Entrepreneurs -
We hear from Arbuthnot Latham client and entrepreneur Sam Grice about his journey from personal tragedy to founding a pioneering tech company that helps people plan for death and find support after a loss.
Although Sam Grice’s dad and great grandad were entrepreneurs, his path to running a business was not a traditional one.
Sam’s mother died unexpectedly in a car accident and, despite being overwhelmed by grief, Sam and his family had to deal with a myriad of challenges that come with managing someone’s estate including: registering her death, closing bank accounts, planning her funeral, and handling extensive legal and financial paperwork.
This led him to found Guardian Angel, now known as Octopus Legacy, to offer a more joined-up digital approach to help people plan for death and find support after a loss.
We spoke to Sam about his entrepreneurial journey and the challenges of launching a ‘death tech’ business.
Starting and growing Octopus Legacy was not without its hurdles. In the early days, Grice faced resistance from investors unfamiliar with the concept of ‘death tech’. Some were sceptical about the market’s potential, while others found the subject too emotionally charged.
“I had people saying, ‘that's never going to work’. But I also had a potential investor crying because they'd gone through the loss of their partner, so I saw everything,” Grice recalls.
Despite the initial scepticism, Sam's ability to connect with investors on an emotional level ultimately helped him secure the necessary support to grow his company.
Sam pivoted the business early in the company’s life. Originally focused on bereavement support in the immediate aftermath of a loss, Grice and the team realised there was only so much they could do for loved ones during such a difficult time. By helping people to have these important conversations and share their wishes before they died, they could help make losing someone easier – giving space and time for those left behind to focus on what matters.
While many businesses struggled when Covid hit, it was a period of growth for Octopus Legacy. As the pandemic spread, it confronted people with their own mortality and triggered them to think about their plans around death.
Sam says that at the time of pandemic, many other businesses in the sector had not yet adapted to a digital world. They still needed to meet clients in person, which was not going to work with people locked down in their homes. Here Octopus Legacy was ahead of the competition.
“Competitors didn't have the systems, or the technology set up to deal with the volume,” he says. “When everyone went online, I think our will writing service was up over 400%.”
Although it was a stressful time for his team, Sam is grateful they were able to support so many people at a difficult time.
One of Octopus Legacy's standout ideas is the Legacy Box. This brings together everything that matters - your will, accounts, and policies - alongside the treasures that tell your story: letters, photos, recorded messages, and personal notes.
By combining legal security with emotional legacy, the box helps you leave behind more than documents, it helps you leave memories and meaning that reflects your life and values.
Hiring has also been a unique issue. Sam initially found it difficult to find high-quality talent who were enthusiastic about the sector he operates in.
“Every day we’re talking about funerals, we’re talking about death, we’re talking about loss,” he says. “Our clients have lost people and they’re coming to us for support, which is emotional. I’d say that on the back of our growth we’ve seen it is easier [to find employees] - often people who have been through their own experiences of loss and really ‘get’ the importance of this space and the impact we can have. Our biggest challenge has been trying to maintain that startup culture."
The company emphasises a collaborative and dynamic work environment where every team member feels valued and empowered. By encouraging open communication, continuous learning, and a shared commitment to the company's mission, Sam ensures that the passion and drive that characterised the early start-up days remains integral to the current identity.
To provide the holistic support Sam envisioned, it has required strategic investments and acquisitions.
The company bought the tech assets of life insurance company Dead Happy and became a law firm so they can offer more complex services, like trusts. Previously, Octopus Legacy worked with partner solicitors but being able to offer their own legal services allows them to own and safeguard the full customer experience - end to end. And they are now also working with independent financial advisers (IFAs) to support their clients with estate planning.
Sam has thought carefully about fundraising. His advice is that founders should decide in their first years if they want to take investment or grow their company by using their own connections and resources.
And once you have taken the investment you need to constantly be thinking about growth and future fundraising, so it can feel like running on a treadmill. Sam was willing to make that trade off. In fact, when he started to talk to Octopus, the investment and energy group, about an investment, it turned into a bigger conversation.
For Sam, the business was about human impact - so Octopus making a majority ownership acquisition offered a unique opportunity - to be able to define the category which needed a business able to think with a 50-year view, not just 2 years ahead to the next venture capital fundraising cycle. And as part of a business that would never compromise on customer experience - which is essential in such an emotionally heightened space.
Through strategic growth, innovative services, and a commitment to compassion, Sam’s ambition for Octopus Legacy is to become the place people go to when they are thinking about, planning for, and dealing with death. As it continues to evolve, the company’s core purpose remains unchanged: to make the experience of losing someone easier.
Octopus Legacy is more than just a business – it is a mission-driven company transforming how people prepare for the inevitable. By combining technology, legal expertise, and emotional support, Sam Grice and his team have built a service that helps families navigate one of life’s most difficult moments.
Sam, like many founders, entrepreneurs, and business owners, is time-poor, so he appreciates the hands-on support from Jack Barrett, Senior Private Banker.
Jack regularly travels to Sam’s office so that Sam does not have to take time out of his day to call or come to our office. And Sam jokes that he often messages Jack on Sundays at 10pm because it is the only time he has to ask something about his account. But he says Jack is always responsive.
Jack, and our wider banking team, know the best ways to support entrepreneurs so that they can get on with running their business.
If you would like to be supported by a relationship-led bank in the same way that Sam has, find out more about our services for entrepreneurs and business owners.
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