A HEALTHY eating company which opened its first restaurant in York in 2012 is now seeking to raise £500,000 through a crowdfunding campaign to expand the venture across the North of England.

Filmore & Union, which now operates from seven sites across Yorkshire, including two in York, is offering a 10 per cent equity share in return for half a million pound through Crowdcube, which is one of Europe's largest crowdfunding investment platforms.

The family run company, which had a turnover of £3.2 million in 2014, is the first Yorkshire business to pitch on Crowdcube and has already raised £86,590 from 21 investors.

In its five year forecast the business expects to have 30 sites with a group turnover of £20 million, with a target exit multiple of more than two times the brand's revenue.

Filmore & Union director Adele Carnell, said: "This is such an exciting time for us and will be a pivotal turning point for the company. We’ve grown Filmore & Union from scratch but we now need help funding the growth of the business which is why we’ve launched a crowdfunding campaign. We can’t thank everyone enough for their continued support over the years and we hope that customers, friends and members of the public will share our vision and join us on our journey to become the leading healthy eatery in the North of England.”

Filmore & Union was founded in 2011 by Ms Carnell, a former wellness clinic owner, and Will Pugh, a Michelin trained chef, who were frustrated at the lack of healthy, unprocessed food on the high street.

The duo went on to open their first café and restaurant in Low Petergate, York, in March 2012 and now operate from 7 sites across Yorkshire, including a further York site at the city's train station.

The next three months is set to see the addition of three more restaurants with openings in Harrogate, Ilkley and Beverley.

Last year Ms Carnell also invested £807,000 into the company for a new Central Production Unit, warehouse and head office in Wetherby to facilitate the expansion, and now plans to use the £500,000 Crowdcube investment to continue growth.