Brand as an operating system: A case study of Octopus Energy Group
Abstract
The energy sector has long been regarded as a low-engagement, mistrusted commodity market where brands struggle to differentiate. Octopus Energy Group challenges this orthodoxy by treating brand not as a marketing veneer but as the operating system of the company. This paper, written from the perspective of Octopus’s Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Creative Officer, explores how brand philosophy shapes behaviour across technology, culture, product design and customer service. Drawing on established brand and marketing theory, the paper demonstrates how creativity and emotional design are engineered into every interaction, how Kraken — Octopus’s proprietary technology platform — acts as a brand engine at scale, and how the company’s wider moral imperative creates value simultaneously for customers, employees, society and the planet. Culture is presented as the kernel of the operating system, ensuring coherence and resilience as the company grows. The paper concludes with lessons for brand leaders in any industry: coherence between promise and practice, technology as an expression of values, culture as a safeguard and morality as strategy. Octopus Energy shows that even a utility can build trust, loyalty and love when brand becomes the system through which the whole organisation operates. This article is also included in The Business & Management Collection which can be accessed at https://hstalks.com/business/.
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Author's Biography
Pete Miller is Co-founder and Global Creative Director of Octopus Energy, where he has spent the past decade proving that energy companies do not have to be boring. With a background in digital design and a philosophy rooted in human-centric experiences, Pete has been the driving force behind Octopus’s distinctive voice, which speaks to customers like people, not account numbers. Before co-founding the company in 2015, he was the Creative Director of the digital agency Tangent Snowball, where he worked with clients including Walkers, Carlsberg, the Labour Party and SAP. At Octopus, Pete’s mission has been to make green energy accessible, engaging and fun. He is the creative ‘magician’ behind the brand’s global identity and came up with Constantine, Octopus’s cute pink mascot. Pete frequently speaks on how kindness, clarity and good design can disrupt even the stuffiest of industries.
Rebecca Dibb‑Simkin is Chief Product & Marketing Officer at Octopus Energy Group, with responsibility for both product development and brand strategy. She joined Octopus in 2016, during its early growth phase, and has since played a central role in scaling the business into an international energy group operating in 32 countries. Her remit spans proprietary technology and hardware, including products such as the Octopus Home Mini, as well as customer experience and brand communications. Prior to Octopus, Rebecca worked at British Gas, where she led product teams at Hive and helped grow it from an internal venture into the UK’s leading smart home platform. Her career has focused on the intersection of technology, design, and user experience, with a long‑standing interest in making complex energy systems simpler and more engaging for customers.
