About Us
Over 25 years of investment
and operating experience.
Founded by serial entrepreneurs, Imbiba is unique in the fact that we are the UK and Ireland’s only investment firm to exclusively support best-in-class businesses across education, healthcare, lifestyle and technology sectors. We provide capital – up to £15m or €15m – to help the most innovative and dynamic companies in these markets to scale. Since inception, we’ve partnered with over 20 companies, from leading education platforms, healthcare services companies, health & fitness brands, experiential hotels to innovative software businesses.
Our Difference
We are not a typical private equity investor. Over half the Imbiba team have built and sold category leading businesses as either founders or leaders; the other half are investors who know how to structure growth and deliver returns. This combined expertise, know-how and experience ensures we have an innate and unique understanding of what is required to scale today’s high growth businesses into tomorrow’s market leaders, and crucially, how best to support founders and management teams on this turbulent and life-changing journey.
Where we invest
Why we like this sector
Why we like this sector?
Education drives the economy: we invest behind enduring demographic trends and the rising demand for quality, accessibility, and better outcomes.
Our core focus is early years. We back businesses that combine outstanding care with strong leadership and a clear educational philosophy to build lasting trust with families. We also champion premium, family-focused concepts, like members’ clubs and community spaces that enrich life beyond the classroom.
We see immense value in the ecosystem around these platforms: after-school care, tutoring, and enrichment. These adjacencies deepen engagement and allow founders to build comprehensive, high-quality education groups. We partner with founders to scale these businesses thoughtfully, preserving the culture and standards that families rely on.
Portfolio snapshot: Abacus Ark, Nannie Annies, Monkey Puzzle, Little Houses Group, Purple Dragon
Healthcare innovation
Why we like this sector?
Healthcare offers a rare combination: the defensive resilience of clinical demand paired with the prioritisation of today’s consumer spending. Healthcare is being redefined by a shift towards prevention, performance and proactive self-care. Today’s consumers are informed, empowered and expect convenient access to trusted, high-quality services.
We target the intersection of consumer mindset and clinical credibility, and by leveraging our heritage in premium consumer brands, we help founders apply operational discipline and superior customer experience to clinical settings.
Our goal is to scale their reach and impact without ever compromising clinical standards or patient trust.
Portfolio snapshot: Pindrop Hearing, 1Rebel
Lifestyle brands that resonate
Why we like this sector?
Lifestyle brands shape how people live, connect and express themselves. We invest in authentic concepts that build loyal communities and deliver experiences people truly value.
The best businesses ride structural waves of urbanisation, premiumisation, and the experience economy. We look for founders who pair creative vision with operational rigour, capable of scaling sustainably while retaining the character that made them successful.
We partner with these founders to protect the "soul" of their brand while powering their growth into new sites, formats, and audiences.
Portfolio snapshot: House of Gods London, F1 Arcade, Farmer J
Technology at scale
Why we like this sector?
Technological innovation has never been so rampant leading to rapid disruption and opportunity across all industries. At imbiba we are not experts in technology, however we have front-line visibility on how emerging technologies are impacting the companies in the sectors in which we operate (education, healthcare and lifestyle).
We seek to partner with entrepreneurs who have built products or solutions and have demonstrated product market fit across at least one of three sectors in which we operate. Given Imbiba’s deep connectivity across and understanding of these sectors, we are able to support the commercialisation, including new customer acquisition, of these technologies at they seek to scale.
Portfolio snapshot: Wireless Social, Openr
A Certified B Corp
We are proud to be an accredited B Corporation.
We recognise that our most challenging global problems cannot be solved by governments and non-profits alone. By harnessing the power of business, B Corps commit to positively impact all stakeholders – workers, communities, customers, and our planet. We need an inclusive, equitable and regenerative economic system for all people and the planet. If you too want to use business as a force for good, you can find out more here.
Track Record
Across 30+ investments, Imbiba has delivered over 3x return on invested capital, creating thousands of jobs and achieving successful exits to leading strategic and institutional buyers.