A former sidekick of Sir Richard Branson and a key figure in his Virgin business empire has joined the board of Chippenham-based green energy group Good Energy.
Will Whitehorn, who took over as non-executive deputy chairman today, was also one of the founding shareholders of online estate agency Purplebricks.
He currently holds non-executive roles across a range of companies, including transport group Stagecoach, where he is deputy chairman, and space technology company AAC Microtec of Sweden.
He is also shortly to join the Royal Air Force board as a non-executive director with the rank equivalent of Air Vice Marshall.
At Good Energy he will join the risk and audit committee and become a member of the nomination and remuneration committee. He arrives as Good Energy undergoes a transformation to meet new challenges in the renewables market and harness new technologies to widen its offering.
Chairman John Maltby said: “Will has extensive experience across a broad range of sectors with a particular focus on fast moving and growing companies.
“Will's particular experience across technology, digital and branding will be an asset as we continue to reshape the company, reflecting our view of the changing market, the challenges and the opportunities for Good Energy’s future.
“Technology, changing customer behaviours and attitudes, and the people making up the Good Energy team mean we can continue to lead the shift from old energy to new generation.”
Will Whitehorn spent more than 20 years with Virgin Group, where he held roles responsible for global brand development and corporate affairs. He was president of space tourism Virgin Galactic and a special advisor to Sir Richard Branson.
In addition to his business commitments, Will is a fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, The Marketing Society and former president of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport and fundraises for various charities.
Last December Good Energy recruited Tim Jones, chief information officer of Moneysupermarket.com Group, as a non-executive director. He is widely regarded as one of the UK’s top figures in the digital sector.
Good Energy was founded 18 years ago and is now one of the UK’s leading 100% renewable energy providers with 71,150 renewable electricity customers and 42,750 carbon neutral gas customers. It also provides Feed-in Tariff administration services to 137,900 sites, taking its total number of customers to 251,800.
It owns the Delabole Wind Farm in Cornwall, the UK’s first commercial wind farm, and also owns and operates Hampole Wind Farm, near Doncaster, along with seven solar farms.
It recently made its first move into the fast-growing battery storage market through a partnership with the Eden Project in Cornwall. Good Energy is listed on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM market.
