Key Takeaways
- • Recite Me founder Ross Linnett launched the North East-based website accessibility software business in 2009 from a small Gateshead office with four employees, and it now serves clients including Go-Ahead Group, the NHS, British Gas and Boots.
- • BGF made its first investment in Recite Me in 2023, and a later £4.6m follow-on investment brought total funding to £8.8m.
- • The company has about 25 employees in the US and four in Australia, and Linnett says the US will probably become its largest source of revenue.
- • Linnett attributes his founding of the company to his dyslexia diagnosis at university, and says he chose BGF for its founder-friendly reputation.
Summary
Ross Linnett, founder of Recite Me, has described to Insider Media his path from a dyslexia diagnosis at university to leading a private equity-backed software company. Recite Me, based in Gateshead, provides assistive technology that removes online barriers for people with disabilities, visual impairments, learning difficulties, older users and those who speak English as a second language. Linnett launched the business in 2009 with four employees.
Linnett grew up in a mining town in County Durham and struggled with exams at school. He later studied engineering at university, where he was elected president of the students union. It was there that a presentation led to his dyslexia diagnosis. He said the diagnosis explained his experience of helping classmates while underperforming them in exams. After downloading software to support his dyslexia, he conceived the idea for Recite Me. He recalled that early prospects were enthusiastic but reluctant to be the first customer. Go-Ahead Group was among the first companies to adopt the software. The product has since expanded to scan websites for coding errors and compliance issues, including for blind users.
The company raised about £1m in its early years, which Linnett described as enough for survival. BGF invested in 2023, and a £4.6m follow-on investment later brought total funding to £8.8m, according to the article. Linnett said the company chose BGF because of its reputation for being founder-friendly. International expansion is a central ambition, with about 25 employees in the US and four in Australia. Linnett said the US is growing rapidly as a share of revenue. He continues to live in the North East despite extensive travel for the business.
Linnett grew up in a mining town in County Durham and struggled with exams at school. He later studied engineering at university, where he was elected president of the students union. It was there that a presentation led to his dyslexia diagnosis. He said the diagnosis explained his experience of helping classmates while underperforming them in exams. After downloading software to support his dyslexia, he conceived the idea for Recite Me. He recalled that early prospects were enthusiastic but reluctant to be the first customer. Go-Ahead Group was among the first companies to adopt the software. The product has since expanded to scan websites for coding errors and compliance issues, including for blind users.
The company raised about £1m in its early years, which Linnett described as enough for survival. BGF invested in 2023, and a £4.6m follow-on investment later brought total funding to £8.8m, according to the article. Linnett said the company chose BGF because of its reputation for being founder-friendly. International expansion is a central ambition, with about 25 employees in the US and four in Australia. Linnett said the US is growing rapidly as a share of revenue. He continues to live in the North East despite extensive travel for the business.
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