"Don't be afraid to be vulnerable. Networking isn't transactional, it's about building genuine connections."

Mark Shepherd turned a LinkedIn post about mental health and meeting for drinks into Gathr, a 10,000-member community of VCs, founders, and PE investors. His biggest insight? Authentic relationships beat business card collecting every time.

In today's episode, I'm joined by Mark Shepherd, founder and CEO of Gathr, Europe's leading community for founders and investors. After starting his career in strategy consulting and venture capital, Mark built what began as "London Tech Drinks" into a carefully curated network that prioritises genuine peer connections over transactional networking. His journey includes an unexpected MasterChef appearance, battling OCD and anxiety, and discovering that the best business relationships are simply friendships with people who share your mission.

Together we unpack:

• Why networking as a word is "horrible" and what you should focus on instead
• How to identify the right rooms to be in and why curation matters more than size
• The power of reciprocity and giving before taking in building lasting relationships
• Why vulnerability and authenticity create stronger connections than any sales pitch
• The art of quality introductions and why one perfect intro beats five mediocre ones

👆 If you're a founder who finds networking uncomfortable or transactional, this conversation reframes it as building authentic peer relationships that support both your business and mental health.

About Mark Shepherd

Mark Shepherd is the founder and CEO of Gathr, Europe's leading community of VC investors, PE investors, founders, and advisors. What started as a LinkedIn post has grown into a 10,000-strong community with events ranging from intimate 12-person dinners to sector-specific breakfasts for senior investors. Mark's mission is simple: help founders and investors build genuine peer connections that transcend transactions.

Connect with Mark Shepherd on LinkedIn.

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"Don't waste your chips on bad hands."

Dimitar Stanimiroff has been through multiple exits, some successful, some painful shutdowns. He co-founded WePow(acquired) and Heresy (shut down after 3.5 years). His biggest financial return came from joining Stack Overflow, not founding his own company.

In today's episode, I'm joined by Dimitar Stanimiroff, a seasoned SaaS founder, operator, and investor who's experienced both sides of the exit coin. After co-founding WePow and seeing it acquired, he started Heresy, raised $1M in venture funding, and ran it for 3.5 years before making the difficult decision to shut it down. He then joined Stack Overflow as an operator and helped scale it, resulting in his biggest financial return to date.

Together we unpack:

• Why "quitting on time feels like quitting too early" and the real cost of staying too long
• How to think of your entrepreneurial journey like poker chips; finite resources you can't waste
• The hard reality of shutting down a business after raising venture capital
• Why his mentor Joel Spolsky told him to quit just months after launching
• When plateauing milestones become warning signs it's time to fold

👆 If you're a founder struggling with the decision to persevere vs. pivot vs. shut down, this conversation provides a framework for making one of the hardest decisions in business.

About Dimitar Stanimiroff

Dimitar Stanimiroff is a seasoned SaaS founder, operator, and investor. He co-founded WePal (acquired) and Heresy, and helped scale Stack Overflow, Handshake, and CrossBeam to over $100M ARR. As an angel investor in B2B SaaS, he's backed Patch.io, Lightdash, and others from pre-seed to Series A. His biggest insight: think of your time as poker chips and don't waste them on bad hands.

Connect with Dimitar Stanimiroff on LinkedIn.

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"I had to let everyone go and run the entire business myself."

Tara Button's Buy Me Once had raised £3 million and grown to 14 staff. They were burning through cash faster than they could raise it. The choice: close the business completely or go solo with AI automation.

The result? Q4 2024 revenue exceeded Q4 2023 (with the full team) and they made their first profit ever.

In today's episode, I'm joined by Tara Button, bestselling author and founder of Buy Me Once, a mission-driven e-commerce business finding the longest-lasting products on the planet. When facing a critical cash crisis in 2024, Tara made the radical decision to let go of her entire 14-person team and rebuild the company using AI automation, despite having zero coding experience.

Together we unpack:

• How to identify which business tasks are truly critical (hint: it's less than you think)
• The step-by-step process she used to replace entire departments with automations
• Why she worked 16-hour days building email scrapers and inventory systems with ChatGPT
• How founders can start implementing AI automation without ripping everything up

👆 If you're a founder feeling overwhelmed by operational complexity or wondering whether AI can really replace human work, this conversation will open your eyes to what's possible.

