This podcast episode delves into the intricate dynamics of recruitment, particularly focusing on the pivotal role of second-in-commands (COOs) within organizations. We engage with Graham Brown, an expert in team dynamics and recruitment, who shares his profound insights gleaned from over two decades in the field. A salient point of discussion centers around the necessity for CEOs to be adequately prepared for the caliber of talent they seek, particularly in the context of attracting high-performing individuals. Throughout our dialogue, we explore various archetypes of COOs, including the executor and the change agent, elucidating the diverse strengths they bring to the table. Ultimately, the episode serves as a clarion call for business leaders to prioritize strategic hiring practices that align with their organizational goals, thereby fostering a high-performing culture that propels their business forward.

Takeaways:

• The podcast emphasizes the importance of recognizing one's own strengths and weaknesses as a leader, particularly in terms of hiring the right talent to complement those qualities.
• The discussion highlights that successful hiring requires a thorough understanding of the company's needs and the right timing for bringing in new personnel for optimal growth.
• Listeners are urged to consider the three pillars of successful hiring: skills and ability, natural energy alignment, and cultural fit, as each plays a crucial role in employee performance and retention.
• The episode explains the significance of team dynamics and the need for a CEO to be prepared for an A player, ensuring that the organizational culture fosters high performance and engagement.

Think you're ready to sell your business? Think again.

Selling your business is one of the biggest decisions you’ll ever make — second only to marriage and kids. But how do you know when you’re actually ready to sell?

In this episode of the Grown Up Business Podcast, Paul Avins speaks with Ken Gorman, Regional Director at Transworld M&A and author of three books on selling businesses, to uncover the reality behind preparing your company for a successful exit.

Together, they break down the myths, including why most business owners aren’t ready to sell, how accountants can unknowingly sabotage deals, and why 75% of businesses that go to market never sell at all. Ken shares his personal story from California to London and his 8+ years in sell-side M&A, with over 60 closed deals under his belt.

If you’re a CEO or founder thinking about exit planning or simply wanting to build a grown-up business worth buying, this episode is a must-listen.

• The “Switch in the Heart”: You’re ready to sell when the emotional shift happens — the moment you know it’s time to do something else in life.
• Profit is the #1 Value Driver: Buyers don’t buy passion, they buy predictable profits — and your job is to maximise and prove them.
• Get yourself out of the business: If the company can’t function without you, it isn’t ready to sell (or worth as much as you think).
• The truth about deferred deals & earnouts: Why the “wedding cake” model of deal structures (cash, deferred payments, earn-outs, rolled equity) matters, and how to protect yourself as a seller.
• Accountants can derail deals: Not through incompetence — but because they often lack deal experience, especially around working capital negotiations.
• 75% of sales fail: Selling is as much about EQ as IQ — success depends on managing people, egos, and expectations at every stage.
• Not all buyers are equal: You don’t want just a buyer, you need the right new owner who can fill the leadership void you leave behind.

Ken Gorman is a seasoned M&A Advisor, Certified Business Valuer, and Regional Director at Transworld M&A, one of the world’s largest global dealmaking firms. With over three decades in business across the US, UK, and Europe, Ken has personally been involved in 100+ project teams and 60+ closed transactions.

He specialises in helping owner-operators prepare their businesses for sale, find the right new owners, and secure life-changing exit deals — all while keeping heart and human dynamics central to the process.

• Grab Ken’s book “Selling Your Business” → Selling Your Business
• Connect with Ken Gorman on LinkedIn → linkedin.com
• Learn more about Transworld M&A → Transworld
• Follow Paul Avins for Scale Up insights on LinkedIn →

From family start-up to global brand: the Wolf Eyewear growth story.

Paul Avins sits down with CEO Tom Wolfenden to unpack the exact moves behind building a world-class sales team, scaling across borders, and keeping values intact while chasing exponential growth.

Discover how Wolf Eyewear scaled from a family business into a global brand with 2,000+ retailers. CEO Tom Wolfenden shares lessons on sales teams, culture, and scale-up strategy with Paul Avins.

What does it take to transform a family-run brand into a global scale-up with thousands of retail partners—while never losing sight of your values or community?

In this episode of the Grown Up Business Podcast, Paul Avins sits down with Tom Wolfenden, CEO of Wolf Eyewear Group, to unpack how he took over the family business and steered it towards ambitious growth, culture, and global expansion.

If you’re a CEO ready to quadruple your business, build a world-class sales team, and expand across markets without losing culture, this is your playbook.

