William Howell
Verified Expert in Management Consulting
Growth Expert
London, United Kingdom
Toptal member since June 27, 2022
William is a seasoned entrepreneurial executive, having co-founded the UK's largest student lifestyle business, growing it by £2.5 million in turnover straight after university. He has structured £200+ million of transactions and advised startups on internationalization. His latest venture Delic, a music tech platform, has onboarded 1,450 users, raised £700,000+ in VC, and is CreaTech 2021 Ones-to-Watch listed. William joined Toptal to support entrepreneurs with financing and growth strategies.
Career Highlights
Education Highlights
Certification Highlights
Case Studies
€20 Million Acquisition Finance Deal Structuring for a CEE Marina
Business Plan for Raising Pre-seed Funding
B2B Partnership Deck for a Fintech Client (FX Aggregation Platform)
Fashion Happiness
Software Expertise
- Microsoft PowerPoint
Other Expertise
- B2B Partnerships
- Business to Consumer (B2C)
- Fundraising
- HubSpot
- Sales Strategy
- Seed Fundraising
- Startups
Work Experience
Head of Business Development
Herning Wind Limited
- Identified areas requiring operational efficiency via a detailed GAP analysis, procuring relevant efficiency software through Simpro and Safety Culture. Also handled the hiring of a market-leading operations manager.
- Maintained and furthered relationships with existing key multinational client accounts during an M&A transition phase.
- Built a robust pipeline of over £0.5 million of new business in a 4-month period across the UK and Danish businesses.
Chief Commercial Officer | Co-founder
Streamline Media Ltd
- Raised pre-seed funding from Angel investors to acquire IP and assets of another company in a restructuring.
- Developed an enterprise pipeline of over 200 educational institutions. Discussed enterprise multi-site licenses with five organizations (as of October 2024).
- Recruited a highly experienced advisory board of industry specialists, which has led to product trials with world-recognized producers and has opened discussions with major record labels.
Chairman
House of Monir Ltd
- Supported the CEO with the conceptualization of edtech, co-hort learning modules for fashion professionals.
- Advised the CEO with a team-building strategy, including the removal of a challenging consultant that was not the right fit for the brand or business.
- Developed a B2B pitch deck and built an extensive pipeline of new brands to target via personal networks. Supported the business in achieving 85% year-on-year growth.
Director
Hunter Hayes Ltd
- Structured a complex €20 million acquisition finance to acquire a CEE marina and brownfield development site on the Adriatic coast, involving a Southeast Asian multi-family office, regional banks, and professional and technical services providers.
- Launched prototypes and raised $2 million in funding after conducting business planning workshops for a Middle Eastern clean tech spinout that was part of a regional manufacturing conglomerate, backed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
- Secured a multi-territory sales channel for a UK fintech client with a Latin American electronic invoicing platform, increasing sales in the region by over 600%.
COO
SuperRational Ltd
- Supported the founder in developing the prototype and built a team of 12 across product development and marketing.
- Raised over £700,000 in VC from three UK and one US VC firm.
- Led investor outreach campaigns over three rounds and managed the preparation of data rooms and term sheet negotiations.
- Brought in a highly experienced CEO and co-founder, the former head of technology at the BBC, who has provided invaluable product innovation and credibility in the market.
- Managed overall commercial strategy and execution, including securing multiple strategic partnerships with various industry bodies and key stakeholders.
- Oversaw the marketing function, driving over 1,450 beta users.
Business Development and Partnerships
Kwanji
- Secured a multi-territory sales channel with a Latin American electronic invoicing platform, increasing sales in the region by over 600%.
- Acted as a relationship manager to key customers, increasing usage by 150% and referrals by 75% across a key vertical.
- Built an extensive customer pipeline across private equity and family office clients.
Business Development Manager
HUTCHMED
- Served as an experience startup operator to help turnaround a struggling retail operation and expand its consumer goods division.
- Developed the business strategy and brand from the Hong Kong HQ with senior management.
- Generated £2.5 million in annual savings by cutting back on operational overheads, including leases and staff costs.
- Drove 300% of year-on-year sales by developing the retail business within the company's store operation, A.S. Watson Group, Marionnaud, and other channels across Europe.
Sales and Marketing Manager
Scottish Apartment
- Assisted in turning the business around by driving short-term rental revenue to support its recovery amid corporate account holder collapse post-economic crisis, with its stock reduced from 300 to 100 units.
- Developed the sales and marketing department, personally closing 120 sales and generating £60,000 in monthly short-term rental revenue.
- Increased hotel occupancy from 25% to 85% in three months through event marketing.
- Leveraged proptech solutions to support fast recovery and growth.
Co-founder and Operations Director
Absolute Events (UK) Limited
- Signed contracts with high-profile event venues and developed teams to run regular events in Scotland and Northern Ireland, then joined the business as a co-founder to play a central role in managing business operations.
- Managed regional staff in seven cities across the UK, coordinating up to 18 weekly events, managing cash flow, and developing new business.
- Generated £2.5 million of turnover and 90% year-on-year growth.
- Developed the business plan, raising £250,000 from angel investors to expand the company's service offering into post-graduation lifestyle services.
