Chapter 10 - As Cluberly prepares to go live, the approach to launch has been shaped by one guiding principle: doing things properly matters more than doing everything at once. Rather than a single, all-at-once release, the platform will be introduced through a more considered and strategic rollout, allowing the experience to evolve smoothly while remaining responsive to the needs of members and causes alike. The initial launch will take the form of a soft rollout. This gives

Chapter 9 As Cluberly approaches the moment it goes live, the focus has naturally shifted from building something new to perfecting what has already been created. The platform is in place, the technology is ready, and the foundations have been carefully laid. What remains is a final period of refinement — a deliberate pause to ensure that when Cluberly is switched on, it delivers the experience it was always intended to provide. Over recent months, interest in the platform ha

Chapter 8 In the period leading up to the launch of the Cluberly app, progress has not been measured solely by lines of code or feature releases. While development has remained a central focus, an equally important strand of work has been taking place in parallel: building the network of partnerships that underpin the platform. From the beginning, Cluberly was never intended to operate in isolation. The ambition has always been to create an ecosystem, supported by partners wh

Chapter 7 When Cluberly was first conceived as a platform to help people save, it was immediately clear that offering a traditional savings or investment solution alone would not be enough. The market is already crowded with products that focus narrowly on balances, returns and efficiency. While those elements matter, they do little to create emotional connection or long-term engagement. Given that Cluberly was always intended to sit at the intersection of personal finance an

Chapter 6 - From the earliest stages of development, Cluberly has been built with community at its core. This was not treated as a supporting theme or a secondary benefit, but as a fundamental driver of how the business would grow, communicate and sustain itself. The belief was simple: by demonstrating a genuine and permanent commitment to giving back, Cluberly would earn the trust and advocacy of the very communities it set out to support. That trust, in turn, would become t

Chapter 5 - When Cluberly was first being developed, it was clear from the outset that many members would naturally gravitate towards supporting well-known causes. This might be a local football club with a large following, a nationally recognised charity, or an organisation with an established profile and strong fundraising reach. These causes do vital work and already play an important role within their communities. However, they are often better equipped to attract support

Chapter 4 From the outset, Cluberly was designed around a principle that goes far beyond conventional ideas of corporate responsibility. As far as we are aware, Cluberly is the first commercial company — excluding charities and not-for-profit organisations — to commit to donating 50% of its primary revenues to causes chosen by its members, permanently. This is not a time-limited pledge, a marketing initiative or a discretionary decision taken year by year. It is a fixed commi

Chapter 3 With the business plan complete and the structure firmly in place, the next step for Cluberly was to raise funding. On paper, this felt like a natural progression. In reality, it proved to be one of the most demanding and instructive phases of the journey to date. Despite the care taken to design the company around Enterprise Investment Scheme eligibility, securing early capital was far from straightforward. Many investors were hesitant to be first in. Others, parti

Chapter 2 When the founders and wider team first began shaping Cluberly, one objective sat above all others: in order to secure funding, the business needed to be structured in a way that allowed it to qualify for Enterprise Investment Scheme investment. From early discussions with advisers, it quickly became clear that this would present a challenge. As defined by HM Revenue & Customs, businesses operating as traditional fintechs — particularly those carrying regulated finan

Chapter 1 The idea for Cluberly did not begin in a boardroom, a pitch deck or a spreadsheet. It began in a place far more familiar to many people across the UK: a local sports club, a match on the pitch, and a group of friends sharing a beer while watching their team play. Like countless conversations that take place up and down the country every weekend, the discussion drifted naturally towards the club itself. There was pride in its history, frustration at missed opportunit