1998 — Present
Three decades of
building things
that matter.
Twelve ventures launched. Seven exits. One major acquisition. Over $75M raised. Not a linear career — a compounding one.
28
Years
12
Ventures
7
Exits
$75M
Raised
250+
Brands built
The arc
Started in design. Moved to branding. Realised the most interesting problems weren't visual — they were strategic. Why does one startup with an average product raise $10M while a better product can't get a meeting?
That question led from agency work to founding ventures, from founding ventures to advising founders, and from advising founders to building systems that help technical people communicate what they've built in terms that investors understand.
Along the way: companies built and sold, brands created for Fortune 500s and first-time founders, an acquisition that proved the model, and a growing conviction that most fundraising failure is a translation problem — founders building for engineers and pitching to people who think in markets and multiples.
The Venture Years
2018 — PresentStopped just advising founders and started operating alongside them. Multiple concurrent ventures. Angel investing. Exits measured in seven figures.
FundingDX
Lead Venture Diagnostician & Managing Partner
2018 — Present · New York, London, Dubai
The Red Team proxy for Seed-stage and Series A founders. Executes forensic "Pre-Emptive Diligence" audits on thesis, deal structure, and narrative. Stress-tests the "Why Now," rebuilds pitch decks for investment logic (not storytelling), and identifies the specific friction points causing investors to pass.
The Naked Founder / FOUNDERAMA
Founder Advisor & Branding Coach
2020 — 2025
Curated exclusive online community for 1,000+ startup founders. Delivered coaching on scaling and exits via weekly content. Fostered network yielding partnerships and $6M in collective funding.
Travagance
Founder & Chief Brand Officer
2020 — 2025
Built content-driven brand for international luxury travel and lifestyle media company. Created narratives that boosted audience 128% YoY. Managed operations remotely.
Toby Bulls CC
Founder & Investor & Brand Lead
2021 — 2023 · London
Developed high-utility NFT project branding. Managed stealth ops and investor relations remotely. Led to a successful exit.
Panoton
Co-Founder & SaaS Advisor & Angel Investor
2022 — Present · New York
Architected brand strategy and blockchain integration for revolutionary SaaS platform. Clarified messaging and tokenomics. Led product development remotely, accelerating go-to-market by 6 months. Platform acquired; transitioned post-sale.
ArtSpark™
Chief Brand Officer & CMO
Jan — Aug 2024 · New York & London
Spearheaded branding for creativity platform, aligning marketing with global inclusivity mission. Positioned as leader in artistic tools. Short-term advisory complete; project integrated and handed over.
Runnies
Brand Advisor & Angel Investor
2024 — Present · Dubai
Directed global branding for Dubai-based sports lifestyle brand targeting runners and athletes. Drove marketing strategy yielding 376% engagement growth. Managing remote international teams through the scaling phase.
The England Archive
Founder & Documentary Photographer
2025 — Present · England
A three-year documentary portrait project recording the people keeping England’s traditions, craft, and landscape alive. Eight regions. Five subject categories — Craft & Trade, Land & Farming, Coast & Water, Ritual & Tradition, Faith & Community. A systematic visual record made while there is still someone to make it.
FORGE™
Angel Investor & Co-Founder
2025 — Present · London, Dubai, Geneva
Co-leading stealth venture reimagining time management for founders. Crafted brand narrative and positioning. Aligned cross-functional teams on "fearless" ethos. Early-stage development complete.
The Expansion
2010 — 2021The decade of pattern recognition. Multiple verticals, multiple exits, one recurring insight: every failure to raise was a failure to translate.
School Branding Agency
Founder & EdTech Brand Advisor
2010 — Present · New York
Led 250+ school brand transformations. Developed ENROLL OS™ framework that drove enrollment growth of 35%+. Preferred vendor for districts across the US.
Wealth Brand Agency
Founder & Chief Brand Officer
2011 — 2021
Clarified messaging for 100+ wealth managers. Boosted client acquisition via archetypal storytelling. Coached on ICP and revenue levers, driving 62% sales uplift. Agency sunset post-consolidation; assets sold.
The Origin
1998 — 2014Started building before "startup" was a word people used at dinner parties. Two companies launched in the same year, both from nothing.
Logo Design Works
Chief Brand Officer
1998 — 2014 · New York
Pioneered online brand identity services. Delivered 1,000+ identities for entrepreneurs. Built a scalable model that was eventually merged and sold in 2014.
SpellBrand
Principal | Strategic Narrative Architect
1998 — Present · New York, London, Dubai
The throughline. Two decades solving "Signal-to-Noise" problems for companies seeking market dominance. Moved beyond visual identity to engineer Category Design. Helped founders translate complex operational data into high-velocity market narratives. Clients include Fortune 500 entities — Microsoft, Target — alongside hundreds of startups.
Ringgle
Founder & CEO
2003 — 2014 · New York
From zero to liquidity event. Founded and scaled a SaaS CMS platform for the SMB market. Grew to successful sale. Lesson learned: the difference between a "good product" and a "buyable asset" is the difference between a stalled company and an exit.
The thesis
Most Seed rounds do not fail due to a lack of product. They fail due to a "Signal Deficit." Founders pitch features. VCs buy assets. My role is to bridge that gap before the founder burns their lead investor list.
I do not provide "coaching." I provide a binary assessment: you are either structurally ready to close, or you have a defect that needs a surgical fix. The brand work informs the funding work. You can't reposition a narrative if you don't understand positioning. You can't build an investor deck if you don't understand how visual hierarchy drives perception.
BRANDEM™ OS
A mathematical brand strategy framework built over twenty-eight years. Seven interconnected pillars — Beacon, Resonance, Authority, Narrative, Delivery, Engagement, Momentum — that convert founder vision into category-defining brands using precise equations and scalable systems.
No subjective guesswork. The framework has been pressure-tested across Fortune 500 boardrooms and pre-seed pitch meetings. It works because the math is the same at every scale — only the inputs change.
Right now
Active ventures, investments, and current focus.
FundingDX
Primary Focus
Venture diagnostics for Seed & Series A founders. Red Team proxy. Pre-emptive diligence audits.
SpellBrand
28 Years Running
Strategic narrative architecture. Category design. BRANDEM™ OS framework.
Runnies
Angel Investment
Sports lifestyle brand, Dubai. 376% engagement growth. Brand advisory and capital.
The England Archive
Documentary Project
Three-year portrait project. Eight regions. Five categories. Recording the people keeping England alive.
FORGE™
Stealth
Reimagining time management for founders. London, Dubai, Geneva.
Want to work together?
I work with a small number of founders and companies at any one time.