According to a recent report issued by Parliament, cost of living has been rising steadily since early 2021 in the UK with December 2021 inflation reaching its highest level since 1992. These pressures on household budgets may result in an increase in expenses of £3K over the next year. Households are looking for solutions to help manage this unprecedented increase. Nous is a platform that tracks household expenses through open banking and provides a centralised dashboard that updates in real-time to forecast expected and forecasted spending for utilities. Covering energy, insurance, mortgages, broadband, and other subscriptions, the platform provides automated notifications to customers to let them know when there are cost savings opportunities whether it’s a contract renegotiation or provider switch. The Citizens Advice Bureau found that 80% of households are overpaying for utilities and Nous is on a mission for consumers to recapture these overcharges, powered by technology.
London TechWatch caught up with Nous Cofounder, CEO, and serial entrepreneur Greg Marsh (cofounded onefinestay; exit to Accor) to learn more about how the birth of his second child and his experience with British Gas served as the inspiration for the business, the company’s strategic plans, latest round of funding, and much, much more…
Who were your investors and how much did you raise?
The $9M Seed round, led by Mosaic Ventures, involves participation from more than 65 leading angel investors, including renowned tech entrepreneurs such as Tom Blomfield (cofounder of GoCardless & Monzo), Marc Warner (cofounder & CEO of AI pioneer Faculty.ai), Dan Hegarty (founder & CEO of leading digital mortgage company Habito), Eamon Jubbawy (cofounder of fintech unicorn Onfido), serial entrepreneur Brent Hoberman, ActiveHotels (Booking.com) cofounder Andy Phillipps, ex-number-10 strategist John Gibson (one of the original architects of OpenBanking), Christopher North (the former head of Amazon UK), and John Fingleton (former head of the Office of Fair Trading, now CMA), among many others. The company has not released a full list of individual investors.
Tell us about your product or service.
Nous is a new service that helps households get smart and stay vigilant against the rising cost of living. We’re here to make your life simpler and fairer.
We currently offer a free reporting service that takes the guesswork and uncertainty out of rising household costs. By telling us where you live and connecting your bank, we can identify your utility providers and calculate exactly what you can expect to spend with them based on forecasted price rises and inflation. We show you everything in one place so it’s easier to keep things in check, and your report is updated in real-time so you always have accurate information to manage your household finances.
Meanwhile, we’re building a smart, automated part of our service that will keep your household on fair tariffs with reliable providers, for good. For a monthly subscription, you’ll be able to get rid of a lifetime of household admin and hold on to more of your money.
What inspired the start of Nous?
After founding and scaling rental marketplace onefinestay, I sold the company to Accor in 2016. So what does a successful entrepreneur do next? I was waiting on hold with British Gas.
With time on my hands at last, I noticed I’d been ‘accidentally’ moved onto the wrong tariff. Now on track to pay thousands more than I should, I saw red. How many others had fallen prey to something similar?
Turns out, it’s happening to almost everybody. Miss a single email, and you get screwed over. The Citizens Advice Bureau found that 8 out of 10 UK households overpay for their utilities: energy, broadband, mobile. When you include TV, insurance, credit cards and mortgages, the typical UK household busy with children is being done out of more than £1,000 a year. With a cost-of-living crisis mounting, is it really fair that households bear the brunt?
In 2020, I caught COVID. While I was lying in bed shivering, my wife went into early labour with our second child. On my own in the darkness, I waited anxiously for news from the hospital. Then, finally, the phone rang. It was British Gas.
That’s when it hit me: none of us should be left to deal with the rising cost of living or fighting with the British Gases of the world all alone in the dark. When we’re isolated as individuals, big companies take advantage. But if as householders we had the tech to help us club together, get smart, and stay vigilant – it would change a game that’s been rigged against us.
A few days later, reunited with my family, I got to hold his baby daughter for the first time. And in between the naps and the nappies, I started speaking to people he knew – people who could build things, people who could change things…
How is it different?
Nous is a live service that constantly tracks and monitors households’ finances, providing them with timely insight and support. Unlike the web 1.0 switching and comparison websites, Nous has a strict commitment to neutrality. To underwrite its status as a consumer champion, rather than making money from advertising or commissions, it will offer a freemium dashboard with the option to upgrade to a paid subscription service for its automation service.
What market you are targeting and how big is it?
The Citizens Advice Bureau found that 8 out of 10 UK households (~22 million households) overpay for their utilities: energy, broadband, mobile. When you include TV, insurance, credit cards, and mortgages, the typical UK household is being done out of more than £1,000 a year.
What’s your business model?
Nous will initially offer a personalised dashboard that will give households a live view on how price rises, interest rates, and tax changes will affect their finances. This service – which continually updates with market changes – will be free to use, and can help to save a typical household more than £1000 a year. Nous will later be launching a premium feature offered on a subscription basis that automates the management of household finances. Crucially, to ensure its neutrality, Nous will not be ad-funded and will not retain any commissions earned by its members.
What are your post-COVID office plans?
Nous is based in Farringdon, central London, a few minutes walk from Exmouth Market and close to the new Crossrail/tube/rail interchange. The diverse team is primarily office-based with flexibility for remote working. The office is set up for collaborative working and, most importantly, has a serious commitment to superlative coffee.
Where do you see the company going now over the near term?
Nous currently offers a free reporting service that takes the guesswork and uncertainty out of rising household costs.
Meanwhile, we’re building a smart, automated part of our service that will keep your household on fair tariffs with reliable providers, for good. For a monthly subscription, you’ll be able to get rid of a lifetime of household admin and hold on to more of your money.
We’re currently recruiting full-stack engineers, particularly at the senior level, who share our drive to build products that improve people’s lives.
What is your favourite restaurant in London?
Andrew Edmunds. It’s where I proposed to my wife.
