Events25 August 2026
Spilling the (Afternoon) Tea Series
An exclusive opportunity to sit down with around 40 like-minded leaders from across the brand and investment ecosystem — founders, investors, PE/VC, legal, and advisors — to discuss key trends, learnings, and failures, in a safe, judgement-free environment, with expert advice on funding and funnels close at hand.
Hosted at the iconic Fortnum & Mason, this is an intimate, no-fluff event for anyone seriously thinking about the next chapter of brand growth — whether that's funding, raising investment, scaling, or simply understanding where the market sits in the lifecycle right now.
We've brought together investors, legal experts, brand founders, and advisors for a mutually beneficial afternoon of honest, cross-table conversation.
Event details →
News & Insights9 July 2026
eComplete co-CEO Paul Gedman on why only 1 in 1,600 founders ever get a real exit
Paul Gedman sat down with DTC Diaries to talk through two decades in eCommerce - from The Hut Group's early CD-and-DVD days competing head-on with Amazon, to scaling a beauty division from £20m to £600m through ten acquisitions, to what he now believes is the real reason so few founders ever see a proper exit.
A few of the moments worth your time:
- 10 acquisitions, £20m to £600m & the rollup strategy - how a distribution-rights strategy unlocked international growth.
- Why you should spend 30% of your time on AI now, and why the founders who don't will regret it.
- The brutal maths: only 1 in 1,600 founders get a real exit - the numbers behind one of the toughest odds in business.
- eComplete vs private equity & the hybrid model - why PE isn't broken, just not built for founders.
Watch the full conversation on DTC Diaries.
Watch →
Articles13 November 2025
What happens when you build an alternative to private equity that’s designed specifically for e-commerce?
Our Co-CEO & Co-Founder, Paul Gedman recently joined The Dealmaker Uncut podcast for a conversation with Jonathan Boyers (Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal) and Christopher Maguire (Executive Editor of BusinessCloud).
From making 10 acquisitions and growing THG Beauty to £600m in revenue, to launching eComplete as a new model for investment, raising £100m, completing a £50m investment into CurrentBody, to recently achieving a successful IPO - the episode covers a lot of ground.
Expect a grounded, honest conversation about what worked, what didn’t, and why AI is quickly becoming a non-negotiable part of e-commerce.
Read more →
