Green.com.au - Australia’s fastest-growing green energy start up
- Written by: The Times
How two young brothers bootstrapped Australia’s fastest-growing green energy start up, now on track to turn over $40M
Using YouTube to launch their brand and acquire their first customers, Sydney entrepreneurs and brothers Jonathan and David Green have organically turned a small start-up into Australia’s fastest-growing green energy company in just four years. Today, the duo is at the helm of Green.com.au, a company that’s reshaping the renewable energy landscape. After being ranked the Fastest Growing Energy Company in Australia, Green.com.au is on track to turn over $40 million this financial year.
Just five years ago, David and Jonathan were working in sales and managerial roles in the energy and finance industries. Between 2016 and mid-2020, Jonathan, now 27, worked in sales roles for Mojo Power and Natural Solar, as well as National Sales Manager for renewable energy finance at RateSetter (now Plenti). In the 8 years to 2020, David, now 35, worked as manager at Carloans.com.au and car brokerage Georgie.com.au. In 2020, David also launched insurance company Professionalindemnityinsurance
The brothers took a leap of faith in 2020, leaving the corporate world to challenge the booming renewable energy market in a turbulent COVID-19 environment. The pair kickstarted their business journey by renting out a small office space in North Sydney to ensure maximum growth and avoid any work-from-home distractions. They founded green-energy company Teho, which installed residential solar panels and batteries.
From day one the duo did everything they could to generate customer enquiries, utilising YouTube to gain momentum and recognition across the industry. Hours spent filming and editing educational videos paid off: when the phone rang, and they received their first lead through YouTube. Every minute of time was treated as critical to the brothers, with no time wasted – even building their own CRM system called ‘Doug’ to provide industry-leading customer service and improve their customer processes.
What really differentiated them from competitors was their dedication and commitment to building meaningful supplier relationships – treating them like employees as opposed to contractors saw a sense of trust build almost immediately. Teho’s revenue jumped from $637,000 in FY2022 to $7.7 million in FY2023 – a growth rate of more than 1000 per cent.
Last year, David and Jonathan rebranded Teho to Green.com.au, paying $75,000 for the URL. In FY2024, Green.com.au reached $12.5 million in turnover. This financial year, the business is forecasted to earn $40 million. Their success has landed David and Jonathan a spot on the stage with Australia's most talented business masterminds after taking out the top spot in the Australian Financial Review’s Fastest Growing Energy Company in Australia ranking, and spot 15 in the Fast Starters list overall.
In addition to meaningful supplier relationships, the company’s impressive growth is founded on the duo’s recognition of the industry’s service gaps, and filling those gaps. From the first step of installing solar, to optimising investment with storage batteries, and providing an on-going relationship, Green.com.au guides customers through every stage of their sustainability journey.
The company's unique approach to business – including Doug, its custom-built CRM software system, and staffing models which sees the company employ full-time staff over commissioned-based sales roles – has maximised customer satisfaction and long-term outcomes for the company. All Google reviews for Green.com.au are five stars.
Jonathan says: “Traditionally, in this industry, once the installation is done, the relationship between the installation company and the customer is over. That’s where our point of difference starts. Installation is just the beginning of our relationship with customers: Green.com.au provides ongoing service, optimising customers’ green systems and their monetisation of those systems.”
David says: “When I worked in finance, we used to sell products that no one could touch, see or feel. In solar, there’s a meaningful impact – it’s something that people really want, helps save them money, and helps save the environment.”
To this day, the company has zero business debt and zero capital dilution – the brothers are entirely self-made, which has provided extra accountability. Their success can be credited to their bootstrapping approach, which has seen every dollar of profit reinvested straight back into their business.
From the beginning, the brothers were committed to offering customers only the best brands in the industry. And while Green.com.au currently sells and installs solar panels and batteries, it's what they have planned that's going to see them really take launch.
The company will be launching its own Virtual Power Plant (VPP) at the end of the year, challenging existing business models across the energy market. Unlike most companies who simply sell one or the other, the brothers will sell the batteries as well as the VPP. Green.com.au's goal is to bring the whole network together and be able to offer customers a better deal than the big gen-tailers out there. The launch of Green.com.au’s electricity.com.au will also enable customers to compare energy for free, unlike other energy comparison platforms. With the launch of these two services, David and Jonathan forecast a $40 million revenue this financial year. This outstanding forecasted growth is attributed to increasing headcount across all aspects of the business as well as significant investment in technology and digital assets – which will grow the business as a widely recognised national brand.
