Dunnhumby, the Tesco-owned data insight company, has launched its own venture capital arm to fund retail-focused data start-ups.

Dunnhumby Ventures will make three initial investments, between £100,000 to £500,000 in seed funding, in firms focused on consumer data, according to The Guardian.

The firm will invest in InfoScout, which gains valuable consumer data by offering shoppers rewards for uploading pictures of receipts, The Shelf, where discounts are exchanged for fashion-focused information, and Coherent Path, which calculates how to make customers more loyal in store.

“To me, it’s what does each one of these entrepreneurs bring to the table which is going to make them successful,” Dunnhumby global head of investments Dave Balter told the newspaper. “We have a clear vision … but we’re aware that we don’t know what we don’t know.”

By investing in a diverse group of companies, Dunnhumby hopes to be able to catch hold of emerging trends which owner Tesco could benefit from.

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