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Celebrating Ben Sunderland

Founder of Trendi Switch

1st February 2023

We would like to take a moment to celebrate Ben Sunderland, founder of Trendi Switch. Ben has been a Crowd2Fund client since 2017 and has perfect repayment history. His most recent campaign was funded in 6 days. Trendi Switch provides functional plug sockets with a modern style and high-quality wire accessories. They've seen 30% year-on-year growth, been featured on BBC's "Your Home Made Perfect" and are selling online and in-store.  

 

In this article, we shine a light on Ben's success to date and learn more about his journey.

How would you describe your business in one sentence? 

A light switch & plug socket product design disrupter to a traditional wiring accessory marketplace. 

What was your original vision when starting your company?

To offer consumers our Trendi design spin in their choice for their projects. Using e-commerce to gain traction on the delivery of our product to installation in people’s homes. 

How has the company transformed over time?

We have grown from a handful of staff to 12, expanded online to in-store & now offer production here in the UK. Also, exports are growing, now accounting for 20% of total business, we are small, but trying to create a Trendi global brand.

What does winning as a business look like to you?

Obviously profit & loss, sales & cash are essential, without this, you cannot get to the ‘winning’ stage. The Ultimate win for me personally over the next few years is gearing the business up for my exit. However, my day-to-day wins come from customer feedback about the product & its design. In particular, I love meeting with the general public at trade shows, either their reaction & love for the design & products or the comments from people that have installed them and come to the stand with compliments for the brand & the service, that really feels like a win when you have created something from design to the market place.

What drove you to work with Crowd2Fund?

I am lucky enough to know Chris & the team for several years now, easy processes & a solid investor base has meant that this time we raised within a few days. I’m looking forward to the next 12-24 months, growing the business and maybe re-visiting / re-raising again. Fees & Interest are sensible, no complaints from me, well-done Crowd2fund!

How did the investment from Crowd2Fund impact your business? 

Immediate investment into stock, our lead times with factories can be 30-90 days to build, 30-60 days on the water, and then landed here in the UK our customer terms, can be 30-120 days, so funding this time difference whilst growing is always going to be difficult. But this round funded a pre-CNY delivery, which will set us up nicely for 2023.

We want to build and cultivate a community of entrepreneurs and investors at Crowd2Fund. Seeing clients like Ben return is a win for us. We're proud to see his growth over the years and look forward to what the future holds for him as an entrepreneur. 

To discover more entrepreneurs click here. 

Risk Warning

Past performance and forecasts are not reliable indicators of future results. Your capital invested is not covered for compensation in the event of a loss by the FSCS. Tax treatment will depend on the individual circumstances and may be subject to change. Please see our Risk section before making an investment decision.

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Risk warning

Past performance and forecasts are not reliable indicators of future results. Your capital invested is not covered for compensation in the event of a loss by the FSCS. Tax treatment will depend on the individual circumstances and may be subject to change. Please see our Risk section before making an investment decision.

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