Turning Criticism into Clarity: The rummage4 Story

Yesterday, I was the subject of a particularly pointed comment from an opinion contributor known more for provocation than precision. In a post laced with churlish nastiness, one of my former projects, rummage4, was dismissed as little more than a failed idea that never quite happened. I was described as someone "still pregnant with it after 10 years," and told "no one listens" to what I have to say.

Ordinarily, I wouldn't respond. But as the remarks gained attention, it felt appropriate to provide some quiet clarity, for those who are interested in what rummage4 was, why it existed, and what it quietly achieved.

rummage4 wasn't built as a commercial challenge to win market share. It was a put up or shut up response to a theoretical question raised in a public industry debate. If someone built a genuine threat to the property portals, would it be tolerated?

So I built one.

We developed rummage4 independently and carefully, positioning agents and their listings at the centre of property search. It challenged conventional portal models. After six months of thorough due diligence, the platform was acquired by CoreLogic, one of the largest global players in property data and analytics. Following that, the product was retired.

Some saw that as failure. In truth, it validated the hypothesis. That wasn't a failure or setback, it proved the point, it won the bet!

From the outset, rummage4 was bootstrapped, by design. It wasn't created to chase funding or headlines. The goal was to solve a problem.

Later, it gained the backing of people who saw value in what we were doing. One of them, a former Managing Director of an investment bank, left that role to join the project. That decision was noted in the Financial Times Lex column, not because we shouted about it, but because it was noteworthy.

Recognition came not from noise, but from quiet progress and clear intent.

Yes, rummage4 is no longer live. But in proptech, as in many industries, acquired innovations are often folded into broader solutions. That is what happened here. The product no longer exists in public view, but its thinking and architecture continue to influence the tools around it.

This wasn't collapse. It was completion.

While it ran, rummage4 helped to surface a practice that had gone largely unchallenged, #portaljuggling. This was the repeated manipulation of listings to appear "new" in search results, misleading the public and distorting performance metrics.

Our data and reporting helped expose the scale of the issue. That small act of transparency contributed to wider scrutiny and, in time, reform. A modest result, perhaps, but meaningful all the same.

It was claimed, sarcastically, that "no one listens" to me.

That would be news to several organisations I've quietly worked with. In 2019, the National Leasehold Campaign issued a public request for help on defining material information. I responded. That led to collaboration with Emma Cooke at NTSELAT and others across the sector.

The result is now tangible, a phased roll-out of material information requirements, helping make property transactions clearer and more consistent for consumers. The industry's growing focus on CPR compliance started with that call for help, and I'm pleased to have contributed.

Separately, I identified over 180,000 duplicated entries in the Land Registry dataset, inaccuracies that had been affecting the UK House Price Index for years. The ONS reviewed and ultimately adjusted its methodology.

I've never sought attention, but I have found that when something is quietly and consistently put forward, with evidence, the right people tend to listen.

The original rummage4 platform has been retired, but the ideas behind it, agent-led visibility, data transparency, and integrity in search, continue to appear across newer platforms and revised practices.

The same applies to many of the second-generation models in estate agency. Some of those who were written off in earlier waves have returned with more refined, resilient, and well-supported businesses. That is not failure. That is evolution.

And it is exactly what we discussed back in 2013.

There is a quote from Ray Kroc I've always found grounding:

"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not. Genius will not. Education will not. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."

It's not dramatic, but it is usually true.

Finally, a thank you, genuinely, to the commentator who prompted this post.

I'm not usually one to talk about myself. I prefer to get on with the work, and let others draw conclusions where they will. But every now and then, an attempt to diminish a story gives you the chance to clarify it, and to quietly set the record straight.

This isn't a defence. It is simply an account. And for those building something quietly, persistently, and without a press release, I hope it encourages you to keep going in the face of envy, criticism, and nastiness.