Education
Bachelor's Degree in History and Philosophy
Newcastle University - Newcastle, England
Certifications
Oxford Innovation Incubator
Oxford University
International Accelerator
Expert DOJO
Startupbootcamp FinTech London
Startupbootcamp
Skills
Finance
Seed Fundraising, Fundraising, Due Diligence, Market Research, Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Financial Modeling, Revenue & Expense Projections, Pricing, Forecasting, Valuation, Private Equity, Total Addressable Market (TAM), Business Advisory, Capital Raising, Budgeting, Controller, UK GAAP, Cash Flow, Startup Funding, Profit & Loss (P&L), M&A (Sell-side), Angel/Seed Funding, Capital Structuring, Market Opportunity Analysis, Business Intelligence (BI), Accounting, CFO, Cash Flow Modeling, Data Analysis, Three-statement Modeling, Pricing Strategy, M&A Modeling, Feasibility, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Revenue Operations (RevOps), Revenue Modeling, Customer Lifetime Value (CLV), Blockchain, Entrepreneurial Finance
Output Software
Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint
Industry Expertise
Early-stage Startups, Venture Capital, Music, Renewable Energy, Nonprofits, Health, Sports, Real Estate, Automotive, Retail & Wholesale, Capital Markets, Education Technology (Edtech), Franchises, Financial Services, Technology, Affordable Housing
Data & Analysis Software
Salesforce
Geographic Expertise
United Arab Emirates, Middle East
Other
Startups, Business to Consumer (B2C), B2B Partnerships, Operations, Business Planning, Competition Research, Market Sizing, Investments, Strategy, B2C, Sales Strategy, Software as a Service (SaaS), Management Consulting, Market Research & Analysis, Pitch Decks, B2B, Go-to-market (GTM) Strategy, Product-market Fit, Business Partnerships, Partnerships, Business Strategy, Strategic Partnerships, Growth Strategy, Value Proposition, B2B Lead Generation, Sales Pipeline Management, Business Models, Go-to-market Plans, Lead Generation, Sales, Opportunity Identification, Growth Strategy Consultants, Sales Effectiveness, Business Development, Request for Proposal (RFP), Pitch Deck Consultant, Customer Acquisition, Business Plan Consulting, Client Relationship Management, Procurement, CRM Systems, Deal Desk, Fundraising Consultant, Private Equity Consultant, Investor Relations Consultant, Strategy Consulting, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Benchmarking, Investor Relations, Planning, Competitive Analysis, Fundraising Strategy, COO, Business Services, Human Resources (HR), Project Management, Executive Presentations, Organizational Design, Organizational Structure, Process Mapping, Business Model Strategy, Business Modeling, Coaching, Sales Training, Advisory, Team Leadership, CEO, Startup Growth Strategy Development, SaaS, Marketing Strategy, Supply Chain, Business Consulting, Operations Management, Shareholders, Shares, Controlling, Investor Presentations, Supply & Demand, Competitive Strategy, Charity, Stakeholder Management, Product Demonstrations, Sales Pipelines, Recruitment, Sales & CRM Platforms, Relationship Management, Sales Pipeline Management, Business Development, Client Relationship Management, Lead Generation, Sales, B2B Lead Generation, Due Diligence Consultant, Business Process Improvement (BPI), Performance Improvement, Buyer Personas, Marketing Analytics, Customer Insights, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Strategic Planning, Data Rooms, M&A Due Diligence (Commercial), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), ERP Implementation, Company Strategy, Negotiation, Client Relations, Pricing Models, Growth Strategy, Pitch Decks, Early-stage Venture Capital, Media, Early-stage Funding, B2B Sales, Revenue Strategy, Board Reporting, Cash Flow Management, Investment Banking, Commercial Strategy, Creative Strategy, Contract Review, Business Operations, Strategy Planning, HubSpot, Slack, Business to Business (B2B), Sales Operations, B2B2C, Commercial Real Estate Finance (CREF), Financial Forecasting, Competitor Analysis & Profiling, Storytelling, Marketing, Growth, Mentorship & Coaching, Management, Turnaround Consultant, Digital Marketing Strategy, Transformational Leadership, Customer Success, Fintech, Customer Experience, Business Transformation, Consulting, Crisis Management, Brand Strategy, Product Branding, Market Segmentation, Customer Segmentation, Product Marketing, Proptech, Growth Hacking, Product Launch, Mobile Apps, Market Entry, New Product Rollout, Consumer Insights, Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG), Market Research Analyst, Beauty Products, Business to Business to Consumer (B2B2C), Marketing Plans, Nutrition & Supplements, RFPs, Term Sheet Advisory, Foodtech, Data Entry, Data Reporting, Investor Reporting, CX Strategy, Organizational Change Management (OCM), User Personas, Change Management, CPG, Compensation, Compensation Plans, Compensation Programs, Rewards, Retail Strategy, Strategyzer, Fractional COO, Chief Operations Officer (COO), Impact Investing, Operational Control, Five-year Plans, Modeling, Succession Planning, Contract Negotiation, Market Research & Analysis, Marketing Strategy, Feasibility Studies, eCommerce, Hedge Funds, Hedge Fund Consultant, Investor Agreements, Reporting, Sales & CRM Platforms, Operations Improvement, Joint Ventures, AI Consulting, Business Communication, Digital Marketing, Market Expansion, Executive Consulting, Intellectual Property, Sales Enablement, Incentive Plan Design, Operating Models, Exit Planning, Writing & Editing, Legal, AI Adoption, KPI Tracking, Process Flows, SOP Development, Process Improvement, Information Technology, IT Services, Xero, Blockchain Platforms, Branding, Sales Growth, International Expansion, Event Planning, Event Marketing, Miro, New Business Development, Pitch Preparation, Sustainable Development, Sustainable Advisory, Edtech Design, Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), Wireless Systems, Enterprise SaaS, Operational Modeling, Web3, Pitch Deck Design, Entrepreneurship
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