Tillo is a global embedded rewards and incentives platform built for profitability. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Tillo CEO and co-founder Alex Preece to learn more about the company.
Alex Preece’s Background
What is Alex Preece’s background? Preece said:
“I’m Alex Preece, CEO and co-founder of Tillo. My career started in the British Army, and I spent seven years touring Bosnia and Iraq on active duty. Following that unconventional start, I went on to co-found the UK’s first daily deal business, which I later sold to Moneysupermarket.com, the world’s biggest comparison website. In 2016, I co-founded Tillo, and I’m proud to have helped Tillo grow into a market leader in the UK and EU in the digital gift card space. ”
“Earlier this year, I moved to Austin, Texas, to open our offices stateside as we continue to grow. I saw how much of a difference we’ve made in the UK market, and I knew we had the potential to change the game stateside as well. In Austin, we’re leveraging what has worked in the UK and adapting it to US market needs, all while maintaining the core values that have made Tillo a leader in the rewards and incentives space.”
Formation Of Tillo
How did the idea for the company come together? Preece shared:
“We started by identifying a gap in the industry. While trying to offer gift cards in a mobile app for another business, we were shocked by how difficult and overly complex the process was. From that point, we started to see the potential for a new product that would disrupt this status quo. The gift card industry had outdated and difficult processes, which had a domino effect for the end businesses who wanted to use gift cards in their product or services and were experiencing delays to their rewards and incentives. “
“We saw a huge opportunity to streamline operations and enhance transparency for businesses and customers, and so, we began working on creating a foundational infrastructure to revolutionize the industry. Just like VISA and MasterCard simplified payments, our goal was to completely transform the incentive and reward space.”
Favorite Memory
What has been your favorite memory working for the company so far? Preece reflected:
“Bringing Tillo’s UK and US teams together in Croatia for our first employee incentive trip last year was a magical moment for me and is truly a testament to how far we’ve come as a business since our inception in 2016. The trip was impactful for the whole team, bringing our colleagues from all over the world together for collaboration and team bonding, and embodying Tillo’s core values: Surprise and Delight, Remarkable Passion, Collaboration is Key, Be Intentional, and Drive for Results.”
Core Products
What are the company’s core products and features? Preece explained:
“The Tillo platform makes gift cards, rewards, and incentives simple, efficient, and profitable. Tillo’s best-in-class, plug-and-go API offers businesses seamless connections to 2,000+ global brands that their customers and employees love. A single integration to Tillo’s API enables organizations to focus on what they do best – all while keeping their revenue, customers, and employees happy. Buyers and Brands on the Tillo Network have access to an award-winning Tillo Hub, helping them retain control and full transparency over their partnerships and gift card transactions.”
“We’ve also introduced experience-based delivery mechanisms like Tillo ChoiceLink, which allows our customers to create their own bespoke, multi-choice digital gift card that can be filled with their choice of brands and designed to suit specific campaigns or company colors. For the end consumer, ChoiceLink offers a chance to split reward value across brands of their choosing, making every reward or incentive more of a personal choice.”
“We’re constantly adding new improvements to Tillo for our Buyers and our Brands, recently launching features like International Payments, to make global gift card transactions as easy as local ones, and our StoreFront product, a white-label gift card mall designed to remove the technological boundaries associated with selling gift cards B2C.”
Challenges Faced
What challenges have Preece and the team faced in building the company? Preece acknowledged:
“There have been a couple of challenges we’ve faced, but all came with great learning curves. We initially had a bit of a ‘two-sided chicken and egg scenario.’ We needed brands to show value to partners, but we had none, and brands wanted sales via buyers, but we had none of those either. We had to establish the value for both sides and find the tipping point, fast. So, we focused on creating the most intuitive, user-friendly, and feature-rich platform on the market, and it didn’t take long for both brands and buyers to see value in what we were offering – and the rest is history. We’re incredibly proud of our 99.9% customer retention rate and the reputation we have in the industry for best-in-class customer service and constant platform innovation.”
“Now, as we scale the business across global regions, we are finding that every region has a different perception and market maturity level around gift cards and reward and incentive programs. So, as we are expanding, it’s been key to do our due diligence and learn these nuances so we can best position our solutions and messages. This is of utmost importance to help our customers in the way they need to be helped and meet their demands within the space. It’s been a process of trial and error and figuring out what truly resonates with particular audiences.”
