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About Us – Venture Catalysts
Welcome to Venture Catalysts, where high-potential ventures meet expertise, capital, and strategic guidance essential for scaling up. At Venture Catalysts, we work alongside innovative companies poised to make a significant impact, guiding them through their first substantial funding rounds and helping them achieve scalable growth.
Our Mission: Empowering Ventures to Thrive
Our mission is clear: to bridge the gap between early-stage success and long-term scalability. We know that many promising ventures stall at a pivotal point due to a lack of both targeted funding and experienced mentorship. Venture Catalysts exists to fill that gap, partnering with ambitious ventures ready to take their next big step, delivering the resources and strategies they need to flourish.
What We Do
At Venture Catalysts, we provide a structured approach to venture support that includes:
1.A Proven Vetting Process: Using a meticulously designed evaluation framework, we filter ventures based on criteria like market traction, customer validation, financial health, and scalability. This process, enhanced by automation tools and scorecards, ensures we work with ventures that have true market potential and meet our standards for investor readiness .
2.Board of Experts: Our carefully selected board comprises experienced professionals from sectors including sales, finance, marketing, and legal. This board serves both as a critical vetting body and an advisory team to our selected ventures. Board members contribute their expertise directly to ventures, instilling investor confidence and guiding strategic decision-making .
3.Fundraising Network: Through our curated network of family offices, boutique investors, and business angels, we provide ventures with access to a select group of funders looking for bespoke, lower-risk opportunities. This focused approach allows us to secure substantial funding more effectively, giving each venture the financial stability it needs to reach new milestones .
4.Consultant Network: In addition to funding, ventures benefit from our network of seasoned consultants. These consultants offer hands-on support in key areas like technical development, marketing, and sales, boosting each venture’s capability to scale while reducing the operational load on founding teams .
How We Earn
Our business model aligns our success with that of the ventures we support. We operate on a dual revenue model that includes:
•Funding Commissions: We take a commission on the total funding secured, typically between 5-10%, ensuring that we have a vested interest in the venture’s fundraising success .
•Consultancy Fees: Our consultants pay a percentage of their fees back to Venture Catalysts, creating a sustainable revenue model that grows as our ventures and their consulting needs expand .
•Equity Opportunities: For ventures with exceptional potential, we may take a small equity stake, allowing us to support their long-term growth while building a portfolio of impactful ventures .
Our Values
•Commitment to Growth: We are dedicated to the success of the ventures we serve. Each relationship we foster is centered on growth, sustainability, and strategic alignment.
•Integrity in Partnerships: Our process is transparent, and our model is designed to benefit both our ventures and our consultants, creating a community that thrives on mutual success.
•Excellence in Execution: From our board members to our consultants, we uphold high standards of professionalism, dedication, and expertise.
Our Long-Term Vision
Over the next few years, we aim to scale our portfolio to 20-30 high-growth ventures, each supported with expert guidance, funding, and strategic planning. By creating a track record of successful funding rounds and venture exits, Venture Catalysts is not only a catalyst for today’s ventures but is also positioning itself as an attractive acquisition target for financial institutions and investor groups looking to tap into our network and portfolio .
Join us as we reshape the journey for startups, ensuring that innovative ideas with real-world impact have the support they need to succeed. At Venture Catalysts, we believe in the potential of our ventures and commit to helping them thrive in the journey from promising startup to market leader.
Chris is a highly accomplished entrepreneur and business leader with over a decade of experience in founding, scaling, and exiting multiple successful ventures. As a founding partner of Venture Consultants, Chris is dedicated to reshaping the startup ecosystem by placing expert boards with high-potential ventures to drive growth and secure funding. His mission is to reduce startup failure rates by providing expert guidance that aligns with strategic goals, ensuring both investors and founders maximize value.
In addition to his work at Venture Consultants, Chris is the founder of The OMG Center, a platform that accelerates the growth of digital marketing agencies through peer-to-peer support, coaching, and strategic resources. He has helped hundreds of businesses thrive by providing tailored mentorship and preparing agencies for successful exits. Chris has also built a network of partners offering essential services such as finance, legal, and HR, ensuring businesses have everything they need to succeed.
Chris is a Freeman of the Company of Entrepreneurs and holds the prestigious Freedom of the City of London, reflecting his deep commitment to the entrepreneurial community. He is also a sought-after international keynote speaker, sharing insights on business growth, digital marketing, and strategic innovation. Through his diverse roles, Chris has consistently championed entrepreneurship, guiding businesses from inception to successful exits and beyond.
John is a seasoned business leader with over 30 years of experience across multiple industries, including finance, technology, and consulting. As Director of Barber Consulting Ltd, John has successfully guided numerous ventures through capital raises, strategic growth, and high-profile exits. His expertise spans from working with global financial services giants to leading startups through complex mergers and acquisitions.
