Stephen is a seasoned entrepreneur and commercial leader with deep experience building,

scaling, and restructuring purpose-driven businesses. Over the past two decades, he’s

founded and grown multiple high-impact companies including Crashpadder (acquired by

Airbnb), Pact Coffee (Europe’s #2 DTC coffee brand), and Air Purity—a clinical-grade

healthtech startup delivering radical infection reduction in hospitals.

As Chief Commercial Officer at Riverford during a period of turbulence, he led the

restructuring process and return to profitability—bringing strategic clarity, commercial rigour,

and a renewed customer obsession.

Earlier in his career, Stephen founded and sold one of the UK’s first P2P accommodation

platforms, later helping scale Airbnb’s highest-performing EMEA sales team. At Unilever, he

created and led the global Disruption Incubator, reporting to the CFO and working with the

CEO and COO on future-facing growth strategies.

Today, Stephen works as a fractional operator, Chair, and restructuring advisor for values-led

brands in F&B and health. His superpower is navigating chaos—bringing composure, pace,

and data-led clarity to moments of change.