You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
Just got an email from them:
Two and a half years ago we invited our customers to be shareholders in Alpkit. What a day. We reached our target in eight minutes and closed the round 44 minutes later having raised £1.5m from 1350 customers.
Sharing the ownership of Alpkit with our customers comes from deep within us - it's in our DNA. It keeps us fiercely independent and having customers as shareholders holds us accountable. It keeps us true to our ethos.
We have so much skill and experience amongst our existing shareholders. Experts in sustainability, finance, project management, marketing, e-commerce. Swimmers, ultra runners, weekend campers. Many have informed our decision-making far more than they realise. We appreciate their input, guidance and their counsel.
Looking ahead we're considering the right time to have a second fund raise and give you the opportunity to buy. And also give our existing shareholders the chance to sell their shares if they want to realise a financial return.
Creating regular opportunities for our customers to buy a part of Alpkit is an ongoing commitment of ours.
Right now - please let me know if you are interested in buying or selling. Give us feedback and we will listen to your view.
No details on what they have achieved etc with the money from round 1 and no actual business plan to consider though...
I was a very early up taker of Alpkit and a heavy purchaser of Sonder kit.
I have been messed around, had bit fall off my Camino and am now somewhat Meh with the whole nonsense of it.
They have grown too fast and forgotten those who stepped up to start their journey.
Their kit used to be OK quality at a cheap price.
Now it's poor quality at a moderate price.
Don't bother with them anymore.
I bought a Ti Camino from them last year, and the help and advice I received was first class. Since bought a Vir Fortis Fat Bike and again, lots of good help and advice. They do sell some good kit, and their staff are just lovely to deal with. So as a happy customer I would maybe look at investing a small amount.
Maybe the way forward for Singletrack.
Imagine the shareholder meetings... 🙂
What was the return from the first round seems to be the critical question... I wonder if anyone on here invested?
I wonder if anyone on here invested?
I was going to, but it sold out almost instantly....
There was no direct return on the initial shares they sold. They weren’t really set up as shares to provide dividends to supporters. However people who invested did get certain amounts of extra discount on kit for the first 18months or so.
This round is offering people the opportunity to cash in on them, but the value hasn’t been provided yet so no idea of they’ve changed in value in any way.
This round is offering people the opportunity to cash in on them, but the value hasn’t been provided yet so no idea of they’ve changed in value in any way.
So how can you decide whether to cash in or not?
Has this been planned for a while or is it a sudden panic with changing outlook for leisure sports?
but the value hasn’t been provided yet so no idea of they’ve changed in value in any way.
As they don't float on any form of market - their value is fairly arbitrary! I guess they might offer the chance for existing share holders to sell out to new shareholders at a pre-arranged price, decided by Alpkit mgmt.
Extra discount - whoopy do!!! 😀
They’re a big (ish) company now. If they can’t give details of possible returns why should you invest?
eddiebaby
Full Member
Maybe the way forward for Singletrack.
Imagine the shareholder meetings… 🙂
That did make me chuckle, it would be bloody epic wouldn't it?😁
Are these real shares or more Brewdogsbollox cheerleader type “shares”?
All the email is doing is asking if you're interested. They're not actually inviting you to invest yet.
But yeah, a few more details would probably have been a good idea.
I think if you respond and say you’re interested, they will then provide more details in time.
They’re not traded, hence there is no up and down value like publicly traded shares. It’s a different way for the company to generate some investment. For those who did invest the first time round there is still an intrinsic value to the investment and people were able to make savings on purchases.
I don’t believe it’s a fabulous way to make money, but it will appeal to some people who believe in supporting a British company who might not get it right all the time with their products, but do try and stick to their values with things such as B-corp, Alpkit foundation etc.
Did anyone get a million emails this morning announcing round 2 was 50% funded?
No but it is currently showing as 224% of target on Crowdcube.
Well i bought some.... i watched the video presentation the other day, didn't seem entirely nuts. Didn't invest much mind so don't mind if i lose it.
Looking at their first round, it's mainly people putting in around £1000 each on average.
