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The Welsh company putting its best foot forward for diabetic wound care

07 Jun, 2022

Diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) affect 10% of diabetes patients with 85% of DFUs ending in amputation, making it a very serious and devastating complication of this chronic disease which affects a huge 4.5m people in the UK alone. The numbers of patients are increasing along with the financial burden on both patients and healthcare providers.

"Kaydiar are a great example of the world-class entrepreneurial outputs of Welsh universities. Giving students the opportunity to develop products and business ideas while studying is a great way to encourage entrepreneurship in Wales."

Whilst studying podiatry medicine at Cardiff Metropolitan University, David Barton and Heather Smart, recognised the huge problem that diabetics and clinicians faced worldwide. They explored the market and discovered that the current offering was not fit for patient needs. They began exploring how they could design something to alleviate the suffering for so many people around the world in an effective and cost-effective way.

“GlobalWelsh has served as the foundation to our growth. With the equity investment pledged from their community we could complete ZeroSole’s research and development, maximising product claims and make it market ready."

They began designing and developing an offloading (anti-pressure) device in the form of an offloading insole, ZeroSole. A device designed to aid the healing of DFUs and act as a preventive measure against the wounds. By investing in CAD software and a 3D printer, David and Heather were able to create a functioning prototype for the world’s first silicon insoles to offload direct pressure from wounds and lesions. The prototype and proof of concept exceeded all expectations with preliminary results observing an average pressure reduction of 56%.

Kaydiar was founded and incorporated in 2018. The company went on to enrol onto the Welsh Government’s Accelerated Growth Programme (AGP), collaborate with a FTSE 250 conglomerate; gain significant government grant funding from Smart Cymru and Innovate UK; and secure their first seed investment in 2021 via GlobalWelsh’s investor community.

With the equity investment secured from GlobalWelsh’s investor community Kaydiar was able to secure further matched innovation based funding from multiple sources in Wales and outside. David comments:

“GlobalWelsh has served as the foundation to our growth. With the equity investment pledged from their community we could complete ZeroSole’s research and development, maximising product claims and make it market ready. The funding raised has also allowed us to expand out patents and add to the existing portfolio, protecting for global expansion. As well as building on our marketing, sales and distribution – working with the Ceuta group for retail routes in to market”.

“I would strongly advise any ambitious Welsh company or entrepreneur looking for investment funds or an investor network, to reach out to GlobalWelsh Invest. Also their Connect Platform provides a comprehensive range of business support that is so essential to any outward looking ambitious business.”

Today, Kaydiar is an award-winning innovative, medical device company specialising in offloading technology for pressure-induced wounds/lesions. By offering a more practical and cost-effective approach to diabetic wound care, its innovative device has the potential to reduce the risk of life-changing complications, whilst helping to reduce the financial burden associated with this chronic disease.

The company is currently in the final stages of approval for use in clinical settings and aims to become a disruptive and innovative force within the medical device and OTC (over-the-counter) industries with an ambitious product pipeline which branches into orthopaedic and OTC sectors.

Walter May, GlobalWelsh founder & CEO, said:

"Kaydiar are a great example of the world-class entrepreneurial outputs of Welsh universities. Giving students the opportunity to develop products and business ideas while studying is a great way to encourage entrepreneurship in Wales. Leaving university with little business experience and starting and developing a business is a huge challenge. David and Heather are exceptional people and great role models. Through their hard work, tenacity and passion for innovation and better outcomes for diabetics, they are close to having a significant impact on this common disease. GlobalWelsh are please to have helped them on their exciting journey."

Wales is a hub of entrepreneurship with an organic start-up culture and endless potential. The Welsh entrepreneurial spirit is scattered all over the world via our diaspora. Part of GlobalWelsh’s mission is to bring together investors and business founders in Wales and around the world to offer entrepreneurs and investors the opportunities they deserve and drive diaspora direct investment into Wales and have Welsh products conquer global markets. David continues:

“I would strongly advise any ambitious Welsh company or entrepreneur looking for investment funds or an investor network, to reach out to GlobalWelsh Invest. Also their Connect Platform provides a comprehensive range of business support that is so essential to any outward looking ambitious business.”

If you’re an investor or founder and interested in joining the GlobalWelsh invest Community, or want to know more about GlobalWelsh’s investment initiatives, then please get in touch at investors@globalwelsh.com.

 

 

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