Utility Bidder is delighted to announce a significant investment following a management buy-out backed by Sovereign Capital Partners, the UK private equity specialist. In what is believed to be one of the biggest deals in the energy sector, Utility Bidder, already listed as the seventh small and medium sized enterprise on Cornwall Insights, can now look forward to unprecedented and rapid growth.
In 2018, under the leadership of current CEO, Chris Shaw, Utility Bidder has performed strongly growing sales by over 40% and now Chris will act as CEO across both companies to continue to develop Utility Bidder to become a top three energy broker.
“We are delighted to have Sovereign’s backing.” said Chris Shaw. “We operate in an exciting market with great opportunities. Sovereign has a tremendous track-record of backing high-quality growth businesses that have the potential to significantly scale-up. We look forward to further developing our product offering and growing our client base with Sovereign’s investment and partnership.”
The business has also attracted Mark Wood, formerly CEO of Axa UK, as non-executive Chairman. Utility Bidder Founders James Longley and Sally Martin remain with the business, James as Utility Bidder’s MD.
James Longley, MD Utility Bidder, commented “This investment will fast-track the growth and development of Utility Bidder, we look forward to the journey that we are about to undertake and the exciting opportunities that are in store for the company.”
Founded in 2009, and headquartered in Corby, England, the business employs over 100 staff and has a growing sales office in Manchester. The company currently brokers energy and other utilities contracts to over 14,500 small and medium sized clients across a number of industry sectors in the UK. It is expected that this new investment will allow the company to expand its office base across further regions as well as create new jobs.
“This is a great start to the new year for Utility Bidder, said Chris. Our award-winning team will be able to share their energy expertise with even more customers across the UK helping them save energy in a complex market.
This considerable investment now puts Utility Bidder firmly on the map as a major player in the energy sector and we look forward to growing the business in the wider utilities industry and beyond.”
