I help innovative ambitious businesses from initial idea through assessing potential markets (and market-potential), competitive landscape analysis, protecting IP, funding the R&D through grants and innovation-loans, to developing a successful sales-and-marketing strategy. I also enjoy guiding my clients on investment-readiness: I'm a member of the judging panel on investor pitches within sustainability and renewables.Favourite quote 'there's a niche in the market, but is there a market in the niche?'

I started this company as I saw the need for innovative products to reduce the energy used by office lights, as well as reducing the eyestrain and harmful contrast in existing types of lighting. By making people feel better at work I knew this would make them more productive and energetic as has been shown in research studies. I designed, prototyped and arranged production of first the GreenCat energy-saving diffuser system, then I worked out a novel way to blend energy-saving sensor-controls within individual LED panels.Both of these solutions proved extremely popular with staff and visitors.We broadened our offering to improve heating-efficiency within industrial and commercial buildings including presence-controlled radiant heating to replace costly fossil-fuel space-heating. We became Carbon Trust Accredited to offer destratification of warm risen air in tall spaces to reduce the need for heating at ground-level. Our Accreditation also covered occupancy controls, voltage-optimisation, energy-storage and of course energy-saving lighting with auto daylight/presence-dimming.We also offered solutions to better-contain heat such as heat-recovery on extract-systems, speed-doors and air-curtains.

Head-hunted to create new electrical energy-saving and lighting products and service division. I forged relationships with suppliers, investigated new technologies and helped to commercialise and brand these. I focussed on lighting, heating (eg load-compensation) and voltage-optimisation. Enersol Ltd was set-up with seed-funding, then due to the credit-crunch any series-A investment stalled.However I saw a market opportunity to start my own business, Energy At Work Ltd, and continued to work closely with several valued colleagues.

I particularly enjoyed mentoring early-stage business owners as I realised that building the right skills, attitude and confidence is a critical part of small-business success. My role included commercial and technical training of national electrical-safety inspection and energy-saving independent business owners.

I developed my own web marketing and branding business to employ a full-time team of 9. We grew partly through being the referral partners for the City Of London Business Link (match-funding city-based businesses to become digitally-enabled) until their grants scheme for their clients ceased without warning.

Advising professional-practices on business-development through consulting-visits and developing marketing plans. My skills were mostly client-facing, building working relationships with professional business founders. I enjoyed helping to diagnose market opportunities or identify reasons for slow growth while devising ways to maximise profit while developing the solid trust of clients. Following leaving and setting up my own marketing/web/digital business I was still approached to create web-marketing for this business and at the same time was contracted by four other professional networks to create their marketing/digital materials.

Created marketing projects, trained and advised marketing staff of member-firms, operated trade exhibitions.

Brought products from concept to market involving laising with designers and salespeople. Coordinated and worked on exhibition stands, conducted other marketing projects such advertising and sales support.