The company behind a do-it-yourself web design and build service has received second round funding to launch a beta version of its platform.
BaseKit's content management system allows people with little or no web development experience to create and manage sites with Web 2.0 functions, such as social networks, user comments, data capture forms and secure user logins, without having to write code.
The company was a winner in last year’s Seedcamp competition, a week-long event where a selection of technology start-ups receive intensive mentoring.
At least five of the most promising will go on to win investment of €50,000 and further guidance from Seedcamp's 400-strong network of mentors while they take their products to market.
The second round funding saw BaseKit backed by the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA) and Eden Ventures for an undisclosed sum.
Investors were impressed by the growth of the business, which has hired a further five people since winning Seedcamp last year, bringing the total number of staff members to eight.
Charles Grimsdale, partner at Eden Ventures, said: “In such a tough economic climate it’s exciting to see a UK start-up bucking the trend and growing the way that BaseKit has over the past 12 months. No other UK business offers this product and this round of investment puts BaseKit in a position to continue to grow and take on an international market.”
According to BaseKit, local search, where internet users search for businesses by type or region, is growing at a rate of 50% a year. Juan Lobato, the company's CEO, said a strong online presence is becoming increasingly important for businesses.
He said: “Business websites are as important as a prime location on the high street and yet we still see many businesses either with no website or with old style, static websites. BaseKit will bring new opportunities to small and medium sized businesses, allowing them to design and power their own dynamic websites and reducing the costs of having one designed for them.”
Along with small and medium-sized firms, the product is also being targeted at professional web designers as a way to reduce the time it takes them to build 'next generation' sites for clients.
Jonathan Kestenbaum, chief executive of NESTA, added: “Digital technologies present a huge growth area for the UK economy. BaseKit’s technology makes rich website design simple and accessible to a much wider audience, putting the company in position to take advantage of a huge market.”
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2009