The Nichole Wischoff Podcast
00:44:53 · Alan Chang, Nichole Wischoff
[00:44:53] S1: Yeah. I I would say the regulation is not as complex as banking. However, the engineering complexity is much higher. [00:45:06] S0: Yep. In The UK... So I know a lot about our grid in The US, our existing infrastructure, and and the utilities and things like that. But in The UK, I guess, is it similar? Like, are you've taken a consumer approach to this. Like, you could have done b to b. You could have built these AI data centers or, you know, done anything. Is it the case that you're also working with utilities? Do you replace them eventually? Or is it just, like, what... What's the? It looks like now... Well, I'm excited to talk about the energy network, but there's big plans here. But, like, currently, right now, what is the state of the state in terms of, like, the key partnerships you have to have? [00:45:37] S1: Yeah. So we are the utility in The UK. So UK is one of the most liberalized markets in the world. I think if you had to draw a comparison, it's very similar to ERCOT in The US and I assume you're in California. [00:45:54] S0: Yes. [00:45:55] S1: Where, effectively, you have, you know, one regulated monopoly. Whereas in markets like, yeah, ERCOT, UK, or most part in in Europe, you can compete... You can basically become the utility.
00:45:55 · Alan Chang, Nichole Wischoff
[00:45:55] S1: Where, effectively, you have, you know, one regulated monopoly. Whereas in markets like, yeah, ERCOT, UK, or most part in in Europe, you can compete... You can basically become the utility. [00:46:10] S0: Okay. So, yeah, easier path there. And then was the idea always to go full stack? Because I'm sure, as you mentioned prior, like, you're entering industry you don't know much about. And then as you're kind of unfolding new learnings in the market, did you go into this with an initial idea, or did you go into it with an open mind thinking, we're just gonna figure out what to build, but let's just double click on this topic of energy, the grid, and a consumer company, and then go from there? Or was was this... Like, was the idea to go full stack basically because you realize it's the only way to do this right? [00:46:40] S1: Yeah. I think we we we wanted to build full stack from day one. Right? Like, so what we learned from from Revolut was, you know, in the industry where it's fragmented, low NPS, and high cost, the only way to win is basically build a fully integrated company, right? And this is how you can expand your margins. [00:47:08] S0: A quick thank you to our sponsor, Roe. Roe, the very best place to open a banking account for your startup, earn cash back, and yield to reserve your company's runway. Several of our portfolio companies use Roe and love it, and many switching. More info on Roe if you wanna sign up in the show notes.
00:47:08 · Nichole Wischoff, Alan Chang
[00:47:08] S0: A quick thank you to our sponsor, Roe. Roe, the very best place to open a banking account for your startup, earn cash back, and yield to reserve your company's runway. Several of our portfolio companies use Roe and love it, and many switching. More info on Roe if you wanna sign up in the show notes. [00:47:28] S1: You know, pass some of that margin back to customers, and they can grow very fast. Right? And also improve customer experience that way too. So we knew this is the way for energy as well. What we didn't know is how exactly to do that. So this is something we had to figure out as we go. [00:47:44] S0: Yeah. So fast forward now. You're almost four years in, 400,000,000 in revenue. What is the product that consumers are buying? Like, what's driving your revenue, I guess? And how how deep in the stack are you as you've... You know, if you fast forward four years? [00:47:58] S1: So today, we build our own power generation. So we have a engineering team, mostly ex SpaceX or Tesla engineers building power generation from scratch. And we're able to build it approximately 30% less cheaper than what the market can build on a per megawatt peak basis. Which roughly translates to 30% cheaper on a kilowatt hour basis. So this gives us one of the advantages of low cost power. [00:48:34] S0: I mean, are you able to share exactly how? Or is this just a secret sauce we don't share? But that's a pretty dramatic savings.
00:48:34 · Nichole Wischoff, Alan Chang
[00:48:34] S0: I mean, are you able to share exactly how? Or is this just a secret sauce we don't share? But that's a pretty dramatic savings. [00:48:41] S1: Yeah, it's actually not that secret. So typically there's up to 10 companies involved in building a power plant, and you don't really need 10 companies involved. So having a small team, you know, that can, you know, tidy couple and and work very closely with each other, you can squeeze a lot of savings out. [00:49:11] S0: Okay. Okay. So you've got this small and mighty team able to get moving, save 30%. So now from a consumer perspective, like, what are they... Like, I'd love to better understand just growth and go to market rate. Like, what are you advertising? Is it really just the savings? And then I... It almost seems self-service. It's, the sign on's, like, three minutes. Like, you can get them switched. So, like, what exactly does that mean for someone listening that knows nothing about Fuse and they're a consumer in The UK, for example? Like, what are they getting? How do they get
00:49:11 · Nichole Wischoff, Alan Chang
[00:49:11] S0: Okay. Okay. So you've got this small and mighty team able to get moving, save 30%. So now from a consumer perspective, like, what are they... Like, I'd love to better understand just growth and go to market rate. Like, what are you advertising? Is it really just the savings? And then I... It almost seems self-service. It's, the sign on's, like, three minutes. Like, you can get them switched. So, like, what exactly does that mean for someone listening that knows nothing about Fuse and they're a consumer in The UK, for example? Like, what are they getting? How do they get [00:49:40] S1: it? Yeah, so I think consumers... So the great thing about utility is like it's very deterministic in terms of what consumers want, right? I can't say that for a lot of b to c categories, right? So what customers care about? They care about low cost, they care about good product, and they care about good customer service. So I think we touched on low cost. In our view, the best product in the market. We spend a lot of energy and time to ensure we have the best UX. And on customer service, we're the only entry company that offers, you know, twenty four seven customer support every single day of the year, including New Year's Eve.
00:49:40 · Alan Chang, Nichole Wischoff
[00:49:40] S1: it? Yeah, so I think consumers... So the great thing about utility is like it's very deterministic in terms of what consumers want, right? I can't say that for a lot of b to c categories, right? So what customers care about? They care about low cost, they care about good product, and they care about good customer service. So I think we touched on low cost. In our view, the best product in the market. We spend a lot of energy and time to ensure we have the best UX. And on customer service, we're the only entry company that offers, you know, twenty four seven customer support every single day of the year, including New Year's Eve. [00:50:28] S0: So you've... That... Yeah. That's awesome. And then in terms of just, I guess, the the tangible growth and go to market function, how are you targeting customers? Where do you find them? Are there billboards all over The UK? I haven't been back in a while, but, like, is this all just paid marketing online? Like, how are you converting so quickly and growing so quickly? [00:50:46] S1: Yeah. So I think it's a combination of organic sign ups. We also have a paid referral program, and we also work with some affiliate partners too. [00:50:57] S0: Okay. And how big is the team now? How many employees do you guys have? [00:51:03] S1: We have approximately two fifty people. [00:51:06] S0: Oh, wow. Okay. Got it. And then you're also... You have an office in New York as well? [00:51:10] S1: We have a very small office in New York. That's correct.