I think last time if you put in a grand or more you got x% off in the shop so some people eyeing up bikes got a nice discount. I think mine said I got something like a 25% return on top.
Seems to have gone well....
What an incredible day. Thank you so, so much for your support. This morning we raised £1m in 15 minutes and as I write this we've got £1.9m from 1,528 shareholders. We're overwhelmed by your response.
Tomorrow we'll open the share offer to the public. This gives you the chance to reflect overnight so in case you haven't managed to invest, you still have time. We'd originally set a cap on funding at £2m and we're looking to increase this to £3m to make sure as many people as possible who want to manage to invest. We'll keep the investment open for another seven days.
I doubt they will use that money to re-employ the people they've made redundant recently.
I doubt they will use that money to re-employ the people they’ve made redundant recently.
Assuming they were made redundant because their roles were no longer needed, it's unlikely anything had changed in such a short period. So, you'd expect them not to need to re-employ them.
Sometimes companies lay people off. It's never nice, but often necessary.
Still don’t get it - seems they get given a shitload of money with no financial return plan, no ability to sell shares or liability on their part.
🤔
Still don’t get it
If you look at the numbers, most people are putting in modest sums ie around £1000, which is hardly life changing. So it's many people making small investments in something they like. It's not serious business case led investment.
no ability to sell shares
My understanding was you could sell shares during this funding round - to new or existing investors.
Thats the way of things. Increase the company's worth, then a little bit down the line flog off their controlling share as a going concern to some market capital investment group.
Couple of years from now, Alpkit will not be owned by the founders, who'll be spending their millions climbing mountains and having other wonderful holidays.
It’s not serious business case led investment.
But they are a serious business with bricks and mortar shops so why not offer a serious business plan?
What happens when Mike Ashley comes along waving his chequebook?
Cake and eat springs to mind.
No idea what will happen, but not all business owners sell out to the highest bidder at the first opportunity.
But they are a serious business with bricks and mortar shops so why not offer a serious business plan?
I guess whatever they offered was enough to raise the money they needed, so it's been a success.
My point was I get the impression people are investing because the like the company and it's ethos rather than because they think it will make the best return and that seems to have worked out well for Alpkit, twice in a row.
What happens when Mike Ashley comes along waving his chequebook?
That sort of contradicts your first point, if Chavsdirect bought them out then everything would change anyway, so any plan would have been lost and they'd just start churning out the lowest quality tat money could buy.
I bought a Heiko jacket last year for 69.99 It's £134.99 this year so for that reason I'm out.
A few more shareholders have joined...
We've welcomed 2,300 shareholders, raised £2.3m
Seems to have been very successful for them.
Are these real shares or more Brewdogsbollox cheerleader type “shares”?
This is the real question. It doesn't matter if it is a publicly traded company or not if they are real shares preferential or ordinary you own part of the company. Is this actually just a discount club or zero interest loan that you give the company?
I really wanted to like them...
Purchased a circa £70 fleece, and first wear realised the arm was stitched 90degees off (Pretty obvious as it has thumb loops, one lined up with back of hand and the other with my thumb)
Returned it free, and they sent another... exactly the same issue. Wonky arm.
Pretty poor quality control at that price point IMO.
And that was the end of my purchasing anything further, I can pop into almost any outdoor shop and get a fleece with straight arms and change for £70.
I believe they are real shares* (no idea about voting rights). They also said that investors from round #1 could sell in round #2 - but as I wasn't one, I didn't look into it.
They aren't "proper" shares, you can only buy and sell them when they say you can. I put some money in at round one and some in at round two but then backed out, after this massive round of fundraising I can't see them doing another for aaaaages so my round 1 investment isn't going to be seen again for an equally long time, didn't fancy handing over more cash.
They aren’t “proper” shares, you can only buy and sell them when they say you can
That's the same with any non listed company is it not?
A vaguely recall all the shares I've had in private companies (employer) have had clauses that I can only sell to another share holder or they have first refusal at the offer price etc. I.e. you're locked in till the company floats.
That's why I put proper in quotes.
That’s the same with any non listed company is it not?
