In its second Atlantic Canadian deal in a week, Arlene Dickinson’s District Ventures Capital has invested in Fredericton-based manufacturing company Vertiball, whose product helps ease back pain.
The Calgary-based investment group headed by Dickinson issued a statement on Tuesday saying it had closed the investment in the company, though it did not reveal the size of the investment.
When Vertiball appeared on the CBC show Dragons’ Den last year, Dickinson agreed to invest $420,000 in return for a 17 percent stake. Now her fund has closed the deal, though there is no indication of whether the terms are the same as those agreed on the show.
“At Vertiball, we’re committed to developing products and tools that improve overall health and help individuals reach their maximum potential," said Vertiball Founder and CEO Curtis Kennedy in a statement. "We’re thrilled to partner with District Ventures – who not only share this vision but can provide us with the resources and tools we need to scale the business and succeed in the growing industry.”
The announcement comes a week after District Ventures announced a $10 million investment in Halifax-based Outcast Foods, which makes ingredients and supplements from surplus produce.
Read our coverage of District's deal with Outcast Foods.
Vertiball manufactures a portable, wall-mounted device that people can use to massage their backs and reduce pain. It features a mounting device that fastens to a wall so users can position it at a height or location that meets their needs.
Kennedy caught the entrepreneurship bug while studying Engineering at University of New Brunswick, then won a few competitions with the Vertiball idea, and produced 220 prototypes before he had a version he liked. As of last April, he’d raised a total of $400,000 in non-dilutive funding. Then the three-member Vertiball team took the product through a Kickstarter campaign that raised $61,000 – more than seven times the target.
The Vertiball product is endorsed by professional athletes including CeeDee Lamb, Minkah Fitzpatrick Jr., and several other players from the National Football League.
Last summer, Kennedy and COO Aaron Turner pitched the product on Season 15 of Dragons’ Den, during which Dickinson outbid two other dragons to invest in the company.
District Ventures said the physical therapy and rehabilitation industry now produces revenues of $29.5 billion a year and continues to expand and address the growing demands of individuals suffering from muscle tension and back pain.
“At one point in our lives, we’ve all felt the unfortunate effects of muscle and back pain – and Vertiball brings to market an effective, portable tool to treat this common ailment,” said Dickinson. “We are impressed not only with the innovative product that Vertiball has created, but with the sheer passion behind the concept and its development.”