Case study - ZunTold
- Monday, June 10, 2024
- Posted By The Growth Company
ZunTold’s mission is to harness the healing potential of stories, improving mental health and literacy in children, young people and adults.
ZunTold is a publishing and therapy service, based in Manchester, led by a management team of counsellors and therapy managers with over 25 years’ experience delivering digital and in-person, trauma-informed therapeutic services to children, young people and adults.
As a publisher, ZunTold is building a library of resources that people of all ages and abilities can relate to and enjoy.
ZunTold works in a wide variety of settings; online, in the community, and in educational settings. ZunTold have worked in partnership with charities and NHS Trusts and is looking to work across the UK with Integrated Care Systems and local authorities.
ZunTold won an Innovate UK FAST Grant and was offered the Innovate UK Business Growth service as a result. The business used the grant to build a new service platform for its bibliotherapy service, used in the public health sector. The business wants to diversify their business model, build engagement and build a D2C market, adding to its current growing local government income stream.
Based on user feedback ZunTold wants to create a creative writing tool; to increase engagement and the D2C service offer.
To aid the development of the creative writing tool, ZunTold’s founder received support with their application and was awarded an Innovate UK Unlocking Potential Build award. To ensure appropriate functionality of the creative writing tool, a research project was created with Manchester Metropolitan University, using Business Growth Hub Innovation Vouchers.
ZunTold received support from Senior Innovation and Growth Specialist Michelle Lockwood to carry out market research into school academy chains, identifying the appropriate academic and research project along with referral to the Business Growth Hub for match-funding via their innovation vouchers.
After 14 months of working together, ZunTold has secured a combined total of over £800k funding to build a creative writing tool and deliver the service.
ZunTold said: "Working with Michelle has been so helpful. She has provided a sounding board to explore ideas and is an important source of information in terms of further financial routes we can take to pursue our development and growth. Securing the grant to work alongside MMU has been an important part of this journey."