• Mindset matters: The bold shift from hustler to scale-up CEO.
• Sales engine = growth engine: Why building and leading a 17-person sales team unlocked Wolf Eyewear’s growth.
• Resilience in crisis: How they survived Covid by loaning over £500k of stock to support customers — building loyalty money can’t buy.
• Leadership at scale: How to deal with underperforming team members while protecting business culture.
• Investment in yourself = investment in the business: Why Tom doubled down on coaching and retreats to accelerate Wolf Eyewear’s expansion.

This isn’t just a story of scaling eyewear. It’s a blueprint for any ambitious CEO who wants to build a grown-up business that wins globally

Tom Wolfenden is the CEO of Wolf Eyewear Group, a UK-based independent eyewear company stocked in over 2,000+ retailers and expanding internationally. Known for bold design and strong community values, Wolf Eyewear is a flagship example of how a family business can scale into a global brand—without losing its heart.

• Connect with Tom Wolfenden on LinkedIn → Tom Wolfenden | LinkedIn
• Explore the Wolf Eyewear Group brand → UK Eyewear Brand | Wolf Eyewear for Independent Opticians
• Follow Paul Avins for scale-up insights on LinkedIn → Paul Avins | LinkedIn
• Transform your business at the Grown Up Business Retreat → The Grown Up Business Retreat 2025

Action now: Write down the 3 actions from this episode you’ll apply in your business over the next 72 hours.

Think bigger: Ready to build your own “grown up” business that scales globally? Explore free resources at ScaleUpCoaching.com.

Scale Up: Get actionable tips from Paul in your inbox every Saturday, Subscribe to Scale Up Saturday Newsletter

Level Up: Book a Call with Paul and Get ready to level up your business...

What happens when a five-year-old girl changes the entire course of your life?

In this thought-provoking episode of the Grown Up Business Podcast, Paul Avins sits down with High-Performance Coach and former JP Morgan derivatives head Rich Waterman to explore one of the most powerful transformations you’ll hear on the show.

Rich shares the moving story of Leonor — his friend’s young daughter whose battle with a terminal illness became the catalyst for his life’s work. Helping to raise emergency funds for her treatment opened his eyes to the power of community, commitment, and the extraordinary impact of turning pain into purpose.

Together, Paul and Rich unpack how entrepreneurs can channel suffering into fuel for growth, how presence is the new currency of leadership, and why sometimes the shortest lives leave the greatest legacies.

If you’ve ever wondered how to reframe setbacks into rocket fuel, or how to build a business and life truly aligned to your legacy, this episode is essential listening.

• Turning Pain into Purpose: The most powerful catalyst for personal and professional growth is learning how to transform suffering into service.
• The Power of Commitment: Rich’s moment of saying “we’ll make this happen” for Leonor’s treatment shaped his philosophy on leadership and focus.
• Past, Present, Future Model: How to reframe your thinking by using the past as a resource, the present as practice, and the future as full-colour vision.
• Presence is Leadership: Top performers plateau when they fail to manage switching “on” and “off.” Learning to be present is now a strategic advantage.
• Legacy is not Time-Based: The measure of a life well-lived isn’t length, it’s the scale of impact on others. Leonor remains a profound example of this truth.

Rich Waterman is a High-Performance Coach, mentor, and speaker with a unique background that bridges finance, sport, and psychology.

After a decade as Head of Derivatives Structuring at JP Morgan, Rich went on to launch sports analysis businesses working with the England Rugby World Cup-winning team and international cricketers. He later became the first UK-based Senior Trainer for Tony Robbins, coaching teams and teaching leadership at global events.

Today, Rich runs Get Rich Coaching, helping entrepreneurs, executives, and athletes unlock performance, presence, and purpose.

• Connect with Rich Waterman → richwaterman.com
• Connect with Rich Waterman on LinkedIn → linkedin.com
• Follow Paul Avins for Scale Up insights on LinkedIn → Paul Avins | LinkedIn
• Transform your business at the Grown Up Business Retreat → The Grown Up Business Retreat 2025

Action Now: Write down the 3 actions from this episode you’ll apply in your business over the next 72 hours.

Think bigger: Thinking about selling in 2–3 years? Start now. Building enterprise value takes time — get your free resources at Paul Avins

Scale Up: Get actionable tips from Paul in your inbox every Saturday, Subscribe to Scale Up Saturday Newsletter

Level Up:

“How can one video generate $12 million in 10 months?”

That’s exactly what happened for Jason Graystone — and in this episode, he reveals to Paul the mindset, money frameworks, and freedom principles that made it possible.

Jason is a renowned entrepreneur, investor, and founder of Graystone Education, and he’s on a mission to help people become Always Free — creating lives of freedom through smart money systems, mindset mastery, and intentional action.

