through my broker Abacus Day Nursery Sales.

“Unity offered a good rate of interest and I like the fact that I have a relationship manager who I can phone if I need to.

“Unity’s values attracted me too because they fit in with what I’m trying to achieve at the nursery.”

During her career as a commercial banking manager, Victoria worked with pre-school nurseries and was inspired to set up her own business when she was made redundant.

She was in the process of selling her large family home when she realised it would be ideal for her first nursery and called it Teddy Towers after one of her sons built a tower with his teddy bears.

With a large private garden with logs, picnic benches and secret paths, the children have plenty of space to play and explore.

Victoria said: “My sons are 13, 10 and 10 months and they are in their element when we’re doing outdoor activities like going for walks, feeding the ducks or exploring and this inspired the theme for my nursery. I want children to learn and have fun within a safe, homely environment and natural setting.

“Toddlers has been established for 15 years and is next to a school and it has a large private outdoor space which I will be developing like at Teddy Towers.”

News

Unity Trust Bank rated as an ethical and inclusive employer by 95% of workforce in UK banking survey

Specialist commercial lender, Unity Trust Bank, is celebrating another year of positive recognition from its employees in the 2020 Banking Standards Board (BSB) report.

In its fifth annual survey, more than 73,000 employees across 31 UK banks and building societies responded to the BSB’s official assessment, which provides a snapshot of workplace culture within the banking industry.

Unity Trust Bank, which was established with the purpose to help create a better society, improved its ranking on the BSB’s Assessment Framework for Reliability and Shared Purpose. When asked to describe Unity, 95% of employees across the organisation felt that its purpose and values were meaningful to them, with “ethical” “collaborative” and “inclusive” recorded as the most commonly used terms.

Furthermore, 98% of employees said they were proud of how Unity Trust Bank had helped its customers and clients throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, with 85% feeling that their health and wellbeing had been supported during the crisis.

The impact of the pandemic also created resilience within the workforce, who continued to deliver a high level of customer service despite having to quickly adapt to new ways of working. 93% of employees reported that they had seen their colleagues go the extra mile to meet the needs of customers – an increase from 89% in 2019.

Margaret Willis, CEO of Unity Trust Bank, said: “We joined the BSB in 2016, to demonstrate Unity’s commitment to help raise standards within the industry. Positive culture derives from the top and we carefully analyse BSB’s results each year to identify ways in which we can improve as an organisation.

“We are extremely proud our colleagues’ resilience and how they have supported each other throughout the last 12 months – it is a real testament to our culture and what we stand for as a business.

“As a purpose-led organisation, we work to instil a sense of genuine inclusivity for employees, from our tailored learning and development opportunities, support for professional qualifications, volunteering and fundraising programmes, to employee share schemes which align the interests of our people with those of the bank.

“Our customers trust us to deliver a service that supports their commitment to deliver positive and lasting change, and I’m proud that our employees share a common purpose to drive this forward.”

Awards, FInance, News

Unity Trust Bank named Socially Responsible Lender of the Year

The National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (NACFB) has awarded the prestigious accolade of ‘Socially Responsible Lender of the Year’ to Unity Trust Bank.

The awards ceremony, which took place virtually on Thursday 26th November 2020, was held by the UK’s largest independent trade body for commercial finance brokers to celebrate excellence across the industry.

A total of 57 lender patrons were shortlisted across 14 categories, showcasing the breadth of talent within the sector, from asset financers to CBIL providers, commercial mortgage lenders and more. The ‘Socially Responsible Lender of the Year’ category was introduced for the first time this year, seeking to award Patrons whose core purpose is ethical banking.

As a commercial lender for businesses and organisations that deliver social value, the award win recognises Unity Trust Bank’s work with Responsible Finance intermediaries, social enterprises, charities and other community-focused organisations in the UK.

In 2019, Unity distributed £13.6m to 278 customers, with an additional £12.5m of affordable finance provided to 207 organisations in the first half of 2020. This included a £7.5m loan to the not-for-profit Business Enterprise Fund, and £1.5m for Let’s Do Business Finance, to support provisions of CBILs for hundreds of small businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Commenting on the recognition, Regional Director Linda Martin said: “We are extremely proud of this award win, which recognises our commitment to driving positive change within the community.

