Blend, a female-led London-based startup specializing in workplace training, has successfully secured £350,000 in pre-seed funding. The investment, led by Antler, a prominent early-stage venture capital firm, includes participation from Ada Ventures, NoBa Capital, and notable hospitality angel investors.
Blend aims to revolutionize the hospitality industry’s training methods by combining TikTok-style video content with workplace training, catering to the needs of the deskless workforce.
Despite the gender disparity in venture capital and entrepreneurship, Blend’s success underscores the increasing recognition of female-founded startups in the UK. While all-female founder teams receive a mere 1% of VC investment, Blend, founded by two women and a male from the UK, South Africa, and Ukraine, joins the ranks of other successful female-led startups in securing substantial investments.
This funding round includes contributions from influential investors such as Ada Ventures, known for its commitment to inclusivity, and NoBa Capital, specializing in the future of work. Additionally, Blend attracted support from hospitality industry insiders, including George Hallam, owner of Prickly Pair, Maurice Abboudi, founder of K10 Sushi, and the founders of Bottomless Brunch.
Blend’s journey began when its founders, Jonah Werth, Jules Smith, and Helen Sydorenko, crossed paths during an Antler residency in London in October 2022. Werth, an advertising expert with a focus on video-first campaigns, joined forces with Smith, a seasoned professional with experience at UberEats Australia and CocaCola Euro Pacific, and Sydorenko, the former founder of GreenBin.
The diverse backgrounds of the founders, spanning advertising, entrepreneurship, and tech, positioned Blend to tackle the challenges faced by the hospitality industry.
Transforming Hospitality Training with TikTok-Style Videos
Blend addresses a critical issue in the British hospitality sector, where a lack of trained staff costs an estimated £25 billion annually in unmet customer demand. The startup employs a unique approach, developing short, accessible videos reminiscent of TikTok to train deskless workers in the hospitality sector.
Traditional training methods for hospitality staff are time-intensive and often require in-person sessions. Blend’s innovative solution combines the popularity of TikTok-style content with effective workplace training, allowing restaurants to scale their onboarding processes rapidly. The platform has already completed successful pilots with leading hospitality brands.
Jules Smith, co-founder of Blend, emphasized the platform’s commitment to providing quality training opportunities for deskless employees. She stated, “Our platform shakes things up by delivering learning in a style that champions the unique potential of every deskless employee out there on the frontlines.”
A Vision for Continuous Learning and Self-Improvement
Helen Sydorenko, co-founder of Blend, highlighted the importance of continuous learning and self-improvement. “Our project is here to help every team member learn new things and unlock new opportunities, no matter how you like to learn, what language you speak, or what generation you belong to.”
Jed Rose, Partner at Antler, expressed enthusiasm for Blend’s potential, stating, “Blend is exactly the type of team that we get excited about at Antler.” Rose highlighted the platform’s mobile SaaS offering, providing video-first onboarding for the deskless workforce, supported by AI-driven analytics that can lead to a 50% reduction in manager training time.
As Blend prepares to bring its paid product to market across the UK, the funding injection positions the startup to make a significant impact on the hospitality industry’s training landscape. Antler and other investors express confidence in Blend’s ability to disrupt the market and drive positive change in workforce training methodologies. The story of Blend reflects not only the triumph of a female-led startup but also the potential for innovative solutions to reshape industries and address longstanding challenges.
