Business Overview:
ShopWiser is an AI driven Supermarket Price Comparison App which compares a consumer’s entire grocery list across every supermarket in the UK, identifying the cheapest retailer for their specific groceries.
The platform enables users to build personalised shopping lists and instantly compare the total cost of their basket across major UK supermarkets, identifying the most cost-effective retailer for their specific needs.
This is complemented by a cashback ecosystem, allowing users to earn savings on branded products, and thereby increasing price competitionbetween supermarkets.
The business is currently pre-revenue, with a live proof of concept being tested in a closed beta. ShopWiser has over 500 users on a waitlist, and growing early traction on social media channels.
Problem
Consumers not only face a structural lack of transparency in grocery pricing, but alsomisinformation, leading to consistent overspending.
- Grocery costs have increased by c. 25% since 2020.
- Price disparities between supermarkets can exceed 30% for identical baskets.
- The average UK household spends c. £6,000 annually on groceries.
Despite this, consumers rely on single-retailer loyalty schemes, manual price comparisons, or fragmented cashback apps.
Solution:
ShopWiser consolidates grocery shopping into a simple, single, closed-loop platform.
The app is as simple to use as writing a list on paper on the notes app on a phone, while informing the consumer of real-time pricing, allowing them to make an educated decision about where to shop.
Unlike competitors, ShopWiser integrates full aggregated list comparison as well as cashback all in one central platform.
Product:
A consumer’s experience is simple. Create a shopping list, add items to it using the search function and then compare prices. The image on the right above is a checklist for when the consumer is in-store, to tick items off as they add them to their trolley.
The above illustrates the branded products available for cashback which a user can add to their list. Once the shop is complete, a consumer will scan their receipt, and any products bought that are available for cashback will be added to a balance available to withdraw at any time.
Business Model:
ShopWiser operates as a free-to-use consumer platform, monetised by two core revenue streams:
1. Cashback Commission
Brands fund cashback promotions, and ShopWiser retains a 25% net commission.
2. Shopping Data Monetisation
Aggregated, anonymised consumer shopping data showing what consumers intended to purchase on their list, compared to what they actually bought (measured by receipt scanner).This data is then sold to the likes of; FMCG brands, supermarkets and analytics firms
A third revenue stream, advertisements, may be incorporated in the future, but to prioritise consumer experience, ShopWiser will not include adverts in the early stages of the business.
We expect ShopWiser to reach revenue of £3.7m by Year 5 and to be achieving an EBITDA of £1.5m, resulting in an EBITDA margin of 39%. By which time the business will have over 100k active users and employ over 15 people.
The Team:
Alex Martins, CEO & Co-Founder:
Alex has a background in economics after graduating from the University of Nottingham, and is currently a private equity investment associate at a boutique firm. Previously, Alex was an auditor at Deloitte and an investment banker at Barclays in the consumer retail group M&A team. His first job was as a customer assistant at M&S throughout secondary school and university which sparked his idea for ShopWiser.
Jack Templeton, CTO & Co-Founder:
Jack has a background in mechanical engineering after graduating from the University of Leeds with a first-class bachelor’s degree. He is currently a software engineer at Barclays, and has previously founded Hoop Network, a basketball social media app.
Traction:
ShopWiser has over 500 users signed up for a waitlist ahead of the app’s launch, all achieved through organic channels such as social media.
We have organically achieved a following on TikTok of 21.8k followers, with several videos receiving over 1 million views.
ShopWiser already has a business partnership for cashback despite being pre-launch, with several other deals in the pipeline.
ShopWiser has an advisory board made up of three individuals:
- Retail Adviser: a Senior Partner at PwC for their Retail division and is often on BBC News to discuss consumer habits across different retail markets.
- Financial Adviser: Chair of the Audit Committee for an NHS Trust, ex-senior Partner at PwC, and ex-CEO of several Private Equity funds.
- Tech Adviser: PhD candidate at the University of Oxford studying machine learning, with experience across several start-ups in San Francisco.
Market Feedback:
As part of ShopWiser’s development, we surveyed over 300 individuals, a mix of students (our target demographic) and non-students.
The questions asked were:
- Do you write a shopping list?
- Would you shop elsewhere if it were cheaper?
- Would you use an app to save money on your grocery shopping?
- Would you scan a receipt to receive cashback on your grocery shop?
The results were overwhelmingly positive, reinforcing the market need and demand for ShopWiser. This feedback also reinforced our plan to target students upon launch as they are time-rich but money-poor, meaning they will be thriftier and more willing to change their shopping behaviours.
Investing NED Ask:
ShopWiser would like 2-3 Investing NEDs who can help guide the business and act as mentors to Alex and Jack as they navigate founding a business together. Likely to have a background in Retail, App’s, Technology and fast-growing early-stage businesses.
ShopWiser is seeking to raise £125k at a post-money valuation of £1.25m. Of the £125k, £46.5k has been raised already.
ShopWiser has £95k of SEIS funding still available.
Applying for the Role - please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Closing Date : 4 weeks from today
