About
Two careers, one thread.
Fifty years inside one of the world's most iconic markets — turned into a life of building businesses, and now serving the civic City.
Fifty years in the market
The thread
I have been part of the global insurance and professional services markets for fifty years, immersed in the Lloyd's of London ecosystem since the 1970s.
I began as a specialist claims technician in the underwriting room — my earliest working days learning my trade at the hands of experts inside one of the most iconic brands in financial services. My time there saw me experience on the front line some of the most tumultuous years in the Market's history as it transformed into the institution we see today. That grounding, in how the market really works at the level of the desk and the deal, has never left me.
A life of building
The engine
In 1997 I left employment to begin my life as an entrepreneur. My first business pioneered a new service for the Lloyd's market and grew quickly to scale — what I now estimate to be a £24 billion revenue sector. In the years that followed I founded and co-founded further businesses, and through them came to understand the workings of brand at first hand: how operational merit and relational esteem multiply to produce commercial value, or fail to.
I exited my businesses in 2017.
A life of building
The engine
In 1997 I left employment to begin my life as an entrepreneur. My first business pioneered a new service for the Lloyd's market and grew quickly to scale — what I now estimate to be a £24 billion revenue sector. In the years that followed I founded and co-founded further businesses, and through them came to understand the workings of brand at first hand: how operational merit and relational esteem multiply to produce commercial value, or fail to.
I exited my businesses in 2017.
What it taught
Merit × Esteem
Those decades resolved into a single idea I now teach and consult on. It's the thinking behind my series of Brand Led Impact Workshops, and the book I'm writing,
The Brand Alchemist.
what you do,
and how well
Merit
x
how you're held
in the mind
Esteem
=
what clients feel
Impact
Giving back to the City
The focus
Since 2017 I've devoted my time to mentoring founders and operators — including as a mentor at the Lloyd's Lab, the market's innovation accelerator. In 2017 I was admitted to the Freedom of the Guild of Entrepreneurs; I served as its Master in 2023–2024, and during my year of office led its elevation to full Livery: it became the Worshipful Company of Entrepreneurs, the 112th in the order of Livery precedence.
I am now a Past Master, and the current Chair of the Financial Services Group of Livery Companies. The Group provides support and our expertise to help the City maximise the opportunities that lay within it.
I'm a passionate advocate of social inclusivity and neuro-inclusion.
Philanthropy
At a time in my working life where I can now reflect upon the time served and lessons learned, I am driven about using them to help the next generation achieve their goals.
Aside from the large amount of pro-bono mentoring I do, in particular at the Lloyd's Lab, I work to help others who no fault of their own are often overlooked. Gender, race and socio-economically challenged being amongst them.
I am also active in supporting charities and am currently
-
Chairman of the Worshipful Company of Entrepreneurs Trust
-
Trustee of Neuro
-
Trustee of the Insurance Museum