About Tara Button

Tara Button is the founder of Buy Me Once, an e-commerce platform dedicated to finding the longest-lasting products on the planet to combat throwaway culture. After her business idea went viral in 2016, she raised over £3 million and authored the Amazon bestselling book "A Life Less Throwaway." When her business faced a cash crisis in 2024, she made the bold decision to rebuild it as a one-person operation using AI automation, resulting in their most profitable quarter ever.

Connect with Tara Button on LinkedIn.

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Why You Can't Sustain What You Don't Enjoy

Nick Baker left his successful consultancy after 25 years, burnt out from always being "on." He became a non-exec, convinced he'd never return to operational leadership. Then UK Padel came along, and he became CEO because he genuinely loved what they were building.

The lesson? You can endure anything temporarily, but you can't sustain what you don't enjoy.

About Nick Baker:

Nick is the CEO of UK Padel and former co-founder of Alpha FMC, which he took through private equity investment to a successful IPO. After spending 25 years in financial services and stepping back from executive roles, Nick found himself drawn back into operational leadership through his passion for racket sports and building something he truly believed in.

Together we unpack:

• Why genuine passion for your business isn't just nice-to-have; it's essential for long-term success
• How to know when it's time to step away and make yourself redundant the right way
• The secret to staying authentic as you scale (hint: stay involved in delivery)
• Why founder-led selling works so well and how to maintain that edge

👆 If you're a founder feeling disconnected from your business or wondering how to sustain your energy for the long journey ahead, this conversation will give you clarity.

About Nick Baker

Nick Baker is the CEO of UK Padel, which operates multiple padel clubs across the UK and runs the country's biggest national tournaments. He previously co-founded Alpha FMC, a financial markets consultancy that he grew over 25 years before taking it through private equity investment to a successful IPO. Nick is also an active angel investor, having backed over 75 startups, and serves as chairman for several businesses.

Connect with Nick Baker on LinkedIn.

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The CEO who takes all the meeting notes isn't leading. They're sabotaging their own team.

They feel comfortable doing what they're good at rather than tackling new parts of their role. 

But what if the founder-to-CEO shift wasn't about doing different things?

What if it was about fundamentally seeing your role differently?

In today's episode, I'm joined by Jennifer Clamp, a founder coach who specialises in supporting founders through the founder-to-CEO transition. Jennifer works within the Founder Coaches Network, helping founders reinvent their role and stay ahead of their organisation's growth through personal development.

Together we unpack:

• How micro-behaviours can completely undermine your attempts to delegate
• The shift from valuing "doing" to valuing "being" as a leader
• Why mindset changes are more powerful than behavioural changes
• How to discover your unique version of being a CEO

👆 If you're a founder or leader feeling like you've reached capacity but know there's more you want to achieve, connect with us below.

About Jennifer Clamp

Jennifer Clamp is a founder coach specialising in the founder-to-CEO transition, with a particular focus on supporting female founders. She helps founders reinvent their role and stay ahead of organisational growth through intentional personal development. Jennifer's approach emphasises mindset shifts over behavioural changes, helping leaders move from doing-focused to being-focused leadership.

Connect with Jennifer Clamp on LinkedIn.

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Your best marketing content creators probably aren't who you think they are.

Most founders assume it has to be them. They overlook the thought leaders already inside their team. They default to safe, scripted content that feels awkward and inauthentic.

But what if the future of marketing wasn’t about personal branding at all…

What if it was about empowering your entire team?

In today’s episode, I’m joined by Katie Street, founder and MD of Street Agency and host of the chart-topping podcast Marketing in the Madness.

Katie works with some of the world’s top marketing tech companies and believes we're at a turning point—where brands that don’t show up with real, human content will get left behind. In an AI-driven world, authenticity and trust are your unfair advantage. And if you’re not visible, someone louder (and less qualified) will be.

Together we unpack:

• How to move beyond founder-led content to team-powered marketing
• Why authentic, human content beats polished scripts every time
• Shifting from a scarcity mindset to one of empowerment when leading your team
• The rising importance of in-person events in an AI-driven world

👆 If you're a founder or leader looking to scale your marketing authentically, connect with us below.

About Katie Street

Katie Street is the founder and MD of Street Agency, an award-winning sales and marketing expert with recognition from BD 100, The APHIS and Beamer. She's also a passionate advocate for women in business and host of the "Marketing in the Madness" podcast. Katie's expertise lies in transforming traditional marketing approaches into authentic, people-powered strategies that actually convert.

Connect with Katie Street on LinkedIn. 

