needi closes £1m from IFNI and Clarendon Fund Managers
This article covers needi, an Armagh-based ecommerce startup, which has closed a £1m pre-seed funding round from the Investment Fund for Northern Ireland (IFNI). The follow-on investment will be used to accelerate development of needi's personalised corporate gifting and onboarding platform, supporting organisations seeking personalised employee rewards and reflecting continued public-backed support for female-founded tech startups in Northern Ireland.
needi, an Armagh-based ecommerce startup, has closed a £1 million pre-seed funding round from the Investment Fund for Northern Ireland (IFNI). The follow-on equity injection — IFNI’s second into the business — will be used to accelerate the development of needi’s personalised corporate gifting and onboarding platform; the deal matters because it signals continued public-backed support for female-founded tech businesses in Northern Ireland and reflects growing demand for more personalised employee experiences.
Why it matters
Organisations are rethinking one-size-fits-all rewards and branded merchandise as employer branding and employee engagement become more strategic. needi’s traction — more than 150 corporate customers, 400% year-on-year growth, £1.6 million revenue last year and repeat business from over 90% of clients — suggests there is commercial appetite for a platform that combines personalised gifting with operational scale.
For Northern Ireland’s startup scene, the round underlines the role of regionally focused funds and the British Business Bank in moving companies from local pilots to international clients. It also highlights continued interest from ecommerce investors in businesses that blend commerce with employee experience.
Inside the product
needi’s platform helps organisations replace generic gifts with personalised experiences. The company says it has delivered onboarding and gifting programmes for global brands including Microsoft, Spotify, Intuit and DPD. Examples include a bespoke “Microsoftopoly” board game to mark a milestone and a personalised Christmas gifting campaign for 15,000 DPD drivers that let recipients choose items meaningful to them.
Since launching in 2021, needi has channelled more than £3 million in sales to local independent businesses across the UK and Ireland while delivering experiences that have reached hundreds of thousands of employees and customers. The company positions its product as both a marketing and HR tool: reducing wasted spend on unwanted merchandise while increasing perceived recognition and retention.
Who are the investors?
The £1 million comes from the Investment Fund for Northern Ireland (IFNI), which is managed by Clarendon Fund Managers and supported by the British Business Bank. This is a follow-on investment from IFNI and brings needi’s total funding to date to £2.4 million.
In the announcement, Claudine Owens, Senior Investment Manager at Clarendon Fund Managers, said:
We are delighted to further support needi in this next stage of growth. Since our initial investment, the team has demonstrated exceptional execution, achieved impressive year-on-year growth, and has continued to innovate and expand its customer base. Louise, Steph and the wider team have built a highly scalable platform that is addressing a clear market need, with strong customer retention and increasing demand from leading global brands. We are excited to make this follow-on investment and look forward to supporting needi as it continues to scale internationally and deliver on its ambitious growth plans.
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Founder perspective
In the announcement, Louise Doyle, Co-Founder and CEO of needi, said:
We’re living through one of the biggest shifts in how people work and connect. Every day we’re told AI will make us more productive, more efficient, and more scalable. Yet many employees feel less valued and less connected than ever before. At the same time, organisations are spending millions on generic gifts, rewards and merchandise that often end up forgotten, unused or thrown away. A thriving business is a business that values its employees. That’s why we built needi. As a founder and mum of three, I’ve learned that the moments people remember most aren’t usually the biggest or most expensive. They’re the moments where someone takes the time to show they care. Our mission is simple: whenever a company wants to connect with someone and show they are valued, needi should be the platform they turn to.
In the announcement, Steph Scholes, Co-Founder of needi, said:
The best organisations understand that appreciation isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s a business advantage. When people feel seen, understood, and valued, they stay longer, perform better, and become advocates for your organisation. We’re proud to be helping some of the world’s leading brands create those moments every day.
The bigger picture
needi’s update sits at the intersection of ecommerce, HR tech and corporate sustainability: personalised gifting can cut waste and redirect spend to smaller suppliers, a point the company makes with its reported £3 million in sales for local independents. The funding also contributes to a pattern of public and quasi-public investors underwriting early-stage companies led by women across the UK.
As competition grows for talent and firms look to differentiate employee experience, expect further investor interest in startups that offer measurable engagement outcomes alongside commerce capabilities.
The round is another data point in Northern Ireland’s maturing startup ecosystem and in the broader UK trend of channeling regional fund capital into digital-first companies with international clients.
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