UK startup Longbottom & Co. is on a mission to “become the tomato juice brand the world needs”. Despite its commitment to sourcing fresh, simple ingredients for its products, the company’s funding history is far from straightforward.
The food and beverage brand was founded in 2018 with backing from angel investors and high-net-worth individuals. Five years later, Dan Misra Jones joined as CFO to oversee the first round of institutional investment and manage employee equity.
Initially, Longbottom & Co. outsourced company valuations to an accounting firm, but Dan soon realised this was a costly and time-consuming approach. While searching for an alternative provider, he received several strong recommendations to try Carta.
We sat down with Dan to understand why Carta was the best answer to Longbottom & Co.’s valuations needs, and how the platform’s broader applications helped him overcome other equity management challenges.
Fostering growth without increasing costs
In order to grant EMI options to Longbottom & Co.’s UK employees, Dan previously relied on a team of accountants to provide HMRC valuations. Despite the quality of their work, he was concerned about the growing cost of getting an updated valuation every 90 days.
This became a more pressing issue when the company expanded its team to the US and decided to set up a separate equity plan. “I had no experience with 409A valuations, so my lawyer pointed me in Carta’s direction,” Dan recalled. “I did some research and realised there was a lot more to Carta than just valuations.”
After comparing the price of a Carta subscription to quotes from traditional providers, Dan settled on the more cost-effective and comprehensive option.
Dan Misra JonesCarta’s price point was really promising, especially because I knew we’d need HMRC and 409A valuations on a regular basis. Most other providers charge per valuation, so the cost would have really ramped up.
CFO, Longbottom & Co.
Ensuring a high-quality, low-fuss experience
Carta’s startup-friendly pricing may have caught Dan’s attention, but it was the painless valuations process and in-house expertise that really sealed the deal.
“In the past, I’ve found working with analysts and accountants very time-consuming. I would have to chase them for updates and then review the results several times. With Carta, I simply checked our cap table data, answered some questions and then waited.”
Despite requiring less effort, Carta’s service still gave Dan a sense of control over the outcome. “Once we received the result, I was able to speak to an expert about adjusting our HMRC valuation,” he said. “They also helped me understand why our 409A valuation couldn’t be changed.”
Such a positive experience encouraged Dan to explore other ways in which Carta could simplify his equity admin. He called out the compliance centre as one of the most useful areas of the product, allowing him to keep track of current and past valuations.
Dan Misra JonesThe platform notifies me about upcoming expiry dates, which reminds me to get board approval for new option grants while the valuation is still valid. These alerts are really helpful, because it’s not the sort of information you just have to hand.
CFO, Longbottom & Co.
Making complexity more manageable
With a funding background split across multiple rounds and an international employee equity programme, Longbottom & Co.’s onboarding experience was far from straightforward. To set up the cap table, a dedicated Carta analyst helped Dan to consolidate the company’s funding and ownership data, which was spread across various documents and spreadsheets.
“Although it was a challenge, the Carta team was great at troubleshooting so we managed to get something into the system that made sense. Now, I’m able to view our cap table at different points in time and even model future scenarios, which is a vast improvement on what we were doing before.”
DISCLOSURE: This communication is on behalf of eShares, Inc. dba Carta, Inc. (“Carta”). This communication is for informational purposes only, and contains general information only. Carta is not, by means of this communication, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services. This publication is not a substitute for such professional advice or services nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect your business or interests. Before making any decision or taking any action that may affect your business or interests, you should consult a qualified professional advisor. This communication is not intended as a recommendation, offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any security. Carta does not assume any liability for reliance on the information provided herein.
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