10 January 2013
A Warwickshire-based company specialising in fertility diagnosis and treatment has received a seven figure sum from investors – including Midven’s Exceed Fund and the Angel CoFund – which will be instrumental in helping the firm expand.
The investment comes shortly after the international publication of successful trial results and the European launch of the company’s OvuSense product. OvuSense is a fertility monitor that accurately identifies and predicts a woman’s fertile period to help couples trying to conceive. It is also able to detect the absence of ovulation and is winning favour with clinicians as a tool to assist in the early diagnosis of fertility issues.
The company is obtaining approval for the product to be used in the United States, and the investment will help complete that process and the roll-out of products around the world.
Robert Milnes, CEO of Fertility Focus Limited, said: “This funding opens a new chapter for the company and its products. It will help us expand our team in direct territories and greatly widen the marketing support we can provide throughout our sales channels.”
In addition to Midven’s Exceed Fund, which remains the company’s biggest shareholder, other funding came from new angel investors including the Angel Co Fund. This, alongside a further investment by Norgenix, the company’s strategic partner and US distributor, confirms the very positive prospects for Fertility Focus’ products.
Mr Milnes said the average age at which couples have their first child had “risen dramatically” in recent years mainly due to couples choosing to establish careers before starting a family. “The shift towards having children later in life means that, on average, around 35 per cent of women are now unable to conceive within 12 months.
“Fertility drops dramatically between the ages of 35 and 40 so the earlier we can help couples and clinicians detect or manage an issue, the better the chances of conception,” he added.
OvuSense takes multiple recordings of the body’s core temperature during sleep, providing highly accurate data that gives women who are trying to conceive much greater understanding and control of their fertility.
The company also produces the FertiloScope, an instrument which allows clinicians to carry out early diagnosis and correction of physical abnormalities of the female reproductive organs in an outpatient procedure.
Julie Newman, executive director at Midven, said: “This is an exciting time for Fertility Focus, which was formed in 2005 with a mission to halve the time and cost to pregnancy for infertile couples. The company has developed two unique and innovative products and the prospects – in the US and across the world – are very considerable indeed.”
Two years ago, Midven was the lead investor in a consortium that helped Fertility Focus complete development of OvuSense and achieve the necessary regulatory approvals to launch its products in the European market.