This book is written by Richard Harpin, a British entrepreneur who founded HomeServe in 1993, building it from a UK start-up into a global, subscription-based home services group operating across Europe and North America. Focused on recurring revenues and scalable systems, he led the business through rapid growth, international expansion and regulatory challenges. After nearly three decades at the helm, HomeServe was acquired in 2023 by Brookfield Asset Management in a deal valuing the business at approximately £4.1 billion, marking a landmark UK entrepreneurial success story.
In the book Harpin distils decades of entrepreneurial experience into a highly practical and a refreshingly honest guide to building a large-scale business and writes not as a theorist, but as someone who has lived the journey end-to-end.
This is not a ‘get rich quick’ playbook. Instead, it’s a grounded, experience-led framework built around nine principles that he believes are critical to scaling a business to significant value. The tone is direct, accessible, and often candid about the realities and pressures of growth.
He founded HomeServe in 1993 with a relatively simple proposition: offering homeowners insurance and assistance for emergency repairs such as plumbing and heating breakdowns. What followed was a long period of disciplined scaling, expanding internationally, building recurring revenue streams, and navigating regulatory and reputational challenges along the way.
One of the strengths of the book is that Harpin does not gloss over the difficult periods. He openly discusses setbacks, including regulatory scrutiny in the UK that forced the business to reset and rebuild trust. This willingness to address failure gives the book a level of authenticity.
He sets out his nine steps as follows:
- Solve a Real Problem
Everything starts here. Harpin is clear: if you’re not solving a genuine, recurring problem, scale will always be difficult. HomeServe’s model worked because boiler breakdowns, plumbing leaks, and electrical failures are inevitable and urgent. That created consistent demand. Businesses that address essential, recurring needs tend to attract stronger valuations and more sustainable growth.
- Build a Simple, Scalable Model
Harpin repeatedly returns to simplicity. HomeServe’s subscription model, small monthly payments for peace of mind, was easy to understand, sell, and scale. Operational complexity was kept under control, allowing the business to expand geographically without reinventing the wheel. Rather than diversifying into unrelated services, HomeServe doubled down on its core offering and replicated it across markets. If your model needs constant explanation, it will struggle to scale.
- Focus Relentlessly on the Customer
Customer focus is not just service, it’s strategy. During challenging periods, particularly regulatory scrutiny in the UK, customer complaints exposed weaknesses in processes and communication. Harpin used this feedback as a blueprint for change. Improving transparency in pricing and communication helped rebuild trust and ultimately strengthened the business. Customer issues are often early warning signals and opportunities.
- Build a High-Performance Culture
Harpin places huge emphasis on people. He argues that culture is a competitive advantage, particularly during periods of rapid growth or stress. At HomeServe, this meant aligning teams around clear goals, accountability, and a shared sense of purpose. As the business scaled internationally, maintaining consistent values across different regions became critical. Culture scales or breaks faster than strategy.
- Be Brilliant at the Basics
One of the powerful themes in the book is operational discipline. Harpin stresses the importance of executing the fundamentals exceptionally well, customer service, billing, operations, and delivery. In a business like HomeServe, small operational failures (missed appointments, poor communication) could quickly erode trust. Getting the basics right created a strong foundation for growth. Scaling amplifies weaknesses so fix them early.
- Invest for Growth (and Be Patient)
Harpin is clear that building a billion-pound business takes time and sustained investment. He highlights the importance of reinvesting profits back into the business whether in marketing, systems, or people rather than chasing short-term returns. Expansion into the US required significant upfront investment and patience before delivering meaningful returns. Growth often requires sacrificing short-term profit for long-term value.
- Take Calculated Risks
Growth involves risk but not reckless risk. Harpin distinguishes between informed, strategic decisions and speculative gambles. Entering new markets, launching new products, or making acquisitions all carried risk, but were underpinned by analysis and conviction. The move into international markets was a defining step for HomeServe, transforming it from a UK business into a global platform. The biggest opportunities often sit just beyond your comfort zone but require discipline.
- Learn from Setbacks and Adapt
One of the most compelling aspects of the book is Harpin’s openness about failure. Regulatory issues in the UK forced HomeServe to reassess its approach, improve governance, and rebuild its reputation. Rather than retreating, the business used the experience to strengthen controls and emerge more robust. Setbacks are not the exception they are part of the journey. The key is how quickly and effectively you respond.
- Think Long-Term and Stay Resilient
The final step ties everything together. Harpin emphasises that building a billion-pound business is not about quick wins, it’s about consistency over time. There will be periods of rapid growth, but also plateaus and challenges. HomeServe’s journey spanned decades, with multiple phases of growth, difficulty, and reinvention before reaching significant scale and value. Resilience and long-term thinking are often the defining factors in success.
What stands out across all nine steps is their practicality and interdependence. This isn’t a checklist you complete once, it’s a framework you continually revisit as your business evolves.
Enjoyable book with lots of stories and anecdotes to back up the nine steps.