HACE

Manchester-headquartered technology company, HACE, is tackling one of the least visible but most ethically significant problems in global trade - all from a desk in one of the city’s historic market halls.

Founded by Eleanor Harry, the startup is building what it describes as the world’s largest dataset mapping child labour risk across global supply chains. The technology is designed to help investors and multinational companies understand where exploitation may exist within the complex systems that produce and move goods around the world.

But turning that idea into a functioning business required more than technical expertise; it also required the right environment in which to build it.

BUILDING A COMPANY INSIDE THE ECOSYSTEM

In 2023, HACE joined Exchange at Campfield. For early-stage businesses, the practical challenges of building a company can often stifle growth. Tasks like finding trusted professional partners, accessing specialist expertise and building a reliable network can take years.

Being part of the Exchange programme meant HACE could access that support immediately through the wider community at Campfield.

“Several of the partners we still work with today came through the Exchange network,” Eleanor says. “Our insurance provider, our HR representative - they all came through partners on the programme.”

Alongside the network of founders and professional partners, the Exchange programme also provided direct mentorship via its network of advisors.

“The mentorship from partners while on the programme has been truly invaluable,” Eleanor continues. “It’s offered HACE face-to-face access to a wide variety of expertise on everything from HR and insurance to the day-to-day realities of running a business, which we’ve used many times.”

For founders navigating the early stages of building a company, that kind of trusted support can remove many of the operational barriers that slow growth.

“Building a business from scratch is daunting enough, and there’s a lot of stuff out there for founders that’s really difficult to sift through,” Eleanor says. “Having people there who are willing and committed to supporting early-stage businesses makes a huge difference.”

That support helped the company move quickly through its early growth phase.

During its time within Exchange, HACE completed an oversubscribed pre-seed funding round of more than £450,000, backed by a range of Manchester-based private investors.