True Stories

After a packed three days of meetings with leading retailers, brands, tech businesses—plus connecting with our US corporate partners, the True team are back from Shoptalk Las Vegas 2025. This year’s agenda focused on the four fundamental qualities today’s consumers expect: customer hospitality, value, inspiration and a strong reason for being. With Liam Buswell and Jamie Campbell representing True on the ground in Vegas, here are their insights from this year’s event.

We are pleased to announce the appointment of former global CIO of Burberry and Unilever's consumer business, Mark McClennon, MBE, as Senior Advisor to True.

AI Agents show promise but face adoption challenges, with success likely first in simple, routine tasks where downsides are minimal compared to the hassle of doing it yourself. Joe's blog explores the spectrum from AI Assistants to true Agents, examining when consumers will trust AI to act independently rather than just assist.

As hinted at the end of last year when we announced our strategic partnership with Represent, the brand has now expanded into womenswear. Founded by brothers George and Michael Heaton, Represent has a loyal customer base and has seen considerable growth.

Innovation analyst, Noam Silva, explores how sustainability in retail faces a critical paradox. While 80% of consumers claim they'll pay more for sustainable products, their purchasing decisions tell a different story. As businesses navigate climate commitments and greenwashing concerns, economic pressures threaten to overshadow sustainability initiatives. Yet the path forward is clear: companies must transform their environmental efforts into measurable business value.

Ribble is now the official bike sponsor of the Smurfit Westrock Cycling Team for the 2025 season, powering the women's cycling team to new heights.

The Cotswold Company (TCC) saw Christmas sales surge 22% to £19.9m, B Corp certification, and the opening of its eleventh and twelfth showrooms in Marlow and Harpenden.

We are excited to announce True’s participation in Eyva’s €2.7m Seed funding round co-led with Earlybird and Wenvest.

We are an investment firm dedicated to the consumer and retail sectors, emphasising the significant opportunities for growth and innovation within these markets. With a focus on partnering with founders, we want to use our expertise to help build successful companies and navigate the evolving landscape of consumer and retail.

On Wednesday 20th November, we hosted our latest annual Tech Showcase. The evening brought together leading retail and consumer industry innovators to explore eight cutting-edge technology solutions that are driving top-line growth and bottom-line efficiencies.

We’re excited to announce our strategic partnership with Represent, a UK-based luxury fashion brand reshaping the boundaries of luxury and performance sportswear.

AI is transforming consumer markets by making high-cost services more accessible and affordable. This parallels past tech revolutions, like personal computing and the gig economy, where innovation and cost reduction spurred market expansion. AI's rapid, scalable advancements, championed by major companies, are creating massive new demand. The market potential is vast, with history hinting at billion-dollar opportunities—and we're excited to support founders shaping this future.