Mother And Son Team Gain Investment For Incident Response Software

A mother and son team have gained major backing for a company aiming to radically change the way the food and beverage industry responds to incidents.

Friday4:30, an end-to-end platform enabling food brands and manufacturers to manage and log issues from first alert to resolution, has gained a £335,000 investment from venture capital company Haatch.

London-based Friday4:30 is the brainchild of incident management expert Emma Sykes and her son Jack, who created a platform based on his mother’s knowledge.

The Sykes’ say incident management is too often unprepared, disorganised and frequently leads to a ‘Friday 4.30 moment’, where a response is created ad hoc, late in the day.

“Food and beverage has and always will face incidents, from single product failures to full scale production line shutdowns. But, in a world where news travels faster than any response can, the stakes have never been higher."

“I've personally dealt with hundreds of incidents. Every single one needs to be handled in a systematic way” said Emma Sykes.

Sykes worked directly with food brands helping them overcome issues and incidents.

“Over the years, I built a structured approach, and often said: ‘I wish someone could take what’s in my head and create software from it.’ When Jack decided to do just that, I was really thrilled by the possibilities."

“The businesses that come through incidents well aren't the ones with the biggest teams. They're the ones who are prepared."

Jack Sykes ran his own business while studying at Edinburgh University, creating work experience places for students at start-ups. His interest in technology first began when he took an online course run by Harvard University during the Covid period.

“I am not a coder, but I knew what I wanted to achieve, and there are some incredible tools that meant we could create a prototype of the product."

“I’d picked up so much over the years from listening to Emma and had a pretty clear idea of what incident response and preparedness involved. It's about bringing together the many moving parts. Incidents aren't always about a product or a service. They can be industry or business-wide."

“The platform removes the need for crisis manuals, the scramble to get the right people in a room, and the age-old problem of institutional knowledge walking out the door, whether that's someone on holiday or someone who's left the business entirely."

The efforts of the Sykes impressed investors at Haatch, which has invested a six-figure sum. The investment means the company has the capital to launch and onboard its first customers.

Charlie Weavers-Wright, principal seed investor at Haatch, said:

"Friday4:30 is exactly the kind of business we love at Haatch. Emma has spent decades solving one of food and drinks’ most costly and underserved problems - and most companies are still managing product recalls and supply chain crises on spreadsheets and email chains."

"She and Jack are now encoding that hard-won expertise into software that makes professional crisis management accessible to every mid-market brand, not just those who can afford a retained consultant."

“The business already has real revenue, real customer intent and a clear gap in the market to fill. We couldn't be more excited to back them.”

Friday4:30, which is based in London, was launched in July 2025 and incorporated in September 2025. The company has built an advisory committee drawing on expertise from the UK and USA across food and drink, quality assurance, customer service, technology and professional services

“We wanted to do this properly from the outset so we formed an advisory committee in July last year to guide us on our journey.

“Now, with the investment and support from Haatch, we are ready to take this to market,” said Emma Sykes.

About Friday4:30

Built for Fast Moving Consumer Goods brands and manufacturers, Friday4:30 is the only end-to-end platform keeping brands and manufactures ahead of emerging issues and ready to manage everything from first alert to resolution when things go wrong. Because incidents aren't always about a product, they can be industry-wide or business-wide. And no other platform covers all of it

About Emma Sykes

Emma Sykes is co-founder and Executive Chair of incident management platform Friday4:30. Emma is also the founder of Care & Reputation, a consultancy focused on customer care, crisis response and reputation. She has spent years advising food and drink businesses from around the world including brands such as Sarson's, Branston pickle, Tilda rice and Ella's Kitchen.

About Jack Sykes

Jack Sykes is co-founder and CEO of incident management platform Friday4:30. Jack started his first business while studying at Edinburgh University, helping students find work experience places at startups. After his degree he spent a year working before setting about building the prototype that would become Friday4:30.