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UTILITY Week 27th January 2017

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UTILITY WEEK | 27TH JANUARY - 2ND FEBRUARY 2017 | 7 Interview T he Water Retail Company – no-one could argue that this is not a reasonable name for a water retail company. The founders of this new entrant to the retail market are both eminent and outspoken figures in the utilities industry – Jacob Tompkins, currently man- aging director of Waterwise, and Lord Rupert Redesdale, Liberal Democrat peer and chief executive of the Energy Managers Association. As the opening of the retail market draws ever closer, the dynamic pair decided to put the concerns they had about the lack of focus on water efficiency in the market to good use, capitalising on their collective experience to launch their own technology-focused retailer, which will target large water users. And the "boring" name, Tomp- kins insists, is entirely deliberate. The company also refuses to engage in "aggressive marketing" tactics. There will be no flash website, no adverts on billboards. Instead, it wants to be "purely judged on what it does". Neither Tompkins nor Redesdale can remember the specifics of their first encounter, other than that it was about 15 years ago and "probably something to do with one of the Water Bills". But a shared interest in efficiency and environmental issues meant they immediately clicked. Now, sitting in the Portcullis House canteen in the heart of Westminster, it's as if they've always known each other as they emphatically tell Utility Week about their new endeavour. When they met, neither of them took competition seriously, brushing it off as "a bit of a side-issue", but all that has changed. Now they want to be active players in the market; and even go one step further to suggest they could lead other companies by example. "If we can help influence the rest of the market, that's a good way to drive forward water efficiency," says Tomp- kins. Redesdale replies with a smile, but only half joking: "No we don't want them to do that…" Their initial ambitions are, however, much more con- servative. The business currently employs just five staff, and will limit itself to no more than 20 business custom- ers in the first year. It will recruit just five to ten more staff members in that time in an effort to keep costs as low as possible. The aim is to secure £30 million of turn- over in its first year, £100 million in year two, and £200 million in year three. Tompkins is a self-professed tech nerd and, when he officially leaves Waterwise, he will take up the post of chief technology officer at the company. Redesdale will remain chairman and will act as chief executive until a replacement is recruited (a process that has yet to begin). Tompkins can hardly contain his excitement as he talks about the company's plans, and has to be reined in every so oen by Redesdale, who is slightly more cautious about how much detailed information they should share.

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