Expert Details
Finance, Banking, Investment Funds, Corporate Finance, Strategy, Scalable Operations
ID: 738112
United Kingdom
Experienced entrepreneur, passionate about building lean, scalable businesses within FMCG, with a strong background in corporate finance. 5+ years track record of top performance across investment banking, strategy, operations and finance. Demonstrated ability to build and manage high performing teams, raise investment, create scalable operations and manage strategy across all key business functions.
Expert's current role is principally to oversee the day-to-day operations of the company and the growth strategy, but like many startup founders, he's involved in all aspects of the business from sales and marketing to NPD and finance/fundraising. They have launched their range in Tesco, Waitrose, Ocado, Holland & Barrett, Selfridges and Harvey Nichols in the UK. They export their products to Ireland, France, Iceland, Kuwait, The UAE, Singapore and South Korea and are in around 5,000 distribution points globally.
Expert was featured on the Forbes 30 under 30 list for retail and e-commerce and attended the first ever Forbes global work residency programme in Bermuda this year, along with 50 other entrepreneurs, selected from the global 30 under 30 list.
SKILLS & INTERESTS
• Competed to national level in athletics - previously UK Schools Champion and English Schools bronze medallist at 1500 metres; have run the equivalent of a 4:08 mile
• Ranked 2nd Junior in the UK for 5K with a personal best of 14:50 and reserve for the English national team (both track and cross-country)
• Member of the winning Surrey athletics team at the UK National Inter-Counties cross country event and former London regional athletics squad captain
• Keen road cyclist – ride with London Dynamos on the road and spin with the Digme performance squad
• Expert proficiency at Excel, Powerpoint and across various project management and data visualisation systems
Education
| Year | Degree | Subject | Institution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year: 2015 | Degree: B.Eng | Subject: Engineering Mathematics | Institution: University of Bristol |
Work History
| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
|---|---|---|---|
| Years: 2017 to Present | Employer: Undisclosed | Title: Chief Executive Officer | Department: Senior Management |
Responsibilities:• A disruptive condiment brand, making ketchup, mayonnaise, BBQ Sauce and dressings, with all natural ingredients and no added sugar. Currently listed with Tesco, Waitrose, Ocado, Holland & Barrett and the speciality foodhalls of Selfridges, Harvey Nichols and Planet Organic• Responsibilities include managing the team, day-to-day operations, supply chain, commercial strategy, fundraising and finance • Grew revenue from £38k in our first year of trading to £800k annualised run-rate sales; raised £2m primarily from angel investors • Built and manage a team of five in-house (focused solely on sales & marketing) and fifteen consultants (experts across marketing, retail sales, Amazon, Export, Foodservice and NPD) • Have built a scalable supply chain with two manufacturers, two third-party warehouses and an outsourced operations team • This outsourced business model enables rapid growth with a highly variable cost base and clear path to profitability through gross margin improvement |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 2015 to 2017 | Employer: J.P. Morgan | Title: Analyst, UK Investment Banking | Department: Consumer, Retail & Healthcare industry |
Responsibilities:• Analyst in J.P. Morgan's UK investment banking division, J.P. Morgan Cazenove, within the Consumer, Retail & Healthcare industry team, working across a variety of products (M&A, debt and equity)• Responsibilities include a wide range of financial modelling (merger modelling and forecasting) and valuation (DCF, LBO, trading and transaction comparables) • Additionally, offer corporate broking support to a number of FTSE 350 companies, maintaining an active and regular dialogue with CEO/CFO and provide financial/market advice • Responsible for both the origination and execution of transactions: - Create marketing materials for origination, including assessing acquisition targets/buyer universes for companies, analysing shareholder registers and suggesting focus/target investors - Manage valuation/financial modelling and associated outputs, create investor/analyst presentations and Board briefing materials, as well as drafting legal documents (Rule 2.7 announcements, Scheme/Prospectus documents) on the execution of transactions • Worked on a number of defence projects, preparing the Boards of FTSE 350 companies for defence situations and assessing potential threats and the likelihood of hostile takeovers/activist pressure Transaction experience • Jul 16: Advised IDH / mydentist on its £425m bonds, the first Sterling High Yield issuance post-Brexit • Jun 16: Advised Vectura on its £1.0bn merger with Skyepharma, creating a powerful UK specialist pharmaceuticals group focused on respiratory drugs • Jan 16: Advised Advent International on the £1.5bn sale of Priory Group, the UK’s leading independent provider of mental health care facilities, to Acadia |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 2015 to 2015 | Employer: McKinsey | Title: Discover | Department: Discover |
Responsibilities:• Two-day residential programme gaining an insight into the company, the management consulting industry and its approach to solving a business case |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 2014 to 2014 | Employer: Credit Suisse | Title: Summer Analyst, Leveraged Finance & Sponsors Group | Department: Leveraged Finance & Sponsors Group |
Responsibilities:• Advised both sponsor and corporate clients on a range of leveraged buyout and refinancing transactions• Key responsibilities included LBO modelling, ratings advisory, analysing high yield and leveraged loan comparables |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 2011 to 2012 | Employer: Rothschild | Title: Intern | Department: M&A sector teams |
Responsibilities:• Nine-month gap year internship in the London Information Centre, working closely with the bank’s M&A sector teams in a research role |
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International Experience
| Years | Country / Region | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Years: 2015 to 2017 | Country / Region: United Kingdom | Summary: Expert previously worked in investment banking (UK Consumer, Retail and Healthcare M&A) at J.P. Morgan, Credit Suisse and Rothschild. At JP Morgan, which was this most recent experience, he worked as an Analyst His responsibilities include a wide range of financial modelling (merger modelling and forecasting) and valuation (DCF, LBO, trading and transaction comparables) • Offering corporate broking support to a number of FTSE 350 companies, maintaining an active and regular dialogue with the CEO/CFO and provide financial/market advice |
Career Accomplishments
| Awards / Recognition |
|---|
| -Forbes 30 under 30 -As a teenager, he was the UK Junior 1500m champion and have personal bests of 3:51 for 1500m (4:08 mile equivalent) and 14:50 for 5km. - Expert's company wins Great Taste awards on our Classic and Chilli Mayo |
Additional Experience
| Training / Seminars |
|---|
| Expert was a keynote speaker at Entrepreneurs Forum - Fortune Favours the Brave. Education: B.Eng. in Engineering Mathematics October 2012 – June 2015 • Upper Second Class Honours • Relevant modules in Mathematical and Data Modelling, Optimisation Theory and Applications, Financial and Management Accounting • Final year Technical Project, using machine learning techniques to predict the performance of football players based on a variety of key statistics |
| Other Relevant Experience |
|---|
| Credit Suisse London Summer Analyst, Leveraged Finance & Sponsors Group June 2014 – August 2014 • Advised both sponsor and corporate clients on a range of leveraged buyout and refinancing transactions • Key responsibilities included LBO modelling, ratings advisory, analysing high yield and leveraged loan comparables |