Angel syndicate

Investor profile

Avonmore Developments

GBDEFRNLSEIEOtherB2B SaaSAI/MLDeep TechHealthtechEnterpriseClimate

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Investment thesis

Avonmore Developments is a London-based specialist angel investor founded in 2000 by brothers Simon and Michael Blakey. The firm deploys its own capital — typically £50,000–£250,000 per deal — into pre-seed and seed-stage companies with strong founding teams, technical or IP defensibility, and commercial traction (or a clear path to it). Sector focus is B2B SaaS, AI, infrastructure, deep tech, and sector-specific platforms, with 90% of investments in UK and Europe. Avonmore has no external investors but regularly co-invests alongside HNWs, family offices, and VC funds to assemble larger syndicates, and portfolio companies have gone on to raise from Softbank, Index Ventures, Molten, Lower Carbon, and QED.

Notable quotes

I always ask myself: Is it a need-to-have or a nice-to-have? Is it a feature or a platform? Is the market they're going for big enough? Are there already lots of well-funded businesses in their space?

Simon Blakey · Founders Forum Group — 'What Do Angel Investors Look For?' · 2023-05-18

'Lemons ripen fastest' – investment failures typically manifest themselves before the successes become apparent. The relationship between an investor and entrepreneur can last longer than many marriages — is this a person you want to be dealing with for the next 10+ years?!

Simon Blakey · Cambridge Angels — 'The Quiet Force in Cambridge's Start-Up Scene'

Courage — more than pedigree, or polish — is the scarcest quality in this industry. It's also how real companies (and real returns) are made. The world belongs to the courageous. I'm betting on them.

Simon Blakey · LinkedIn post — Simon Blakey · 2025

Team

Simon Blakey

Recent investments

CompanyRoundSizeDate
ChattermillSeed2016
Shop CircleSeed2021
PermutiveSeed2013
Epoch BiodesignSeed2021
Aerocloud SystemsSeed2020
Continuum IndustriesSeed2020
VentrataSeed2016
Astral SystemsSeed$6m2024
PolaronPre-seed2024
OrthofuseSeed$3m2026-02

Frequent co-investors

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