In our conversation, Jason breaks down exactly what Always Free means, and why mental, mobility, and financial liberation must all align if you truly want lasting independence. We go deep into building assets (both tangible and intangible), how to delegate effectively, and why defining what freedom means to you personally is the real unlock.

This episode isn’t about hustle hacks — it’s about clarity, leverage, and building a business and life around your values so you can live with purpose.

• A single video can change everything — Jason’s $12M YouTube case study proves the power of effective assets.
• Financial literacy is an essential life skill — freedom begins with understanding how money works.
• Delegation and knowing your true value are the levers that unlock scale and sustainability.
• Freedom has three dimensions: mental, mobility, and financial — all must be developed in tandem.
• Assets create independence — whether intellectual property, digital content, or recurring systems.
• Defining your personal goals and values is what ensures business growth aligns with fulfillment.

• Grab Jason's book “Always Free” → Selling Your Business
• Follow Jason to learn more → Jason Graystone - YouTube
• Learn more about Jason Graystone → jasongraystone.com
• Follow Paul Avins for Scale Up insights on LinkedIn → Paul Avins | LinkedIn
• Transform your business at the Grown Up Business Retreat → The Grown Up Business Retreat 2025

Action Now: Write down the 3 actions from this episode you’ll apply in your business over the next 72 hours.

Think bigger: Tired of chasing revenue but never feeling free? Stop trading time for money. Freedom starts when you build assets that generate income without you. Start building the life you want now — get your free resources at Paul Avins

Scale Up: Get actionable tips from Paul in your inbox every Saturday, Subscribe to Scale Up Saturday Newsletter

Level Up:

What do you do when 12 years of building gets wiped out overnight?

For Nicolas Manuel, Founder of Aim Graphics London, that nightmare became reality. After building a multi-million-pound family print and signage business, a combination of bad debts, soaring material costs, and the Russia-Ukraine war led to its collapse almost overnight.

But instead of staying down, Nick fought back. Within just 12 months, he rebuilt from zero to seven figures — all while carrying the weight of personal guarantees, family responsibility, and the lessons of painful failure.

In this episode of the Grown Up Business Podcast, Paul Avins sits down with Nicolas to reveal the hard-earned lessons of resilience, scaling under pressure, and why systems and financial controls are non-negotiable for any founder who wants to survive and thrive.

• Collapse to Comeback: Why business failure doesn’t have to define you — it can fuel your most successful chapter.
• Systems over Stress: The hidden cost of not having financial forecasting and operational controls in place.
• Rebuilding at Speed: How Nicolas rebounded to seven figures in under 12 months by focusing on core systems, leverage, and team culture.
• The “Yes Team” Mentality: Why building a client-first, can-do culture is the ultimate differentiator when scaling.
• Resilience is a Skill: Health, mindset, and being part of a supportive community are what get you through the darkest days of entrepreneurship.
• Sales First: Founders should delay stepping out of sales too early — being able to sell remains the ultimate survival skill.

About Nicolas Manuel

Nicolas Manuel is a creative entrepreneur and the founder of Aim Graphics London and Trade Workspace Films, businesses dedicated to simplifying print, signage, and production services with speed, flexibility, and a client-first culture.

Starting as a teenage apprentice in the signage industry, Nicolas worked his way into the high-pressure world of London’s creative agencies, serving major brands from Nintendo to Virgin. After co-founding and growing his own family print business to nearly £3m turnover, he endured the devastating collapse of the company during Covid’s aftermath and the global cost crisis.

Learning from failure, Nicolas rebuilt stronger and faster — scaling Aim Graphics back to seven figures in just 12 months, with a renewed focus on systems, forecasting, and the “Yes Team” mindset that defines his client relationships.

• Connect with Nicolas Manuel on LinkedIn → linkedin.com
• Discover Aim Graphics London → aim-graphics.co.uk
• Follow Paul Avins for Scale Up insights → linkedin.com/in/paulavins
• Build a grown-up business at the Scale Up Retreat → paulavins.com

Action Now: Write down the 3 actions from this episode you’ll apply in your business over the next 72 hours.

Think bigger: Do you have the right systems and forecasting in place, or are you relying on luck? Start strengthening your foundation now — get your free resources at Paul Avins

Scale Up: Get actionable tips from Paul in your inbox every Saturday, Subscribe to Scale Up Saturday Newsletter

Level Up:

What if growing your business 10x wasn’t just possible…but actually EASIER than growing 10% at a time?

