Show overview
In the first episode of our new Summing Up series linked to the Norfolk Limited initiative, James Shipp talks to Louise Birritteri, founder and CEO of Pikl. They cover startup funding at every stage, from remortgaging a house to a £15 million Series B, why Norwich works for an insurance business, how Pikl pivoted to flexible cancellation for holiday lets after losing 90% of its revenue in lockdown, the resilience it takes to raise money through two wars, the UK's attitude to entrepreneurs, and Louise's advice for anyone starting a business.
Episode summary
Louise started Pikl after years of living out of hotels for work. A colleague suggested an Airbnb, and talking to the hosts she realised they had an insurance problem she knew how to fix after 20 odd years in the insurance market. The first product helped homeowners get the right cover while letting on Airbnb.
She had set up RAC insurance inside Aviva, so she knew how to build a business, but not how to fund one. Pikl was bootstrapped first (Louise remortgaged her house), then funded through friends and family, the local enterprise partnership, Innovate UK, crowdfunding, angel investors and strategic insurance investors. She has raised about £25 million and is closing a £15 million Series B.
The pandemic arrived a year into the journey and the company lost 90% of its revenue in the first lockdown. The opportunity that came out of it was flexible cancellation for holiday let operators. Pikl pivoted in 2022, launched with Sykes Cottages in 2024, grew 1,257% last year and now has around 20% of the UK market, 5% of Europe and a move into the US under way.
Louise explains why Norwich works for an insurance business, how wind down planning imposed by the UK regulator built Pikl's financial resilience, and why she thinks the UK demonises entrepreneurs while capital gains tax rises push investors abroad. She closes with her advice for anyone starting out: talk to people, get angel investors, choose them wisely and build a team.
Key takeaways
Pikl began when Louise noticed Airbnb hosts could not get the right insurance, a problem her 20 odd years in the insurance market told her how to fix.
The business was bootstrapped first, with Louise remortgaging her house, and has since been funded through friends and family, the local enterprise partnership, Innovate UK, crowdfunding, angel investors and strategic insurance investors. She has raised about £25 million and is closing a £15 million Series B.
Different stages need different funding. You cannot raise a £15 million round from people putting in £10,000 or £20,000, so later rounds mean bigger tickets from venture capital, private equity or strategics.
Pikl lost 90% of its revenue in the first lockdown, then pivoted in 2022 to flexible cancellation for holiday let operators. The launch with Sykes Cottages in 2024 led to 1,257% growth last year and around 20% of the UK market.
Norwich works for an insurance business. Louise recruits from the pool of people who have worked at Aviva, and a 100 person Norwich office costs half the price of a 16 person office in London.
Wind down planning, brought in by the UK regulator during Covid, forced Pikl to set critical dates for fundraising. Louise credits it with building the company's financial resilience, even though she has come within days of those dates.
Louise thinks the UK demonises entrepreneurs. Capital gains tax rises have seen some of her investors leave the country, and she sees the Mansion House Compact as a good initiative that needs to move faster.
Her advice to new founders: talk to people, because under £1 million of revenue nobody is going to steal your idea; get angel investors; choose them wisely, because it is easier to get divorced than to get rid of an investor; and build a team.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
00:15 Where the idea for Pikl came from
03:40 Building a network and raising the first funding
08:15 Funding at each stage, and why Norwich works for an insurance business
12:05 Losing 90% of revenue and the pivot to flexible cancellation
17:45 Insurance enabled business models
20:53 Taking Pikl to Europe and the US
21:59 Adapting to the US, resilience and plan E
30:29 Success because of, or despite, the UK economy
32:28 Capital gains tax, investors leaving and the Mansion House Compact
35:17 Advice for new founders
Guest bio
Louise Birritteri is the founder and CEO of Pikl, an insurance business based in Norwich. She spent 20 odd years in the insurance market before starting the company, including 10 years at Aviva, where she set up RAC insurance as a new company within the group. She founded Pikl after noticing that Airbnb hosts could not get the right home insurance. Pikl now provides flexible cancellation products to holiday let operators, has around 20% of the UK market and employs about 80 people in Norwich. Louise is an accountant and lives on a seven acre smallholding in Norfolk.