Hornby raises £15m to take its traditional toys into the 21st century

Hornby raises £15m to take its traditional models and toys into the 21st century

Hornby has raised £15million from investors to take it into the 21st century.

The models firm, most famous for its toy trains, said it had sold 37.2m shares for 36p each to its existing investors Phoenix Asset Management and Artemis Investment Management, pulling in £13.4million.

Another 4.5m shares, worth £1.6million, are up for grabs to other investors. Any which are not picked up will be bought by Artemis.

Models firm Hornby, most famous for its toy trains, said it had sold 37.2m shares for 36p each to its existing investors Phoenix Asset Management and Artemis Investment Management

Hornby said it wanted the money to start developing new products and invest in digital marketing.

Chief executive Lyndon Davies, who was brought in to turn Hornby around in 2017, is particularly keen on boosting the company’s presence on social media channels such as Instagram and Facebook. 

He wants to popularise Hornby and its brands, including Scalextric and Airfix, with younger generations who may not have been alive during its heyday last century.

Hornby chief exec Lyndon Davies, who was brought is particularly keen on boosting the company's presence on social media channels such as Instagram and Facebook

Hornby chief exec Lyndon Davies, who was brought is particularly keen on boosting the company’s presence on social media channels such as Instagram and Facebook

Davies said: ‘There is momentum at Hornby. We have a bold vision.’

The firm has recently invented Scalextric sets which can be controlled by mobile phones in a bid to draw in tech-savvy youngsters.

Product launches have included Harry Potter train sets and Wacky Races Scalextric.

 

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