In today’s inspiring conversation, Paul sits down with David B. Horne, founder of Add Then Multiply, to talk about scaling through Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) and shifting to a growth mindset.

David shares his remarkable story of driving a business from £1 million to £28 million in just three years using the power of strategic M&A. Together, they explore why most founders think too small, uncover how AI is transforming the deal-making landscape, and walk through David’s practical FACE methodology — Fund, Acquire, Consolidate, Exit — a framework that helps ambitious leaders scale faster and smarter while setting up for an exit.

• 10x growth is often easier than 10% — real results show scaling £1m → £28m in 3 years through acquisitions.
• M&A isn’t just for corporates — founders miss opportunities by assuming it’s “off-limits.”
• Build your deal team early — specialist accountants & lawyers are critical to navigate the complexity.
• Consolidation is where success is won or lost — integrating culture, systems and people decides deal value.
• AI is reshaping deal flow & due diligence — smart founders can leverage it for competitive advantage.

David B. Horne is the bestselling author of Add Then Multiply and Funded Female Founders. As the Founder of Add Then Multiply, he helps entrepreneurs scale through ambitious growth strategies involving funding, acquisitions, and exit planning. Over his career, he has:

• Raised more than £110 million in funding
• Completed over 30 acquisitions and exits
• Become a #1 Amazon bestselling author (twice)
• Delivered his TEDx Talk, “The Fight For Fairer Funding”, now seen by more than 3 million people
• Founded Funding Focus, a social enterprise fighting to close the gender and diversity gap in funding access

He’s on a mission to make M&A and growth strategies accessible to every ambitious founder — not just corporates.

• Connect with David B Horne on LinkedIn → David B Horne | LinkedIn
• Learn more about David B Horne → Add then Multiply
• Find out if you are funding-ready → The Funding Fitness Index
• Follow Paul Avins for scale-up insights on LinkedIn → Paul Avins | LinkedIn
• Transform your business at the Grown Up Business Retreat → The Grown Up Business Retreat 2025

Action Now: Write down the 3 actions from this episode you’ll apply in your business over the next 72 hours.

Think bigger: Ready to scale smarter and faster? Start now — get your free resources at Paul Avins

Scale Up: Get actionable tips from Paul in your inbox every Saturday, Subscribe to Scale Up Saturday Newsletter

Level Up:

What really happens when you step into Dragons’ Den?

For most entrepreneurs, pitching on BBC’s Dragons’ Den is the ultimate high‑stakes moment. For Emma Burke, founder of LACEEZE, that moment became a turning point in her journey, as she stepped into the Den, faced the Dragons, and walked out with an investment deal that put her grassroots sports brand on the fast track to growth.

In this candid conversation with Paul Avins, Emma reveals the highs and lows behind the headlines – from running a multi‑million pound cleaning company, through the pain of business failure, to reinventing herself in the world of sport with an innovation solving one of football’s simplest but biggest problems.

Beyond the Den lights and the deal, the discussion dives into the inner journey of entrepreneurship: knowing when to pivot, learning how to bounce back stronger, and why sharing your authentic story is as powerful as building the business itself.

• Building a successful business demands consistency, adaptability, and grit through challenges.
• Delegation is critical to free up the founder’s time for higher-value, strategic growth.
• Sharing your personal journey and engaging authentically builds a relatable brand that attracts loyal customers.
• Exposure through platforms like Dragon’s Den can enhance credibility, visibility, and open doors to new partnerships.

Listen in for a raw, behind-the-scenes perspective on what it truly takes to grow a brand from kitchen table idea to a household name in grassroots sport.

Emma Burke is the founder of LACEEZE, one of the UK’s fastest‑growing grassroots sports brands, dedicated to solving everyday problems for young athletes. After securing investment on BBC’s Dragon’s Den, Emma has taken LACEEZE from start‑up idea to a business on track for seven‑figure revenues—all while keeping her mission of supporting grassroots sport at the heart of the brand.

• Connect with Emma Burke on LinkedIn → Emma Burke | LinkedIn
• Explore the Laceeze's brand → Laceeze | Soccer Accessories
• Follow Paul Avins for scale-up insights on LinkedIn → Paul Avins | LinkedIn
• Transform your business at the Grown Up Business Retreat → The Grown Up Business Retreat 2025

Action now: Write down the 3 actions from this episode you’ll apply in your business over the next 72 hours.

Think bigger: Ready to build your own “grown up” business? Explore free resources at ScaleUpCoaching.com.

Scale Up: Get actionable tips from Paul in your inbox every Saturday, Subscribe to Scale Up Saturday Newsletter

Level Up: Book a Call with Paul and Get ready to level up your business and transform your life!