Jono Hey

Finding time to work on those ‘bottom of the roadmap, but really exciting’ projects can be tricky, if not nearly always impossible. But we all know it’s important to spend time on these things — for our customers, company innovation, and employee morale.

In Nutmeg fundamentals part 1 we looked at exploring your investments, creating multiple funds and our monthly investing updates.

It’s getting on for a year since Nutmeg opened its doors to the public. But whether you joined us recently, you’ve been with us from the start, or you’re still deciding if Nutmeg is right for you, I wanted to share some of the basics of what you can do with Nutmeg directly through the site, whenever is convenient for you.

Even if your school days are now a distant memory, you might recall your parents complaining (sorry, “gently mentioning in passing” after you got a D in GCSE geography) that it cost an arm and a leg to pay the private school fees. The bad news if you’re considering private education for your own children is that it now costs two arms and two legs. And a kidney. According to a study by Lloyds TSB in August 2012, average fees have risen by 68 per cent over the last decade, from £6,280 in 2002 to £11,457. That’s 1.8 times faster than retail price inflation over the same period.

Many things lose their value the moment you own them. A new car famously plummets in price as soon you drive it out the garage, typically losing half its value in just three years. Few people will pay top price for an old jumper, a well-thumbed book or a second-hand half-pint of beer.

In for a pound, in for a penny – that pretty much sums up the numbers game with loyalty schemes. At Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and The Co-operative – as well as Amazon and Waterstones – you get a penny back for every pound you spend, while Tesco offers a mighty 2p and Boots a racy 4p.