“Last year, Unity’s lending enabled the provision of 1,188 bed spaces, provided housing for 437 people and developed 28 community facilities, as well as protecting or creating 672 jobs. As our loan book continues to grow, so too does our support for organisations across the UK who are making a difference in society.

“We have really valued being a Patron of the NACFB since joining in July 2019, and it has been a pleasure working with the Association to highlight the support that we can offer the SME sector.”

COVID-19, Environment, Leisure

Business is bubbling for ethical manufacturer after lockdown sales surge

BUSINESS is bubbling up nicely for one of the country’s most ethical and inspiring manufacturers.

Dr Zigs distributed 10,000 litres of its popular products during the Coronavirus lockdown – that equates to a staggering 10 million giant bubbles.

And the sales surge comes as the company, based on the Vaynol Estate near Bangor, approaches its 10th anniversary.

Bubbler-in-Chief Paola Dyboski-Bryant has big plans for the future; she wants to create a viable, sustainable organisation with a minimal carbon footprint that reflects her own ethics and activism.

A former professional sailor and lighting technician – Paola was the West End’s first ever female spot operator – she is a campaigner for myriad appeals and charities, including dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, end-of-life-care, refugees and homelessness.

Raised in Italy, her father was a Polish war refugee who fought for Britain as an SOE (Special Operations Executive) agent and championed the values of humanity and selflessness.

That attitude and drive has carried Paola and Dr Zigs Extraordinary Bubbles from a kitchen table in Tregarth to every corner of the world, and the best is yet to come.

“We will be launching in the United States soon and have just done so in Australia and South Korea, but my main focus is on being an innovative business that does things differently, and in a much more ethical way, with a huge focus on the circular economy,” said the mum-of-three, who lives in Llanberis with lecturer husband, Daniel.

“We manufacture bubbles, but they are not just toys, there is an important message and they genuinely make a difference to people’s lives.

“That was certainly the case in lockdown; we had so much feedback from families of children with disabilities, or people who had been blowing bubbles for elderly neighbours, gifting them for friends and family, or just using them to keep little children entertained when they needed it most.

“Sales went through the roof, but the most rewarding factor was knowing they had made people happy at such a difficult time.”

Employing five staff and inspired by her youngest son Ziggy – who would erupt in fits of giggles when treated to a bubble display – the company is now focused on eradicating plastic from all packaging and processes.

“I’m aiming for a circular economy model, I want us to be as sustainable possible,” said Paola.

“We are working with a firm in Thailand to introduce sustainable rubber wood, and a community farm in Vietnam. Replacing our buckets with coconuts is another option, and in a couple of weeks we will be delivering bubbles overseas via a sailboat, a completely carbon-neutral shipment.

“At present people send the bottles back to us and we refill them in exchange for a discount voucher, so we are constantly recycling, and encouraging re-use but it’s not enough.”

Neither was a series of giant bubble world records she and hundreds of participants broke at Caernarfon Castle in 2018.

Paola is always thinking bigger, and more importantly, better. Especially for the environment.

“From the moment I sat down and started making the bubbles, all these different mixtures that led to different scents and senses, I knew Dr Zigs was going to be special,” she said.

“I had £20 worth of stickers and bottles and never looked back, but it’s not all been down to me, I have a brilliant team who have worked so hard, particularly in past months.

“We have gone on to complete a PhD in bubbles, provided bubbles for a collection of artists at Paris Fashion Show, and even appeared on stage with the Kaiser Chiefs!

“I am a Big Ideas Wales mentor and I tell the children and young people, if I can make a living by making bubbles, you can do anything.”

Paola added: “Our Bubbles not Bombs project is testament to that, to bringing peace and happiness to others.

“It’s not just about bubbles, but they are the vehicle for all of this. If you see something not right in the world, go and change it. That is not easy to do, but you can make a difference.

“I would love Dr Zigs to be the name people think of when they make bubbles, we just want to be different and shake things up – it’s a different way of doing business

“I want to change the world and make it a better place, it’s that simple.”

For more information, visit the website www.drzigs.com and follow @drzigs on social media.