The Bunch goes on hiring spree to drive expansion

Utilities fintech start-up The Bunch has made a flurry of strategic hires, in support of its continued expansion and ambition to double its customer base this year.

Industry expert Oli Dickinson joins as COO, having been part of the team that took Glide from startup to £200m sale. In his new role, Oli will draw on his 11 years’ experience spanning energy, telecoms and bill splitting to improve operational efficiency across the business.

Bringing top level technical expertise in-house, developer, serial entrepreneur and all round technology professional Ashton Clapp has been appointed as CTO. With over two decades’ expertise in software and hardware development, Ashton will facilitate the next stage of The Bunch’s technological evolution, which includes an app for customers to manage their bills.

Completing Ashton’s tech team is talented Senior Software Engineer, Max Maybury, and Junior Software Engineer, Claudiu Bejan.

Newly-appointed Operations Manager Victoria Ward has spent the past four years enhancing the growth and developed capabilities of the UK's first app-only energy supplier and tech start-up Pure Planet Energy. She strengthens the ops team alongside new Operations Executive Catherine Chapman.

This increases the headcount of the Bristol-based scale-up - which consolidates all household bills into a single monthly payment and grants individual liability for tenants - to 26.

The hires follow a highly successful year of trading for the company, having grown by 350% and made the move to US soil to set up operations across the pond in partnership with Pario Ventures.

The private equity firm, which has a New York office, has completed successful investments in the likes of Rivian, BVR LLC and Intelysis in a joint venture with Chase Manhattan.

Existing investors in The Bunch include Haatch, SFC Capital and Bristol Private Equity Club.

Elliott Herrod-Taylor, founder and CEO at The Bunch, said: “I’m extremely pleased to be welcoming this cohort of new starters to the business, who I have no doubt will make a huge impact across so many areas of the company.

“With ambitious expansion plans, including launch into the homeowner market, I am confident we now have the internal infrastructure to support the trajectory we are on.”

The Bunch was set up in 2016 by students who were fed up with being taken advantage of by utility companies. The Bristol-based business consolidates household bills into one monthly payment, helping to ease the stress around bills whilst at university as well as granting individual liability for tenants - which means if one housemate doesn't pay, the others aren't responsible.

Founded by Elliott Herrod-Taylor, the business began life in Leeds as Easy Student Living, taking on its first customers in May 2017.

The 26-strong company, which rebranded to become The Bunch in 2019, has grown by 350% year-on-year, and serviced over 10,000 customers.

It counts amongst its board and advisors startup and scale expert David Murray-Hundley as Chairman and digital transformation innovator Clive Gilson as non-executive director.