Key Details
Amount invested: £30,000
Type of investment: Below-market interest loan
The need
Film photography is experiencing a revival, but for many young people, photography as an industry remains expensive, difficult to access, and lacks diversity. CIME (Caught in My Eye) was founded to change that: a Black-owned film photography lab and community hub in Camden, making film photography affordable and opening up the creative arts to young people who rarely see themselves reflected in them.
What the investment will do
The £30,000 loan is mostly funding a film scanning and development machine, to support CIME’s main revenue stream, which will free up staff time and help the business grow, with co-founder Paul’s background as a lab technician giving CIME the in-house expertise to run it. The rest of the loan is split across growing the workshop and consulting side of the business.
Impact in Camden
CIME has engaged over 160 people in the past year, mainly in Camden, with a particular focus on young people aged 12–25 from the global majority and other underrepresented backgrounds. It has already collaborated with local organisations including Working Men’s College, King’s College London and Camden Collective, and is exploring exhibitions and events with Camden-based cultural organisations such as the Museum of Youth Culture. As the business grows, CIME plans to use income from its photography services to fund free or low-cost activities in Camden and create paid roles for local young people.
“CIME Labs is a strong community-focused organisation that has a big impact on young people. They help with skills building, confidence boosting and social and community networking. The team’s vibe and energy were excellent, and I feel anyone who uses their space or meets them would feel welcomed, comfortable and supported. I love how most of the team said it helped them gain their motivation back and brought them out of a dark time.”
Tameka, Youth Panel member
“I liked the diversity and liked how their delivery focuses on all of the investment fund criteria and how enthusiastic they are. I like that they are a photography business and that it’s Black-owned, which offers reduced costs, which is different from other photography businesses, and I feel like they will put the investment to good use. I also loved how focused they are, you can see they are really passionate about their business.”
Cherrie, Youth Panel member