I don't *think* so (but can always be wrong) some places may place a restriction especially when it's some sort of employment perk but the not being publicly traded is more you have to go out and buy / sell the share yourself. There are not the reporting requirements on a non listed company, it's less regulated, but as with any asset you vcan sell what you own normally
I know this is a bit old, since the Alpkit fundraiser was in Dec 2022.
In their marketing for this they implied the company was profitable. They then went on to raise 2 million.
However they have recently published accounts for the Year ending October 22 (2 months before the fundraiser) which posted a loss of 1.3 million. You can find their accounts on companies house.
I don't know the legal side of things, but that looks very morally suspect to me. The directors would have well known what was going on. Looks to me that the fundraiser was to fill a hole in their accounts due to the big loss.
I have no skin in this game, since I never invested, but it does seem a bit underhand, given Alpkit's usual morally superior marketing comms.
I know this is a bit old, since the Alpkit fundraiser was in Dec 2022.
In their marketing for this they implied the company was profitable. They then went on to raise 2 million.
However they have recently published accounts for the Year ending October 22 (2 months before the fundraiser) which posted a loss of 1.3 million. You can find their accounts on companies house.
I don’t know the legal side of things, but that looks very morally suspect to me. The directors would have well known what was going on. Looks to me that the fundraiser was to fill a hole in their accounts due to the big loss.
I have no skin in this game, since I never invested, but it does seem a bit underhand, given Alpkit’s usual morally superior marketing comms.
Long term profitable vs short-term / annual loss due to investment in staff, facilities or retail space etc, which the crowdfunder might have been part of? Just a guess though.
I'm interested in why a new user signs up to an account to post one thing on an old thread about a company they're not invested in and having not read things fully.
Comeback @flowerpower2 and tell us why
Their 20222 accounts seem to be the first to be audited so there seems to have been a bit of a clear out and they have got themselves out of an expensive and my guess highly dilutive financing. That said they made an operating loss of nearly £1.4 million of which over £400K relates to an FX loss. I am not sure what representations they made when they raised their finance but there was no way they were profit making. Crowdfunding seems to be a great way to separate fools from their money.
BORINGGGGGGG
I’m interested in why a new user signs up to an account to post one thing on an old thread about a company they’re not invested in and having not read things fully.
Yes, very odd behaviour.
I don't recall AK claiming to be profitable, IIRC they had some redundancies just before the 2nd round.
I like Alpkit's talk in their sustainability brochure. They're trying to be Patagonia but don't have the quality or reputation with a legacy of being a "value" ("budget" is perhaps unfair) brand. I don't confess to understanding the investment thing but...
I get the impression people are investing because the like the company and it’s ethos rather than because they think it will make the best return
...sounds more like charity to me.
Yes, very odd behaviour.
I don’t recall AK claiming to be profitable, IIRC they had some redundancies just before the 2nd round.
Having just re-reviewed the documents from the 2022 funding round....
From the 'outside together document'
Growing and profitable. We’ve grown at almost 50% compound annual growth over 8 years to £15m sales. Viable, vibrant and sustainable. Voted TGO Online Retailer of the Year for a record 8thtime.
Certainly call themselves profitable.
All stores profitable and generate cash. They’re integral to greater engagement and web growth: 9 flagship stores across the country with unique proposition: full range stores; instore repairs; local events; bike hire and bouldering mat hire. Stores deliver average 15% contribution and are a key recruiter of web customers.
Profitable: Strong year-on-year underlying EBITDA growth. £930,000 adjusted EBITDA in 2021. We expect £224,000 adjusted EBITDA in 2022 following year of currency volatility, supply disruption, cost inflation and investment in reshoring production from Far East.
They actually did 199 EBITDA, so not miles off.
Our Adjusted EBITDA has grown every year to £931,000 in 2021. This year our performance has been affected by UK web demand returning to pre-pandemic levels, supply chain disruption, currency volatility and investment in reshoring wheel production from the Far East.
Reading between the lines, they're not saying 2022 was going to be great.
I mean surely anyone who invested did so as a massive punt (I did at least) - there were enough warnings on the site!