Stellar Growth and Excellent Customer Experience Go Hand in Hand

The list comprises the 1000 fastest-growing companies in Europe across a variety of industries from banking, through energy to retail, and telecommunications.

So how did these 1,000 companies make the list? What do Bulb Energy and Chilly's Bottles have in common (despite the fact that they are both based in the UK)? The short answer is — excellent customer experience —, proven by the tens of thousands of online customer ratings.

Intrigued by this correlation between customer experience and growth, Ombea has taken a look at some of the fastest-growing companies from the list. How do they compare in terms of their customer experience? To make it to Ombea’s top CX list, a company had to be on the FT-1000 list and also have at least 100 Trustpilot reviews. We picked Trustpilot as it is the UK’s most visible independent review site.

Growth and customer experience are intertwined

Most of the fastest-growing companies delivered exceptional customer experience.

Of the 25 businesses in the UK, 17 were praised by their customers for delivering excellent customer experience, 4 companies were described as great, and the remaining 4 as average. Unsurprisingly, we couldn’t find any business with a subpar customer experience (customer rating below 2.8 stars), which further supports our contention that stellar growth and excellent customer experience go hand in hand.

Our data also show that the average customer rating for the UK’s fastest-growing companies was 4.53 / 5. This is absolutely exceptional, and far ahead of average online rating of 3.7 / 5.

Bulb Energy and Chilly’s Bottles have left everyone else behind in terms of the sheer number of positive reviews.

The number of customer reviews has surprised us as well. On average, companies in the Ombea list had 9,083 reviews, yet two companies clearly stood out: Bulb Energy and Chilly's Bottles were rated by 70,000 and 90,000 customers respectively, and both were deemed as delivering excellent experiences at all times!

Here’s a full list of the fastest-growing UK companies, including their position on the FT1000 list, average CX evaluation, and a total number of reviews.

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What keeps customers happy?

We took a closer look at what keeps customers delighted and wanting to come back. It turns out that regardless of the industry, a company must measure its staff’s friendliness. This was mentioned in nearly every positive review. Online retailers (if they are not a single-product company) should check periodically if customers are happy with the product selection, while financial service providers must focus on speed and clarity. In addition, nearly all fast-growing utility companies made it extremely simple to switch, which was highly praised as well.

Here’s a more in-depth look at what made each company successful:

Bumper

Non-bank financial service.

What makes customers happy:

• Quick service
• Extremely easy to use
• Helpful staff

Payment Assist

Non-bank financial service.

What makes customers happy:

• Friendly helpful staff
• Easy to use
• Quick service

L'Estrange London

Online retailer.

What makes customers happy:

• Product selection
• Quality
• Fast delivery

Hyperoptic

Internet provider.

What makes customers happy:

• Lightning-fast service
• Easy to set up
• Friendly staff

Landbay

Market operator.

What makes customers happy:

• Quick service
• Competitive rates
• Professional staff

Capital on Tap

Non-bank financial service.

What makes customers happy:

• Friendly staff
• Easy process
• Excellent dashboard

Funding Options

Non-bank financial service.

What makes customers happy:

• Top-notch service
• Helpful staff
• Efficient process

Oppo Brothers

Food retail.

What makes customers happy:

• World-class product.
• Fantastic delivery experience.
• Product selection.

Bulb Energy

Electric utility company.

What makes customers happy:

• Large savings.
• Friendly staff.
• Easy to switch.

VITL

Health consultant.

What makes customers happy:

• Very good customer service.
• Great packaging.
• Product selection.

Chilly's Bottles

Fashion accessories store.

What makes customers happy:

• Great customer service.
• Great product design.
• Fast delivery.

Laundryheap

Dry cleaner.

What makes customers happy:

• Hassle-free process.
• A pleasure to talk to staff.
• A prompt service.

Wolf & Badger

Clothing store.

What makes customers happy:

• Fast shipping.
• Great product quality.
• Smooth returns process.

Qmee

Paid surveys.

What makes customers happy:

• Easy to use.
• Easy to withdraw money.
• Great customer service.

CrowdProperty

Non-bank financial service.

What makes customers happy:

• Transparent service.
• Reliable and good returns.
• Simple to use.

Fruugo UK

Online retailer.

What makes customers happy:

• Great product selection.
• Competitive pricing.
• Very quick delivery.

Gousto

Online food ordering service

What makes customers happy:

• Exceptional consistent quality.
• Great product range.
• Helpful customer service.

Everflow Group

Utility company.

What makes customers happy:

• Polite staff.
• Easy to switch.
• Clear billing.

gohenry

Alternative financial service.

What makes customers happy:

• Highly educational.
• Great product design.
• Quick customer service.

Ooni

Online retailer.

What makes customers happy:

• Great product.
• Great customer service.
• Fun to use.

Octopus Energy

Energy supplier.

What makes customers happy:

• Extreme clarity.
• Quick customer support.
• Polite staff.

Tropic Skincare

Online retailer.

What makes customers happy:

• Product quality.
• Excellent product range.
• Prompt delivery.

Lending Works

Non-bank financial service.

What makes customers happy:

• Quick service.
• Clear UX and easy to use.
• Competitive pricing.

Elvie

Product company. Online retailer.

What makes customers happy:

• Easy to use.
• Simple instructions.
• Good customer service.

Divido

Automation company.

What makes customers happy:

• Friendly staff.
• Straightforward online process.
• Prompt replies from the company.

The bottom line

We hope you enjoy this comprehensive look into how great CX has fueled the growth of the UK’s fastest-growing companies! Feel free to share it, save it, send it to whoever might be interested! We would love to hear what you think!

We will continue to keep an eye on great customer experience examples and keep these lists updated. Meanwhile, please reach out here if we forgot anything!