Icehouse Ventures

A massive congratulations to the Alimetry team on their US$18m (NZ$29.9m) Series A raise! Alimetry is changing the way we diagnose and manage gastric disorders. With nearly one in 10 people suffering from chronic gut symptoms, their non-invasive, wearable device speeds up diagnosis by measuring the pattern and intensity of electrical waves in the stomach. “It gives clinicians the tools they need to quickly and correctly diagnose patients so that we can move from trial and error - and guesswork - into clarity of care and personalised medicine.” — Co-Founder and CEO, Greg O'Grady. Alimetry's flagship product is used in more than 30 US hospitals, as well as three public hospitals and two private clinics here in Aotearoa. This funding will enable them to scale their vision of providing millions of patients worldwide with crucial insights into their care pathways. Read more here (paywall): https://lnkd.in/giZDtS4Y

After epic turnouts in Tāmaki Makaurau and Ōtautahi, we couldn’t skip the capital, home to early NZ startup successes like Xero and Trade Me… Join us on Friday, November 8th, for the Te Whanganui-a-Tara, Wellington, Startup Block Party! An event for those who start, build, and support Aotearoa's startup ecosystem. Reconnect with old friends, meet new faces, and listen to a fireside chat with Brooke Roberts, Co-founder and Co-CEO of Sharesies. It’s a casual gathering with food, drinks, and no cost to attend. 4:30pm till late 🕺 RSVP here: https://lnkd.in/ghHQVznj

Thank you to the 140+ members of the First Cut community who came to this months First Cut Meetup, with special guest, Simran Kaur! Simran, founder of Girls That Invest, shared her journey from UOA Optometry student to creating one of the world's top investing communities, empowering thousands globally along the way. If you’ve followed her entrepreneurial journey to-date, you’ll know it spans building an engaged community of millions, launching an investing education platform, and authoring a best-selling book, all within the last five years. It was a full conversation, so we’ve done our best to summarise the key takeaways Simran shared on the night. Check them out below, along with snaps of the First Cut community out in force. A very big thank you to Simran for joining us. Link to join the community and hear about future events in the comments👇

Congratulations to Emerge on their $12 million Series A round! This milestone is a testament to their innovative approach to business banking and the value they're bringing to SMEs across Aotearoa. Emerge, born from the success of SquareOne App (their kid-focused financial education app), is revolutionising the business banking landscape. Their user-friendly app simplifies expense management, integrates seamlessly with accounting software, and offers rapid onboarding for new businesses. "Emerge is the future of business banking," says Co-Founder, Jovan P. "What can take four or five months and multiple branch visits becomes four or five minutes with Emerge. You can download our app and do it in the comfort of your home." "We've got the BHAG (big hairy audacious goal) of 37,000 customers for SquareOne but are now at 180,000 and counting with our kid-focused cards. We're hoping for similar success with adults," adds Co-Founder, Jamie Jermain. Read more about Emerge's potential to disrupt the business banking sector here: https://lnkd.in/gTkX_fxK

We're bringing Careers of the Future to Ōtautahi Christchurch next week! Come along to hear from four exceptional operators driving Aotearoa's most exciting startups (all of which are currently hiring 👀).. We'll be joined by Sarah Aubrey, Head of Marketing at Appetise; Gabriela J., Research Manager at Zincovery; Jenny Blackburne, Mechanical Engineer at Dawn Aerospace; and Josiah Bull, Software Engineer at Partly. Network with the panelists and their teams to gain insights into the day-to-day life of scaling a startup and what they are looking for in their next hire. Details:  📆 Tuesday 15th October, 5 pm - 7 pm 📍 Foundation Cafe (Tūranga Library, 60 Cathedral Square, Christchurch Central). 🍽 Drinks & nibbles provided. RSVP here to secure your spot: https://lnkd.in/g9BvXBKk

Basis are revolutionising home electricity management with their world-first electric smart panel. ⚡️ Check out some of their milestones below and why in their recent NZ Herald article with Chris Keall, they were dubbed ‘the most successful Kiwi startup you’ve never heard of’: ▪️They’ve developed a smart switchboard that could cut electricity bills for Kiwi by up to $1000 annually ▪️Pre-sold 5,300 units ahead of their official launch next year ▪️Are building their own R&D facility in Christchurch, leveraging local engineering talent and boosting the local tech ecosystem ▪️And have raised $38 million to power all of the developments mentioned above, with 95% of that funding coming from Kiwi investors The Basis Smart Panel enables consumers to reduce power consumption, receive real-time fault alerts, and access instant information about individual appliance energy usage, all while remotely controlling their power supply. It integrates seamlessly with solar panels, batteries, and EVs, and allows electricians to access the panel via an app for remote diagnosis. As Barnaby summarises it, "Transitioning from existing electrical panels to a Basis Smart Panel could revolutionise the electricity industry, much like how the iPhone transformed the pre-smartphone era." Read more in the full article and see what 2025 holds for Basis 🚀 https://lnkd.in/gkiF65xm

