Munich Startup: What does your startup do? What problem do you solve?
Hannes Münzinger, founder and Managing Director of Homenergy: We provide homeowners with access to renewable energy. In other words, we advise our customers and supply them with photovoltaic modules, energy storage systems, heat pumps and wallboxes. We also offer them the Homenergy Manager, an energy management solution that intelligently controls energy flows. And we give them access to a dynamic electricity tariff. Ultimately, our aim is to provide our customers with a cost-effective and reliable supply of sustainable energy.
Sustainable energy for private households
Munich Startup: But that already exists!
Hannes Münzinger: Yes and no. It’s true that there are other providers with a similar offering. And yes, we don’t have a classic USP. The main thing that sets us apart from other companies is that we combine the advantages of a regional craft business with the potential of digitalization. We are set up in such a way that we can provide our customers with optimal local support – they have a fixed, permanent contact person. At the same time, we are very efficient thanks to our own IT platform. Our customer ratings and the fact that we are growing against the trend, especially in a very difficult market environment, show that this works.
Munich Startup: What is your founding story?
Hannes Münzinger: I worked in the energy sector for almost ten years, most recently as Managing Director at Daheim Solar. In mid-2022, it was clear that the market for solutions for the energy transition was really taking off. That was the time when the whole country was worried about gas storage levels and the future of the energy supply. Since I was looking for a new challenge anyway, I decided to tackle the topic and found a company – together with my co-founders Bastian and Alexander, whom I knew from Daheim Solar. I knew that we had a fantastic team dynamic.
Boom over, but Homenergy is still growing
Munich Startup: What have been your biggest challenges so far?
Hannes Münzinger: We are probably in the middle of our biggest challenge right now. The PV and heat pump market has suffered tremendously recently and the initial boom is over. This is partly due to the fact that energy prices have fallen again, but also to a lot of disinformation and uncertainty – especially about heat pumps – as well as the discontinuation of subsidy programs. Nevertheless, we are growing – against the trend – and are in a more than stable financial position. That’s why we see the opportunities above all, because the market is currently consolidating.
Munich Startup: How is business going?
Hannes Münzinger: Business is going well – despite the difficult market situation that I have just described. In the first year after the company was founded, we generated 42 million euros in sales and almost four million euros in EBITDA. With just one million euros in startup capital, we were already in the black after just three months. We are continuing on this path. And in June 2024, for example, we are currently seeing an increase of over 50% compared to the previous months and are far better positioned than the market as a whole.
“Excellent opportunities to grow as a startup”
Munich Startup: How have you experienced Munich as a startup location so far?
Hannes Münzinger: Insanely positive. I’ve been in Munich for over twelve years – both of my co-founders are Munich natives. The city offers excellent opportunities to grow as a startup. Great infrastructure, an established startup scene, a large number of well-educated people and much more. We absolutely love being here.
Munich Startup: Outsource or do it yourself?
Hannes Münzinger: Both. We know our strengths, but we are aware that there are issues that we prefer to leave to our partners. For example, our in-house developed IT platform is a major success factor. We also do most of the electrical installation and heating installation ourselves. At the same time, we have subcontractors for the roof installation of photovoltaic systems, for example. We always try to take the path that best benefits us as a company and, above all, our customers.
