Our Story

Established by 3 sisters: Rechelle Davis, Nadine Griffin and Rhianne Griffin, Flutter Shutter has been in operation within the energy sector since 2012. The business prides itself on having a range of key skills important in creating a flourishing energy efficiency initiative designed to cut carbon emissions as well as ease the financial burden on customers. Richelle is characterised as the ‘speaker’ of the company, Nadine as the brains behind the structure and organisational aspects and Rhianne as the creative force and energy to increase the appeal of their products on the younger generations.

As women in a predominantly male STEM industry, the sisters have faced many challenges over the years, from being domestic and commercial energy assessors and being taken seriously within the industry to winning contracts up and down the UK and carrying out assessments for social housing providers. However, as this story demonstrates, they have overcome the odds and proved to be successful in the industry.

The Challenge

Current statistics show that 82% of total waste from PVC windows currently goes directly to landfill. Many residents are encouraged to take up PVC as part of the installation of triple glazing into their homes. These issues are exacerbated where the windows cannot be replaced or are high rise buildings which would require the installation of scaffolding pre-installation. Flutter Shutter is offered as a product to alleviate such headaches.

Although triple glazing is seen as part of the solution, Flutter Shutter identified it as an area within energy efficiency within homes which could be improved. The concept identified and the product developed has been done so with the intention of being installed without the need to rip out windows and with the certainty that it will increase the EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) of the building.

“(Flutter Shutter) is the only internal shutter system in the world that doubles up as a fully independent window system and officially increases EPC ratings.”  Director of Flutter Shutter, Nadine Griffin.

The process has proved long, and the company have had to wait 9 years for patent having finally had one issued in January 2023.

The Solution

Key solutions in creating a product which is easy to install, but also highly practical for the user meant finding solutions in key areas.

Designing a product which can be installed within a day in an average domestic home. The uniqueness of the product meant that it has undergone 9 years of vigorous testing by Liverpool John Mours University (LJMU) and the Buildings Research Establishment (BRE). Although the journey has been long and arduous, the company has seen an acceleration over the past 3 years having joined up with Centrica as a partner and funder which has been praised as a game changer in their development:

“the knowledge and expertise they have within the business and their staff who we have been able to have access to, wouldn’t have been possible without their backing, and so for that we are extremely grateful and proud to be partnered with them.”

As a route to market, Flutter Shutter are currently going through an application process with Ofgem to become approved under ECO4 with British Gas as the sponsor. Ensuring that opportunities to include the product as part of essential funding streams for fuel poor households is an avenue that any aspiring innovative retrofit measure entrepreneurs must maximise as part of their business plan.

Additionally, Flutter Shutter have worked closely to test and pilot the product. LJMU have tested the product in their exemplar houses on site at their Byrom Street Campus in Liverpool. LJMU also carried out a full working pilot scheme with us during 2021 – 2022, where we installed Flutter Shutter™ into 5 properties that belong to Livv Housing Group. The pilot scheme run for 9 months, and we installed sensors in two rooms within the property 3 months prior to installation and then installed Flutter Shutter™ in every room apart from one for the remaining 6 months. This allowed us to compare the heat loss in the properties prior to and post installation of Flutter Shutter™, which showed a retention in heat loss post installation. It is hoped that the company can begin to deliver the product to 15,660 properties per year.

Having the correct support from academia that have suitable programmes to ensure that no stone is unturned in discovering whether an idea is viable or not is essential to the success of products in this sector. There is so much red tape and every step to mitigate any future issues is part of the solution. It goes without saying that financial backing is a must with an innovative product and equally as important is finding the right funder/investors for your business.

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