Meet the business team
Put a face to the name of your account manager. They're your single point of contact, an effective service that works for you.
Our business people:
Benny Anastasiadis
Business Sales Consultant
How long have you been at Powershop?
Since August 2018 (but in the industry since 2005).
How would you describe what you do at Powershop?
On the phone and email to customers quoting and selling electricity & gas.
What I do to help:
- Educate customers about rates and discounts.
- Advise them of the realities of electricity pricing.
In your opinion, what’s the key challenge for businesses and their energy accounts?
Keeping energy costs to a minimum and choosing the correct retailer for their needs.
What’s something you’d like your business customers to know?
We will do our best to provide our best/lowest quote, but we do have other value add credentials such as no cost (to our customers) carbon neutral energy, we’re a greener energy company, and we’re backed by renewable energy generation. Also, our level of service is exceptional and includes direct account management from myself.
What is the most common mistake you see businesses make with their energy accounts and what would you do to change it?
- Focusing too much on discount % and not the actual rates.
- Not reviewing their rates regularly.
- Believing too much of the negative press in the media about energy pricing.
What’s the most unusual type of business you’ve helped set up an account for?
A brothel (a legal one, of course!).
What’s your favourite thing about working at Powershop?
Working with genuinely great, friendly and understanding people.
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working?
Spending time with my family (wife and 2 young boys, aged 6 and 1). Standing on the stadium terraces supporting the Melbourne Victory FC!
Do you have any secret / favourite sustainability tips?
Install solar on your roof and use appliances when the sun is shining at its brightest whenever you can.
Ebony Spencer
Business Sales Executive
How long have you been at Powershop?
Four years.
How would you describe what you do at Powershop?
I’m part of the Business Sales team here at Powershop and I help my customers save money and better understand and manage their power bills.
Describe your role in three words.
Fun, Challenging and Busy!
In your opinion, what’s the key challenge for businesses and their energy accounts?
You don’t know what you don’t know and we are the professionals, so we provide the support, clarity and transparency that you wouldn’t normally get with other retailers.
What is the most common mistake you see businesses make with their energy accounts and what would you do to change it?
Probably not understanding their discounts and how they’re applied to the account. Powershop offers our customers guaranteed discounts, applied to the total bill not just the usage charges.
What tips do you have for businesses to take control of their energy bills?
Take advantage of the tools we provide to help you manage your power costs. Utilise the assistance of your account manager and regularly keep in touch and ask them to run a quick health check on your account and see if you could do anything better.
What’s the most unusual type of business you’ve helped set up an account for?
There are too many to think of, but the latest was a traditional Japanese bathing house.
What’s your favourite thing about working at Powershop?
The people and culture here is great but knowing that I’m a part of helping make a change in this world is definitely the best part and makes me feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside!
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working?
Spending time with my family and dogs, travel, true crime documentaries and attending spin classes, to name a few!
Do you have any secret / favourite sustainability tips?
Steer clear of all plastic where absolutely possible, don’t keep lights on if you’re not in the room and spend more time outside being active rather than inside consuming energy!
Pete Brownstein
Business Sales Executive
How long have you been at Powershop?
Over 4yrs – a long time in the scheme of things!
How would you describe what you do at Powershop?
Provide quotes, account management and support for business customers.
I’m also a sustainability, health, wellness and safety committee member within the organisation.
Describe your role in three words.
Sales, service, support.
In your opinion, what’s the key challenge for businesses and their energy accounts?
Knowing how energy is being used in their business and how that impacts on their energy bills.
What’s something you’d like your business customers to know?
Powershop provides the tools to help manage usage, with daily interval data sent to us in 30 min intervals to help make sense of energy use.
All our customer’s energy use is 100% carbon neutral at no cost to them – reducing businesses carbon footprint just by switching to us. A win-win for the business and the environment!
What is the most common mistake you see businesses make with their energy accounts and what would you do to change it?
Unbundled billing - thinking that the retail energy charges is all they pay for usage. I would encourage the government to make it mandatory to provide the total bundled costs of energy for all customers, big and small, to make it an even playing field for all.
What tips do you have for businesses to take control of their energy bills?
Look at their usage data regularly, consider retrofitting insulation (if possible) for office spaces or install solar to offset daytime energy use. Make sure lighting and equipment are running as efficiently as possible.
What’s the toughest question you’ve been asked by a business customer?
No real tough questions – just queries that require solutions and always doing the best we can for customers.
What’s the most unusual type of business you’ve helped set up an account for?
That’s a hard one. Our customers are so diverse! I just enjoy dealing with all sorts of businesses from SOHO to large corporates.
What’s your favourite thing about working at Powershop?
People – and the great culture within the organisation. I do get a buzz out of making a connection with customers; helping them to understand their energy bills better and, if possible, reduce their impact on the environment by changing behaviours or processes.
Being a trusted adviser to help them with this.
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working?
Keeping active with the kids (I have 4) and a large dog (Doug) and I love riding to work –it keeps me sane and I love beating the traffic each day 😉
Gardening brings me great joy at home and I volunteer at my kids’ school to maintain their orchard and vegie boxes every couple of weeks.
I enjoy the occasional Triathlon or Spartan race to help me to have a fitness target – although the last one I did, I cracked my ribs – not advisable half way through a race and continuing...
Do you have any secret / favourite sustainability tips?
When running your AC in summer, in particular – start it early and have it set to a higher temp – 23 degrees or above to reduce consumption. This applies to your business and home.
In winter – wear warmer clothes and keep the temp at around 20 degrees.
Will Hartley
Business Sales Manager
How long have you been at Powershop?
Five years.
How would you describe what you do at Powershop?
Manage our business sales team.
Describe your role in three words.
Selling, Coaching, Growing.
In your opinion, what’s the key challenge for businesses and their energy accounts?
Managing costs and understanding the charges.
What’s something you’d like your business customers to know?
I’m a real person.
What is the most common mistake you see businesses make with their energy accounts and what would you do to change it?
Not taking the time to fully understand things so they can compare apples with apples. It’s as simple as giving me a call.
What tips do you have for businesses to take control of their energy bills?
Make sure you spend 10 – 15 mins per month assessing your usage and costs.
What’s your favourite thing about working at Powershop?
Getting to chat to different people every day.
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working?
Playing golf or going to the footy.
Do you have any secret / favourite sustainability tips?
Switch to Powershop for 100% carbon offset energy for your business.
Ziyad Raghib
Business Development Manager
How long have you been at Powershop?
Three months.
How would you describe what you do at Powershop?
I manage the Sunyield account, a new solar product that benefits two parties compared to the traditional solar system that only benefits one party.
Describe your role in three words.
Rewarding, Exciting & Challenging.
In your opinion, what’s the key challenge for businesses and their energy accounts?
Being a market leader within a highly competitive electricity and gas market but keeping customer experience at the forefront of this challenge.
What’s something you’d like your business customers to know?
Engage your energy retailer and starting having conversations on how to improve your energy use.
What’s your favourite thing about working at Powershop?
Being a carbon neutral business!
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working?
Eating, travelling & playing sport.
Do you have any secret / favourite sustainability tips?
Get a Frank Green keepcup!