A North East Based company which is primed to help householders save energy, increase earnings and reduce CO2 is now placed to surge forward for funding after securing three new founder advisors thanks to The Experience Bank.
equiwatt, which is the brainchild of Johnson Fernandes, got its first round of investment two years ago and has built a strong offering that rewards home energy saving and allows for smarter charging for electric vehicles (EVs). Users connect their smart meter to the equiwatt app, then earn points for helping to avoid energy consumption during peak times of demand when energy is at its most expensive and polluting. They can also connect smart plugs, smart appliances and electric vehicles to the app and opt in for automated management of their devices at peak times.
Users receive notifications that alert them to take part in energy saving events during which they can avoid consumption or let the app automatically switch off high energy consuming appliances and electric vehicles. This helps to balance the grid and avoid the need for heavy investment in upgrades to our energy systems.
Johnson, the CEO and founder, is now preparing for the next stage of growth, and is actively seeking larger investment to mass launch the proven solution. He approached Peter Neal at The Experience Bank to help him find the right people to assist on the next leg of his journey. Johnson said:
“One of my early advisors, Charlie Wainwright, recommended I speak to Peter to see howThe Experience Bank and its advisors could help with the next stages of attracting investment. Peter, who runs a fabulous initiative and really understands business growth needs, introduced me to seven to interview and I am delighted to now have three new advisors who all bring different facets and experience with them.”
Sarat Pediredla, founder of Hedgehog Labs; Nicola Short, previous CEO of Entrepreneurs Forum and Tony Beddard, CTO of Power Roll, are onboard as founder advisors helping with growth, positioning and commercialisation. Peter said:
“When Johnson approached me, his enthusiasm and the genius behind the innovative technology meant I had to help him. It is a commercially attractive business model with a bright future and I look forward to seeing where his new advisors take him.”
With the ongoing cost of living and energy price crisis coupled with commitment from the National Grid to reward consumers who cut peak-time use, the relevance of equiwatt has never been greater. Johnson is hoping to attract over £1m in seed investment in the next six months, which will take equiwatt to a mass market of households across the UK that will benefit their community of users, our energy system and the environment.
Experience Bank Group incorporates The Experience Bank philanthropic, social enterprise company along with a commercial venture providing three symbiotic services – EB Board Level Recruitment, EB High Performing Boards and EB Continuous Personal Development.
With this combination of specialist expertise, the Experience Bank Group is uniquely positioned to help organisations ensure they have not only the right skills in the leadership team and boardroom but also optimum board performance with higher value creation.
5% of all revenue from Experience Bank Group is gifted to The Experience Bank social enterprise to enable more start-ups, early-stage businesses, charities and social enterprises access to high quality, advisory and non-executive talent.