Starcount's £5m Funding Round Led by Former Tesco CEO

In the UK, social media analytics specialist Starcount has raised £5m from a group of investors which includes former Tesco CEO Sir Terry Leahy.

The firm works with clients' customer data, alongside social media and market data, to create a complete customer view. In 2013, it acquired H&D Ventures, the company set up by Tesco Clubcard creators Edwina Dunn and Clive Humby, who now lead the business. Since taking over, the pair have built a Data Science Business comprising a team of data scientists and software engineers, while former dunnhumby exec Mick Yates serves as Director of Strategy and Partnerships, overseeing the commercial growth of Starcount.

Dunn says that with the new investment, the firm is building a platform to deliver customer insight, which will focus on predicting customers' wants and needs, and understanding the 'why' behind their purchases.

Leahy (pictured) adds: 'Starcount is now expanding its understanding of consumers by applying proven approaches - not just to customer data or the rich social network data of stars revealing consumer passions and audience behaviour - but also to powerful third party financial data. By exploring these rare and complimentary data sets, they are able to help companies understand where consumers choose to spend their two most valuable resources - their time and their money'.

Web site: www.starcount.com .