AFTER the Scottish and UK Governments announced plans for measures they hope will cut energy charges for households, we hear from an entrepreneur who has built a business based on helping firms compare the deals offered by utilities.

Name:

Jamie Newall.

Age:

33.

What is your business called?

eyebright.

Where is it based?

Glasgow, with clients across the UK.

What services does it offer?

Utility management so clients can focus on what really matters to their business. We carry out price comparisons and tenders on a no-obligation basis and help ongoing contract management. We cover energy, water and telecoms. We support install projects, help with any disputes and can provide green options for those importing or exporting energy.

To whom does it sell?

Small and medium sized businesses. We are also taking on larger clients and we are targeting companies which are currently providing energy procurement and brokerage services, and who may be using an aggregator for price comparison services.

What is its turnover?

£700,000.

How many employees?

10, but we are actively recruiting.

When was it formed?

2009.

Why did you take the plunge?

I was working with a price comparison site as I found the business model interesting. It was focussed on the residential side of the market, which is important, especially with fuel poverty being a real issue. But while helping it grow I became more interested in how businesses handled utilities. Businesses can have multiple sites and more complexity associated with their buying. The more I looked at it the more I felt there was an opportunity to help businesses save time and money. So, I took the jump and set-up the business.

What were you doing before you took the plunge?

Before joining the price comparison site, I had already set-up an events company with my friend back in 2006 while studying philosophy at Edinburgh university. It was called Deranged Events and it was focused on snow sports, particularly boarding. It was fun in terms of the travel and the buzz of the events. We were all over Scotland, the UK and Europe and we had partners in Canada and New Zealand. We produced the Airbag, a massive inflatable stunt cushion. This was used by boarders and bikers who could do a final, spectacular backflip jump and land safely.

How did you raise the start-up funding?

I sold Deranged Events out to my partner and it is still going strong. I secured what transpired to be an unrealistically small overdraft, and all expansion so far has been funded by retained profits. I have no outside investment although we are at the stage of considering options for new investment to fund growth.

What was your biggest break?

When Scotland became one of the first countries to deregulate its commercial water market in 2008 there arose an opportunity to help businesses with their water, telecoms and energy bills by creating a dedicated point of contact covering all three utilities.

What was your worst moment?

I haven’t had really bad moments, but I have had sobering ones. When you employ people, it’s not just your fortunes at stake. You are responsible for the livelihoods of everyone in the team.

What do you most enjoy about running the business?

Developing the team and the technology. Also knowing the impact we can have when saving businesses money. We are saving in excess of £100,000 for one multi-site business at the moment and that translates into a good few salaries.

What are your ambitions for the business?

To grow and develop our digital platform further. There is significant scope and we are increasing our team and service range. We are rolling out a specialist “white label” service called eyesource. This provides a price comparison service to firms that offer it to clients under their own brands. We want to see growth in excess of 20 per cent in the next year.

What are your top priorities?

We are working with an increasing number of partners who want to use our platform to support their own services under their own brand and we act as an aggregator.

We are looking to push more green energy options so that small and medium businesses can promote the fact they buy green energy.

Businesses, particularly in rural locations and perhaps without mains gas supply, can often benefit from generating their own energy. There will be increased scope for firms to go off grid in the next decade.

What could the Westminster and/or Scottish governments do that would help?

Internet connectivity across Scotland is poor by international standards, particularly in rural areas. The availability of fibre to the premise is very limited and often too expensive. Scotland and the UK need a better digital infrastructure and is overly reliant on aged copper networks.

I also think the issue of business rates, particularly in struggling high streets, needs addressed. I would like to see the Small Business Bonus Scheme relief package to be extended.

What was the most valuable lesson you learned?

Keep adapting the business plan, as things can change fast, and keep an eye on cash flow..

How do you relax?

My daughter Rosie has hit the terrible twos with gusto which has kept us busy. I enjoy snowboarding and mountain biking.