A ‘megafund’ doesn’t sound like something that will hit the radar of scale-ups. Indeed, much of the news coverage of the latest pension reforms - where many major schemes, including local government pensions, will be pooled into ‘megafunds’ managing at least £25 billion in assets - focused on the impact on either retirees or the UK’s major infrastructure projects overall.
But the latest plans do offer good news for scale-ups. There has been a sharp decline in domestic investment by UK pension funds: around 20% of defined contribution assets are currently invested in UK-based projects, down from over 50% in 2012.
The Local Government Pension Scheme alone has £392 billion to invest. That's currently split between 86 administering authorities, but this will be amalgamated into six, much larger, pools. And 17 of the largest private pension providers have, under the Mansion House Accord, committed to investing 10% of their assets in unlisted companies and wider UK Growth Sectors by 2030.
Part of the mandate of both of these is to help the UK’s scaling-up businesses get their hands on that cash. But how?
A series of new initiatives are underway to create vehicles to deploy that funding, such as the soon to be formed British Growth Partnership under the leadership of the British Business Bank. We'll bring you more news on this in coming months.
So, it’s positive news for scaleups, according to Irene Graham, chief executive of the ScaleUp Institute:
“This represents a significant milestone in ensuring British institutions back British business—at the scale required—to generate growth, employment and wealth,” she says. “This could unlock billions of patient capital to scaling businesses across the country, addressing the UK’s long standing growth capital gap that has held back growth ambitions.”
And that's why the ScaleUp Institute, with more than 50 leading voices from the UK’s scaleup ecosystem and founders across the country, came together to write to the Chancellor supporting these measures, the plans to place powers into the Pension Scheme Bill to enable compliance. Noting that to deliver tangible impacts on the ground it was vital to see these reforms enacted swiftly, creating practical institutional investment outcomes in every part and sector of the country.
'My kids didn't fit in my car... so I built a £2.5 million business as a solution'
New babies always require shopping trips, but a fourth child meant a heftier investment, as Kevin Macliver discovered when his family was set to expand to six.
They needed a new car. "I quickly discovered that the typical seven-seater wasn’t the answer," he says. "One of the kids ended up stuck in the very back, effectively in the car’s crumple zone. And to make matters worse, you’d lose most of the boot space—just when a growing family actually needs more of it, not less."
At the time, Macliver was running an engineering and energy consultancy. "As a design engineer, I looked at the standard back seat and thought: if it can comfortably seat three rugby players, surely it can fit four children."
His engineering company began developing prototypes of a system that could turn the rear of any car—from Ford to Ferrari—into one capable of carrying three or four children in safe, integrated car seats.
The result was Multimac, a business that now manufactures and fits over £2.5 million worth of seats into cars around the world each year. But the journey from inspiration to safety approval was a long one. The baby who inspired the idea was 13 by the time Multimac was finally approved for use.
"There was a 200-page testing standard for single child seats, and no one else made a multiple," recalls Macliver, now 73. He spent two years lobbying groups including the Department for Transport. "Eventually, the EU government asked me to crash test it in Sweden, the world centre for child safety, and we finally got approval."
The business was entirely self-funded. Macliver invested £750,000 to launch Multimac, including securing patents, and officially launched in 2009. At the time, he was still juggling Multimac with his consultancy work.
"I had two phones, one for each company. Potential seat customers would call while I was in meetings discussing how much energy I could save a firm. I’d be asking the caller, 'What is your car? How old are your children? When is the new one due?' The people around me would look at me quizzically. I often wondered if the people calling to order a Multimac realised it was basically a half-person company."
Word of mouth helped drive early growth, boosted by press reviews and high-profile customers including TV star Claudia Winkleman. Within four months, Multimacs were fitted in cars in South Africa, New Zealand, Moscow and across the EU.
Today, Macliver has major expansion ambitions. "Multimac has a far bigger image than its turnover would suggest," he says. "It’s known to be expensive, safe and high quality, so we could easily expand into complementary child products like strollers, furniture, educational toys and more."
Multimac has just four staff at its Birmingham headquarters. But Macliver sees the potential for a strong family business. "My children are involved in supply chain, sales and marketing, operations and accountancy. We could have a great family business." The fourth baby who inspired Multimac may soon be helping to build it.
Changing the law whilst building a business, by Ruby Raut, founder of WUKA period wear
The price of women’s period knickers dropped by about £2 a year ago after a campaign led by Ruby Raut’s company, WUKA, pushed the Government to abolish VAT on the product. Now, Raut has turned her attention to the tax still applied to period swimwear.
She has been campaigning throughout her eight-year journey of building WUKA into a multi-million-pound business.
"Back when tampons and pads were still taxed, the VAT used to be ring-fenced and went to support women’s health organisations," Raut explains. "But the VAT paid on period pants went straight to the Government. No reinvestment, no support, just women being penalised for managing a natural bodily function.
"Periods aren’t optional, and we shouldn’t have to pay the government for having one. But as a woman of colour, an immigrant, and a founder discussing periods, I’ve been patronised, ignored, and dismissed more times than I can count. When I introduce myself and share what I do, around 60% of the time someone asks, 'What are you doing to help period health in developing countries?' as if solving a real problem in the UK isn’t enough.
"The harder part for me was not knowing anyone. No warm introductions, no existing network. Every conversation started from square one. Who are you? Why are you doing this? As an immigrant, you’re constantly having to justify your presence before you even get a chance to explain your idea."
WUKA's VAT campaign took persistence. It involved three Prime Ministers, 70 meetings with MPs, "and countless emails with HMRC."
"Most people give up after a few rejections. But real change doesn’t happen from one meeting. It comes from consistency, from patience, from purpose." Raut also learned the value of backing from major brands.
"When companies like M&S, Tesco, and Boots joined the conversation, things started to shift. Their involvement helped open doors. But it’s crucial to manage communications clearly when that happens. Make sure it’s understood who is leading and why. That part can get tricky, especially when big companies come in with substantial budgets and louder voices."
"In the end, I learned to turn all of it into strength. Every time I had to introduce myself from scratch, it sharpened my message. It made me clearer, more confident, and more determined. And it reminded me that if no one is opening the door for you, you can absolutely build your own and hold it open for the next person too."
