EP130: goHenry co-founder Louise Hill shares how she raised over £12m and is changing the way children are educated about money
“I need to push myself to build that and get myself to a point where I feel that I am financially secure. And probably that's one of the main drivers for why I'm so passionate about encouraging people to learn about money and understand money and be empowered by it so that they can reap benefits later on.”
Louise co-founded GoHenry in 2012 when she realised that her children needed to learn how to manage money in an increasingly digital world. At the time her son was eight and her daughter was 11. Louise was so frustrated by how much they were buying online without realising the implications that she would pin Apple invoices to the fridge door to help them understand why their £4 a week pocket money was now just 50p. Fast forward ten years and GoHenry now has a community of 2 million customers in the US and UK who fiercely believe that good money management is a vital life skill.
“It’s always fantastic when a customer contacts us and says that their kids' behaviors changed or decisions have changed since they joined goHenry.”
Louise is Crowdcube’s top female fundraiser, raising £12m in four rounds on Crowdcube, including a single, record breaking raise of £6m in September 2018.
In this episode we discuss:
the launch of goHenry and the moment she realised it was big
ways the company is empowering young people to manage their money
international expansion into the US and Europe and the challenges brought about by the idiosyncrasies of these markets
Louise's own journey and how that's shaped her attitude to money plus more.
Louise has over 20 years experience in commerce and operations. Prior to goHenry, Louise was at the forefront of the retail industry’s transition to digital, launching the first wave of ecommerce websites for some of the UK’s biggest household names, including Next Directory, John Lewis, The Innovations Group, Past Times and Debenhams.
“Prosperity to me means that point at which you feel you've got enough, you're financially secure. And I don't think I've reached that point yet. I wish I had started investing and saving earlier.”
Louise is an authority on financial education and the youth economy and has made regular appearances on BBC radio and TV, including BBC Breakfast. Louise is a big advocate for the power of learning by doing and dedicates time talking to MBA groups at universities around the country.
Find out more about goHenry on their website and Louise Hill on LinkedIn.
