What NOTWICS does

NOTWICS is a London-based Investor Relations and Business Development consultancy focused exclusively on private technology companies. Founded in February 2017 by Chris Lowe — formerly a Bloomberg Technology specialist covering private and public tech in EMEA (2012–2017) and a stockbroker of 18 years — the firm offers tech founders a blend of strategic advisory covering capital raising, commercialisation, press, digital content, vodcast production and event-based investor introductions. Its core deliverables are a monthly In-House Consulting engagement at £5,500/month + VAT providing 30 hours per week of BD/IR support, alongside unit-priced pitch events (£300/event) and corporate event sponsorships (£3,000–£5,000/event).

The firm does not build or sell proprietary software; rather, its technology surface consists of a digital platform, the FOUNDstars and FUNDstars vodcast/podcast series (now in Season 6), the NOTWICS Hub content library, and the NCP (NOTWICS Connecting People) networking event series. The asset that drives the business is a curated investor network — VCs, Angels, Family Offices and HNW investors — cultivated through more than 200 events hosted since May 2011 at venues including Google Campus and across the UK. Repeat client outcomes such as SafeToNet raising £500k+ from 15 investors within 6 weeks and BattleMe oversubscribing a SEIS round in under two months underpin case-study credibility.

Go-to-market is event- and community-led: pitch events (NOTWICS Early Stage, SAS Series A Specials), NCP networking, the podcast/vodcast series, referral partners across legal (DAC Beachcroft, CMS, FieldFisher, Wilson), tax/accounting (Novus Capital, CFPro, Punch Financial), corporate finance (London Stock Exchange, SP-Angel), PR (Fieldhouse Associates) and government/academic (Austrade, Queen Mary University). Operations are concentrated in the UK with select cross-border support via the Austrade and Punch Financial partnerships. NOTWICS is privately held and founder-owned, with no disclosed external funding rounds.

Name

NOTWICS

Legal name

NOTWICS

Website

https://notwics.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

NOTWICS is a London-based Investor Relations and Business Development consultancy that helps UK private technology founders raise capital and scale commercially through monthly advisory retainers, pitch events, and the FOUNDstars and FUNDstars vodcast and networking platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Consulting Services: Monthly retainer-based consulting providing Business Development Specialist services, investor relations execution, and management advising. Includes 30 hours per week of support focused on sales and revenue growth for founders.
2. Event Services: Revenue from pitching events where startups present to an engaged audience of VCs/Family Offices/Angels, and corporate event sponsorship services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

NOTWICS provides Investor Relations and Business Development advisory services to tech founders and early-stage technology companies in the UK. The firm combines strategic IR consulting (covering Capital, Sales/Commercialisation, Strategy, Press, Digital, VodCast, Blogs, Events, and Social Media) with curated pitch events, a podcast/vodcast content platform, and a curated investor network spanning VCs, family offices, angels, and HNW investors. Core delivery is a £5,500/month retainer providing 30 hours per week of consulting, supplemented by per-event pitch opportunities and corporate event sponsorships.

Product overview

NOTWICS is a consultancy/advisory firm, not a software product company. It does not offer a platform-plus-modules architecture. The company provides a unified Investor Relations and Business Development consultancy service to tech founders, combining advisory services (Investor Relations, Commercialisation, Strategy, Press, Digital, Events) with content platforms (VodCast/Podcast series, Hub content) and networking events (Pitch events, NCP connecting events). Services are offered through monthly consulting engagements and per-event pricing, rather than as distinct software products or modules.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FOUNDstars and FUNDstars: A podcast/vodcast series featuring interviews with founders and investors in the UK tech ecosystem.

Products and services

• In-House Consulting (Monthly Retainer)
• Pitch Events (NOTWICS Early Stage & SAS Series A Specials)
• Corporate Event Sponsorship
• FOUNDstars and FUNDstars Podcast/Vodcast Series

Quantifiable outcome

• SafeToNet raised over £500k from 15 investors within 6 weeks of presenting at NOTWICS 16
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Fieldhouse AssociatescoreGTM or Marketing PartnerTech Strategy and PR partner providing strategic communications support for NOTWICS and their clients. Fieldhouse specializes in private Technology PR and lists many of the UK's leading VCs as clients.
• DAC BeachcroftminorOthersLegal partner providing legal support for events and client activities.
• CMSminorOthersInternational law firm and legal partner for NOTWICS events.
• FieldFisherminorOthersLegal partner supporting NOTWICS operations.
• CFProminorOthersAccounting partner providing financial expertise to support client needs.
• London Stock ExchangecoreOthersStrategic partner supporting events and providing access to public market expertise for clients.
• Novus CapitalminorOthersTax and R&D specialist partner providing expertise for startup clients.
• SP-AngelminorOthersCorporate finance partner supporting NOTWICS events.
• Queen Mary UniversityminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent partner and university commercialisation collaborator.
• AustrademinorOthersAustralian Government trade and investment commission partner.
• Walmer GroupminorOthersAI tech research partner and R&D tax credit specialist.
• Punch FinancialminorOthersUS accounting partner providing international support for clients.
• Wilson (Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati)minorOthersCorporate legal partner associated with US tech law expertise.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Brunswick Group: Global strategic communications and investor relations advisory firm covering M&A, IPOs, and crisis management. Operates much broader and at much larger scale than NOTWICS but competes for the same IR mandates from UK tech companies going public or scaling internationally.
• FTI Consulting: Global professional services firm with a sizeable Strategic Communications practice serving corporates on IR, public relations, and capital markets transactions. Larger-scale incumbent competing for the same enterprise-grade IR engagements as NOTWICS.
• MHP Group (MHP Communications): UK-headquartered strategic communications and IR advisory firm with deep public-company and capital-markets expertise. Comparable as a UK IR advisory competing for technology-sector listings and corporate IR mandates.

Others

• Crowdcube: UK equity crowdfunding platform enabling founders to raise capital from a broad investor base. Competes with NOTWICS indirectly as a distribution channel for early-stage capital raises, replacing or augmenting the boutique-IR go-to-market for SEIS/EIS-friendly rounds.
• Seedrs (now Republic Europe): Pan-European equity-crowdfunding platform serving UK startups alongside private investors. Comparable as an alternative capital-raise channel that aims to disintermediate boutique IR firms by giving founders direct investor reach.
• Founders Forum: Invitation-only community for tech founders, investors, and operators (folded in Tech Nation). Comparable as a UK-based founder-investor network and event series that creates warm intros similar to NOTWICS pitch events, though positioned more as a community than fee-for-service IR.

Direct peers

• Beattie Group: UK-based integrated communications and investor relations firm with a strong tech and growth-company practice. Most directly comparable boutique competitor serving UK scale-ups with IR, PR, and capital-raise support.
• Fieldhouse Associates: UK private-technology PR specialist listed as a core partner on NOTWICS's site. Compares as an adjacent boutique serving overlapping UK tech-startup clients on PR and comms, with overlapping venture-ecosystem relationships.
• AMO Strategic Communications (formerly Tavistock): London-based IR and strategic communications boutique serving UK and European growth companies, particularly in technology and life sciences. Closest direct competitor on boutique IR/strategy positioning.

Emerging players

• Antler: Global day-zero VC and founder generator that supports portfolio companies with fundraising, IR, and business-development services. Comparable as an alternative, programme-based origination for the same early-stage founder clients NOTWICS serves — often with embedded IR support that competes on price.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/notwics

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about NOTWICS