John has an impressive track record of driving business transformations. Notably, he raised capital and negotiated the successful sale of Firezza, a London-based food delivery company, to Pizza Express owner Hony Capital, as well as overseeing the sale of biotech innovator Redd and Whyte to Wagner Technologies. He also led Cash Netting Services Ltd, collaborating with CGI and FNA to deliver bespoke financial solutions for banks, and SSI-Central Ltd, developing a centralized standard settlement instruction database.
John’s leadership extends into tech, having served as CEO of Logicscope, where he reversed the company’s losses and led its sale to MarkitSERV. He also held senior roles at ICAP, managing multi-million dollar divisions, and at Dow Jones Telerate, where he grew the EMEA region into the company’s most profitable division.
In addition to his consulting work, John serves as a Visiting Coach at the Royal College of Art, mentoring innovative startups, and he is frequently featured in business leader spotlights, such as his profile on the OMG Center. John’s ability to elevate startups and established companies alike, paired with his strong financial acumen, makes him a valuable partner for businesses seeking strategic growth and investment.
His deep experience in guiding businesses through capital raises, building exit strategies, and fostering growth makes him a highly sought-after expert in the field.
Mark Huxley is a distinguished business leader and founder of Huxley Advisory, with over 46 years of experience in the insurance and broader financial services sectors. His career began in frontline claims delivery, managing property, casualty, and professional risks, eventually expanding into operational and regulatory roles for a leading Managing Agency. Mark also proudly served on several Lloyd’s Committees, including founding the NMA Claims and Catastrophe Committees, where he led initiatives such as the development of the ECF system.
Mark’s entrepreneurial spirit led him to establish one of the UK’s pioneering outsourced claims management companies, building it from the ground up. His strategic acumen also saw him co-found agencies specializing in strategic marketing, helping businesses define their value propositions and grow their brand equity. In 2018, Mark launched Huxley Advisory to offer bespoke business consultancy and personal mentoring, working with a network of trusted partners to maximize client outcomes.
In addition to his business ventures, Mark has been a proud member of the Company of Entrepreneurs, serving as Master. His contributions to the insurance and consultancy sectors have cemented his reputation as a trusted advisor and mentor, helping leaders achieve their ambitions.
Rita W Bologna is a dynamic C-suite leader, serial entrepreneur, and board advisor with a proven track record of building and scaling successful ventures. As CEO of The Good Global Group, Rita grew and sold multiple companies, leveraging her strategic insight and leadership to drive growth and innovation.
Her ability to turn challenges into opportunities has made her a sought-after board member, adept at navigating complex governance issues and guiding companies toward impactful decisions.
Rita has worked extensively to promote inclusive leadership through mentorship, speaking engagements, and her philanthropic work with organisations such as the Company of Entrepreneurs and the Asian Women’s Resource Centre. Rita’s leadership is defined by her empathy, collaborative approach, and commitment to excellence, making her an influential figure in both business and community settings.
Simon West is an accomplished technologist, strategist, and business leader with over 15 years of experience helping companies grow through innovative sales and marketing systems. As Managing Director of Sales Now Ltd, Simon specializes in designing and implementing lead generation systems that attract new clients while maximizing value from existing customers. His unique ability to blend strategic thinking with hands-on execution has helped countless businesses overcome poor sales performance and achieve lasting success.
In addition to his work at Sales Now Ltd, Simon serves as Technical Director at Fruition Systems, where he leads a team focused on simplifying business processes and enhancing client services. His diverse career also includes professional sports photography, multiple startup ventures, and a passion for emerging technologies like cryptocurrency. Simon’s broad interests and varied experiences give him a fresh perspective on business challenges, making him a sought-after advisor for early-stage ventures and established companies alike.
A Freeman of the Company of Entrepreneurs, Simon’s extensive network and entrepreneurial mindset enable him to offer valuable insights across industries, helping businesses not only survive but thrive in competitive markets.
John Leyden is an experienced Chartered Accountant and business leader with over three decades of expertise in corporate finance, audit, and strategic business advisory. As CEO of Carbon Accountancy, John specialises in providing tailored financial solutions, including tax planning, R&D tax credits, due diligence, and share option schemes.
He has been instrumental in over 50 fundraisings, 35 acquisitions, and 50 business disposals, offering expert guidance to fast-growing businesses and venture capital-backed companies.
In addition to his role at Carbon Accountancy, John serves as a part-time Finance Director for several companies, leveraging his extensive background in business valuations, shareholder disputes, and HMRC tax enquiries. His proactive, results-driven approach has made him a trusted advisor for UK subsidiaries of international companies, helping them achieve significant cost savings while maintaining high compliance standards.
John’s ability to combine technical expertise with strategic insight has earned him a reputation for delivering exceptional client service, ensuring long-term relationships and repeat business.