Steve Rothwell & Ed Pippin met as students at BGS in the 90’s before going on to co-found Eagle Eye Solutions in 2003, creating digital connections that enable real-time personalised performance marketing through loyalty programmes, personalised promotions, apps, subscriptions and gift services. Eagle Eye Solutions sponsored Bristol Grammar School’s Giving Day in 2022 enabling us to produce branded t-shirts worn by students, teachers and support staff. 

Were you friends in school?

[SJR] Yes I believe so. We joined in different years and classes so I’m not sure how but 35 years later we are still friends and still laugh like we’re 17.

[EP] We became friends because Steve was one of those guys who could just talk to everyone – a useful skill in business and also when trying to talk to girls!  

What were you like as children?

[SJR] Well I think I always played the fool a bit, which came quite easily to me. Every day was really just another day of having fun.

[EP] That’s a tricky question. If I think back to school, I remember doing a lot of sport, in the week and on Saturdays. When I first started we still had Saturday morning school! I never really got into trouble but I do remember that we broke a couple of windows playing football…

What did BGS give you?

[SJR] I have been asked this question many times over the years and the truth is it gave me the confidence to try, and to be the best version of myself that I can. I remember one skiing trip where I wasn’t my best self, and I realised that if I wanted to be treated a certain way then I should treat people that way. It stayed with me and not only is it the foundation of the way I approach each day, it is the core ethos behind the business.

[EP] I feel a lot more confident now at 15, but that may be more from experience than school. One of the key things school gave me was the belief that anything was possible. No one ever said that we couldn’t do or be anything, so I just assumed that if I focussed myself then eventually I would get where I wanted. Reality kicked in later (!) but both myself and Steve still had the confidence/naivety to start our businesses and believe that they would be a success.

What are your best memories?

[SJR] Crikey, so many… everything from the science lessons (I love science and tech), through to breaktime in the playground, learning to drive and giving friends lifts to Failand, going to the cinema on the last day of the term, sport (not cricket)....I can keep going. I guess the real testament is that I wanted to come to school every day and actively looked forward to it. The Great Hall kinda sticks with you. You can travel the world over and still not see a building as amazing as the one we had lunch in every day! 

[EP] Playing rugby in the freezing rain at Failand, playing fives in the fives courts (Google it!), Interestingly when I think back, I think about a lot of sport and hanging out with my friends and less about individual lessons.

Can you remember any teachers who had an impact on you?

[EP] Mr Holman was my House Master – I remember him coming round my house before I started the Upper School. He was a constant presence through school and very important to me. Dr Lunn taught us History and how to seize life (and also how to lock old latch toilet doors from the outside). My 6th form tutor Miss Poole. My maths teacher, Mr Selwyn, somehow managed to give this kid who loved Maths and Science a love of language and literature that is still with me to this day.

[SJR] Pete Jakobek, Kevin Blackmore, Dr Homer, Mr Snook; all the teachers impacted me in different ways. The ones who stick most in my memories are the ones who shaped me as a human, guiding me and being honest with me when I wasn’t on top of my game.

What did you do after school?

[SJR] I went to Leicester University where I studied Electrical and Electronics Engineering.  After University a small engineering company called Orbitel gave me a shot as a graduate software engineer. For two reasons this was lucky for me, as it turned out I was quite good at writing software and secondly I was working on mobile phones before they had become mainstream.

[EP] I went to Leeds University to study Economics (despite not having done it at school). I had no idea what I wanted to do however I wasn’t blown away by economics so after University I took some temp jobs before seeing an advert offering to train people up in Visual Basic. I got the job which gave me a great foundation in coding and databases. From there I went to Fujitsu before Steve suggested I apply for a job where he was working in Guildford  called Consult Hyperion.I applied, got the job, and Steve got the recruitment fee! We worked together on some projects and realised we complimented each other. Steve could sell and architect and build and I could take his specs on the back of a cigarette packet and turn them into proper specifications and help deliver them.

What have been the highlights of building your business together?

[SJR] Ed and I got lucky when starting the business, we didn’t really know what we were doing and learnt along the way. In hindsight, we probably didn’t always make the best decisions, but they were our decisions. So my answer is probably a bit cliche – the journey going from nothing to starting two very successful businesses together, employing nearly 300 people around the world, enriching people’s lives every single day whether it be in the Retail Marketing space or Movie Streaming services; and the whole time doing it with a lot of laughs.

[EP] I remember the first time we had to invoice someone and realised you got paid 30-60 days later! What the hell? We had already done the work…now pay up! I also remember a New Years when we were in tuxedos ready to go out with our girlfriends, but sat on the sofa in Steve’s front room desperately trying to fix a problem on a live system, with both the client and the girlfriends suggesting that it would be great if we could fix the problem really quickly or else be dumped.

[SJR] But we survived.

What’s next for the company?

[SJR] Our Retail Marketing Business Eagle Eye Solutions is growing really quickly and we have just made our first major international acquisition purchasing a really exciting business in France. I believe that technology will keep developing and if used the right way, can continue to enrich people’s lives and enable retailers to treat their customers the way they want to be treated. Eagle Eye is going to be at the front of this, constantly innovating and constantly developing our technology.

[EP] Eagle Eye Technology delivers strategic software solutions to companies, taking our technical expertise and applying it to the next great thing. In the past we have built and run everything from Football SMS Alerts systems, to NFC Festival payment systems and currently we are developing and running Global Video Streaming Platforms. Keeping at the forefront of what is possible and providing solutions to our clients that take advantage of those technologies. 

What motivates you?

[SJR] I love building stuff, from cutting some code, or designing a new product feature or building and developing the people who work with me at Eagle Eye – seeing things grow and develop is amazing. For me there is nothing more motivating than that!

[EP] Probably equal parts financial security and also seeing something that we have built being either used in the real world or advertised on billboards or the side of a bus. If you are asking what bits of the job do I enjoy the most, it would be problem solving. Taking a problem and working out the best way to solve it is incredibly satisfying.

What advice would you give to your younger selves?

[SJR] You can't change what happened yesterday so just try to make today your best day. Treat people how you want to be treated. There can be no substitute for hard work and perseverance.

[EP] I would say that it is always difficult to judge what is going to matter and what won’t register in the big scheme of things. Therefore, try and focus, however briefly, on each decision. As long as you have spent a bit of time really thinking about each decision then you don’t need to worry about it later, because you made a reasoned decision, and you can trust yourself and so in theory it shouldn’t come back and bite you (I feel like I am setting myself up for a fall with this one 😊). Do you have anything that you would want to change?

[SJR] I don’t think so. Every decision, whether good or bad, has led me here.