🚀 Calling all young and aspiring startup founders and operators in Auckland! Join us for our upcoming First Cut Meetup featuring the incredible Simran Kaur, Founder & CEO of Girls That Invest. Simran founded Girls that Invest with a vision to bridge the gap between financial literacy & investing education for young women in minorities. Her work so far has helped financially empower thousands of people globally, earning her widespread recognition with awards such as Young New Zealander of the Year and inclusion in Forbes 30 Under 30. This event is brought to you by First Cut - IV's community for young startup founders & operators in Aotearoa. Come along to hear Simran share more about her journey, from being an Optometry student at UOA to founding one of the top investing communities in the world. Plus, hear what's in store for First Cut in 2025! Details: 📆 Thursday 10th October, 5:30pm - 7:30pm 📍 Icehouse Ventures HQ (Level 4, 125 Saint Georges Bay Road, Parnell, Auckland) This event is free to attend, drinks & nibbles on us. RSVP here to secure your spot: https://lnkd.in/gjh8455T

Incredibly exciting news for Aotearoa’s venture ecosystem this morning! We are thrilled to share that Tradify has announced their impending acquisition by The Access Group. A massive congratulations to Michael Steckler (CEO), Curtis Bailey (founder), and the entire Tradify team. 👏 Tradify is a best-in-class jobs management software trusted by thousands of electricians, plumbers, and other tradespeople. Their platform brings together customer enquiries, quotes, service reminders, staffing, invoices, and more. Founded by Curtis Bailey in 2013, it has grown from a single desk at Icehouse Ventures to a team of 107 serving a global customer base of 20,000. Their growth journey and this significant milestone is a testament to the leadership of Tradify CEO Michael Steckler, Curtis Bailey, and the hard work of the whole team. The Access Group is one of the largest UK-headquartered business management software providers. The acquisition accelerates Tradify’s ambitions, further enhances their customer experience, and allows them to become part of an even bigger mission. For Icehouse Ventures, this transaction will deliver the largest cash return to date and means over 500 IV investors, including those in our Seed Fund I and Growth Fund I, will receive profits, twenty of these will see six-figure returns, and a few will even achieve seven-figure profits. Read more via the article: https://lnkd.in/gSidtQwj Or check out Robbie’s reflections on Tradify’s journey and why it’s a great reminder of the bright future ahead for New Zealand’s venture ecosystem: https://lnkd.in/gajMuhxC

Congratulations to Ideally on their $6 million round! 💡 Ideally is revolutionising customer research with their AI-powered platform, enabling creatives to conduct rapid-fire surveys without the need for a dedicated research team. This means that surveys that would normally take weeks can now be done overnight and for $10,000 rather than $50,000. Since their launch in September last year, Ideally has attracted 115 customers across Australia and New Zealand, including major brands like Asahi, Telstra, and Revlon. The platform has also become a go-to tool for 25 of Australia's top creative and advertising agencies, with industry heavyweights such as DDB, VML, and M&C Saatchi coming on board. They currently have a growing team of 30, with 20 in Auckland and 10 in Aussie. This round enables them to add another 15 people to fuel them on their growth journey—or as co-founder and CEO James Donald describes it, their "focused expansion" into the US. “Ideally got to the [$1m revenue] mark in half the time and is on track to hit the $5m mark equally rapidly. What is especially encouraging is the diverse set of businesses that make up Ideally's revenue. They are clearly addressing a pain that is common across many industries, models, and geographies." - Robbie Paul. Read more below (paywall): https://lnkd.in/g66yMBE4

Check out ANDFOODS in NBR - National Business Review this week as they share their story of developing their dairy-free whipping cream, set to launch in Australia later this year.🍦 ANDFOODS, a spinout company from Massey University’s Riddet Institute, uses a 'mystery' lentil and a novel fermentation process to produce food service creams, powders, and a high-protein ingredient. “Using our lentil without the fermentation process would result in a really beany, plant-like taste. But fermentation neutralises many of those plant toxins and increases the level of naturally occurring mucilage polysaccharides, giving it a creamy mouthfeel and a more dairy-like taste,” says Alex Devereux, CEO and Co-founder. Their dairy-free whipping cream passed the taste test in the IV office, and we can't wait to see it on shelves in Australia. Congrats on the progress, Alex and the ANDFOODS team! They can’t reveal the type of lentil just yet, but you can learn more about their growth plans in the NBR story below (paywalled): https://lnkd.in/gp4cYazr