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Most founders wait too long to think about partnerships.

They wait until sales hit a ceiling.
Until delivery starts to buckle.
Until the team is stretched too thin.

But what if partnerships weren’t a backup plan?

What if they were the foundation of scale?

In today’s episode, I’m joined by Stefan Ross, a go-to-market operator who’s built revenue and partnership functions from seed to pre-IPO.

Together we unpack: 

• The right way to scale your delivery model without building an inflated team
• Why most partner programs feel “fluffy”
• The shift founders need to make to go from doing it all to scaling through others

👇 If you’re a founder or leader looking to scale more sustainably, connect with us below.

About Stefan Ross

Stefan is a seasoned GTM leader with deep experience in building and leading high-growth software companies like Celonis and Pigment. He’s led revenue functions from early-stage to pre-IPO, with a particular focus on developing scalable partner ecosystems.

His expertise lies in transforming partnerships from misunderstood side projects into key drivers of repeatable revenue and long-term scale.

Connect with Stefan Ross on LinkedIn here.

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What if having more fun was the key to being a better founder?

Seriously. Not just to feel good, but to actually unlock better decisions, more creativity, and a business that’s built to last.

In this episode, I sit down with Freddie, founder of POP and one of the most insightful coaches I know. We talk about something that doesn’t get spoken about enough in founder circles: how to reconnect with yourself as you scale. 

Not in a fluffy way. But in a practical, energising, real kind of way.

Together, we unpack:
• The internal work that often gets left behind. 
• The difference between grinding through growth and actually enjoying the ride. 
• Why so many founders feel guilty for wanting things to be fun
• Practical advise on how to make your scaling journey more enjoyable

If you’re feeling stretched, stuck, or like you’re starting to lose the spark you had at the beginning… give it a watch!

About Freddie:
Freddie has always been fascinated by what makes people tick. She started out in anthropology, then spent years headhunting top-tier venture investors, meeting 1000s of people across the tech ecosystem. 

That curiosity led her into coaching, where she’s trained with some of the world’s leading thinkers in psychology, philosophy, breathwork, and leadership development. Through her practice, POP, she now works with ambitious founders and investors—helping them scale their impact without losing themselves in the process. 

Her clients include 100+ VC-backed founders, from early-stage to unicorns, backed by funds like Sequoia, General Catalyst, Lightspeed, Atomico, and Northzone.

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What if the key to unlocking better leadership isn’t strategy or scale but something far more personal?

In this episode of The Peer Effect podcast, I sit down with Emma Serlin, Founder and CEO of London Speech Workshop, to explore the unexpected ways authenticity can shape your leadership and business. 

As both a communication expert and a founder who’s navigated burnout, Emma shares lessons that are as practical as they are profound.

Together, we unpack:

• Why your personal values might be your strongest hiring filter
• How vulnerability and self-awareness can transform team culture
• What to do when your gut says “no” (but your head says “maybe”)
• Tools for shedding shame and owning your story as a leader
• How to reconnect with your purpose when the spark is gone

About Emma Serlin:

Emma Serlin is the Founder and CEO of London Speech Workshop, a leading communication coaching company helping individuals, from CEOs to emerging leaders speak with clarity, confidence, and impact. 

She's the creator of The Serlin Method®, a powerful framework for transforming the way people connect through communication. Emma is also a trained life coach, award-winning theatre director, and the author of two fantastic books!

Connect with Emma Serlin on LinkedIn to learn more about her work and the London Speech Workshop.

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What does it take to scale a startup without losing sight of your vision?

In this episode of the Peer Effect podcast, Jonathan Cornelias, shares the lessons learned from building four companies, including Elevent Inc, a marketplace connecting experience providers and companies to deliver unique, memorable virtual and physical experiences.

Jon opens up about the mindset and strategies that have helped him navigate the challenges of scaling a business while staying true to his vision.

Together we’ll dive into:

• Why belief in your idea and finding joy in the journey are essential for long-term success.
• The power of disciplined experimentation, prioritising ideas by impact, confidence, and effort, and iterating step by step.
• Why an effective go-to-market strategy often matters more than product perfection early on.
• How learning from others’ successes and mistakes can shortcut your path to growth.

Jon’s insights will inspire you to embrace challenges, bet on yourself, and stay focused on what truly works for your business!

Connect with Jonathan Cornelias on LinkedIn to follow his journey and learn more about Elevent  Inc.

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