Belfast comparison website company to create 31 jobs

A Belfast company which developed one of the UK’s largest insurance comparison platforms is to create 31 jobs as part of a project to scale the business “more quickly”.

Seopa, which was set up in 2003 by engineer and entrepreneur, Greg Wilson, was an “early pioneer” of online price comparison technology in the UK.

The company currently operates its own price comparison sites – including Quotezone.co.uk and CompareNI.com – and also partners with other businesses from financial services firms to insurance, energy and media firms – to provide them with its proprietary comparison technology.

According to Mr Wilson more than three million people currently use his company’s various sites to compare quotes every year.

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“We now want to build on this success and grow our market share. We plan to do this by investing significantly in our team with training and development, creating 31 new roles.

“We are also enhancing our systems and products to ensure they remain cutting edge as we enter new markets and compete with a broader group of competitors,”he said.

Since Mr Wilson first founded Seopa there has been a growing trend among consumers to compare prices for everything from big ticket items to a night away in a hotel.

Grainne McVeigh, director of scaling, with Invest NI, said the Belfast headquartered company has ambitious plans for its future.

“Seopa has an impressive growth history, and this planned investment across product development, marketing and skills will ensure it is well placed to meet its ambitious scaling plans,” she added.

The agency is backing Mr Wilson’s expansion programme with nearly £390,000 in financial support .

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