Evolution Of Tillo’s Technology
How has the company’s technology evolved since launching? Preece noted:
“When we first launched, our gift card API was just part of our offering, and bulk-buy orders were one of our key services. Now, while we still offer bulk-buy orders, Tillo is focused on building a best-in-class API and adding on additional features and products like ChoiceLink, International Payments, and StoreFront that empower our customers to take their use of gift cards to new markets and heights.”
Significant Milestones
What have been some of the company’s most significant milestones? Preece cited:
“One standout milestone was our involvement in the UK government’s free school meals initiative during the COVID-19 pandemic. We leveraged our technology to deliver gift cards to 1.3 million families weekly, enabling them to shop in supermarkets and support their families while children were forced to stay home from school. Witnessing firsthand how our technology directly impacted those in need was incredibly gratifying, and it was a great example of our company’s core values and the robust, best in class technology we’ve built as volumes ramped up significantly during this time.”
“Recently, we’ve continued to build on our success through partnerships and acquisitions. By acquiring companies like Jigsaw, we’re enhancing our digital gift card integration footprint for direct payments and expanding our network of businesses that can offer their employees and customers comprehensive incentives and rewards. I’m pleased to share that Tillo is about to hit £3 billion (roughly $3.7 billion) worth of gift cards processed through the Tillo Platform. “
Customer Success Stories
After asking Preece about customer success stories, he highlighted:
“We have quite a few! We help companies in a wide-range of industries so success can look very different for each of them.”
“One example would be our work with Reward Gateway, an employee engagement platform, which expanded globally by integrating new international brands from Tillo into its offering. Before partnering with Tillo, Reward Gateway had an already-established product line and a satisfied customer base, but they needed a frictionless gift card solution to incorporate brands from new markets without the hassle of unique API integrations.”
“One integration to Tillo instantly connected Reward Gateway to thousands of brands across 84 countries, broadening its offerings for thousands of corporate customers and enhancing global reach. By streamlining onboarding processes and offering flexibility to integrate existing brand relationships, we improved Reward Gateway’s member experience and facilitated easy access to new retailers worldwide. “
Funding
When asking Preece about the company’s funding details, he revealed:
“Tillo is very much self funded. I’m very proud that we continue to run a profitable business that has no requirement to raise any outside capital, now or in the near future.”
Total Addressable Market
What total addressable market (TAM) size is the company pursuing? Preece assessed:
“Our total addressable market spans various industries, focusing initially on neo-banks, crypto and blockchain, buy now pay later, loyalty programs, retail, and more. We target specific decision-makers such as CEOs, CTOs, and partnerships leads to ensure effective utilization of our solutions and act as the intermediary between businesses offering rewards and incentives and the companies seeking these services for their employees.”
Differentiation From The Competition
What differentiates the company from its competition? Preece affirmed:
“Tillo has an incredibly rich brand portfolio offering businesses access to rewards and incentives from over 2,000 global brands (a number that’s on track to grow to 4,000 by the end of the year!), and we prioritize quality in everything we do, from hiring the best people to building the most robust technology and delivering the best service to our users.”
“We are also the first and only gift card platform to be officially certified for customer service and receive a CSE accreditation, and we’ve also been recognized as the Industry Service Provider of the Year by the Gift Card and Voucher Association (GCVA).”
“Additionally, Tillo provides competitive discounts and exclusive connections to our clients. Our API integration seamlessly integrates into existing platforms, streamlining the process with one integration, making it easier for customers to utilize our services and innovate on top of our software.”
Future Company Goals
What are some of the company’s future company goals? Preece concluded:
“Internally, our focus is on expanding globally and solidifying our place in the US market. We recognize that there are nuanced differences in reward and incentive programs between the US and UK markets, and we are customizing UK-tested strategies to meet the demands of the US market, all while upholding the fundamental principles that have established Tillo as a pioneer in the rewards and incentives industry.”
“Tillo is growing our catalog of brands constantly, and we’re on-track to have 4000 global brands on the network by 2025. As we continue to grow and innovate, our mission remains unchanged: making gift cards, rewards, and incentives simple for companies. “
