Gateshead's Transmit pledges to back 5,000 startups by 2020

A regional startup established to help other entrepreneurs fulfil their ambitions has pledged to back 5,000 businesses with finance by April 2020.

Gateshead-based Transmit Start-Ups has set itself a challenge to reach the milestone as part of its fifth anniversary celebrations.

The company was set up in 2013 by entrepreneurs Damian Baetens, Richard Myers and Ian Straker who shared an ambition to help others startup up their businesses.

By delivering the government-backed Startup Loans programme, they offer entrepreneurs an alternative to a traditional bank loan.

Richard Myers, Transmit’s commercial director, said: “It’s five years since we launched Transmit Start-Ups with an unapologetic ambition to shake up the UK’s business support landscape.

“As entrepreneurs ourselves, we wanted to do things differently - to provide the level and style of service entrepreneurs need and deserve.

“We are really proud with what we’ve achieved to date and want to use this opportunity to set ourselves the goal of supporting 5,000 businesses by April 2020 and becoming the UK’s number one provider of Startup Loans.”

So far, Transmit has backed 3,611 UK businesses with £35m and has become the biggest lender of its kind in the North East and Scotland.

The Transmit team has grown to a 27-strong team, with Gateshead and Glasgow offices.

Newcastle-based furniture and interiors studio, Psalt Design was one of Transmit’s first ever loan recipients and has since gone on to launch its first product - a hand-blown glass fish bowl.

Founder, Richard Bell, commented: “The business support we received was great and played a large part in our initial growth. The loan gave us the platform to begin to sell our first product and it is amazing to see how the company has grown since.”

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