We are a Devon business ourselves, based in Plymouth, and we see the same thing over and over. Good businesses across the county quietly overpay for the basics, not because they are careless, but because nobody has the time to keep checking. Here is where the money tends to leak, and what you can do about it.
Two different ways to save
It helps to split the saving into two halves, because they are not the same job.
- Using less. Efficiency measures, LED lighting, smarter heating, better kit, that bring your consumption down.
- Paying less per unit. Getting onto a sharper contract so every unit you do use costs you less.
Most businesses focus on the first and forget the second, when the second is often the quicker, bigger win.
Where Devon businesses overpay
The leaks are usually in the same few places:
- Auto-renewals on poor terms. A contract rolls over without anyone testing the market.
- Out-of-contract premiums. A fixed deal ends and you slide onto a much dearer default rate.
- Water rates left unchecked. Since 2017 you can switch business water, yet most never have.
- Creeping merchant fees. Card processing charges nudge up over time and nobody notices.
Any one of these on its own is a slow drain. Together they can take a real bite out of your margin.
Local grants worth knowing about
It is not all about contracts. Devon has support on offer for businesses willing to invest in efficiency. The Mid Devon Green Enterprise Grants, for example, run from £500 to £5,000, and there is help available toward solar and renewable installation for qualifying SMEs. Worth a look if you are weighing up an efficiency project, because a grant changes the maths considerably.
Why local knowledge matters
Different Devon sectors burn through utilities very differently. Hospitality runs long hours and heavy power. Manufacturing has its own peaks. Agriculture and retail each have their own patterns. A broker who knows the South West, and the way these sectors actually operate, reads your bill with that context, rather than treating you like a number on a national spreadsheet.
That local view is exactly what we bring across energy, water, merchant services and ultrafast broadband. We’re paid by the supplier when you switch, never by you, so the review costs you nothing.
What to do this week
Start with a free business utility cost review, no obligation. Send us your latest bills, energy, water, broadband, whatever you have, at /upload-bill/, and we will tell you plainly where you are overpaying and what a fair Devon rate looks like.