Don't Surrender Your Thinking

John has over 30 years of commercial experience, with a career defined by adapting to changing technologies and business landscapes. His entrepreneurial journey began at 14 when he started selling soft-drink cans at school, buying them in bulk from a wholesaler. Each morning he walked a mile and a half to school with the cans packed into his bag, selling them at a profit once he arrived. When he heard the school was introducing vending machines that threatened his trade, he made his first strategic exit, selling his inventory to a fellow student for £20. This early experience taught him the importance of being aware of changes in your environment and adapting accordingly.Building and Scaling BusinessesIn the early 1990s John and his brother Steve founded Software Warehouse, a UK mail-order company that expanded into retail stores and e-commerce. Its spin-off, Jungle.com, launched in 1999 and quickly became the UK's second largest online retailer. The group was preparing for a potential £750 million flotation when the dot-com crash hit.After Jungle was sold to Great Universal Stores, John earned a First-Class degree in law from King's College London and was called to the Bar in 2006.Rather than practise law, John returned to entrepreneurship. Along with his brother Steve, Steve's wife Sarah, and his own wife Paula, John built Gemporia, a television and online gemstone jewellery retailer. Together, they grew it into one of the UK's fastest-growing companies, taking the top spot on the Sunday Times Fast Track 100 in 2012. John helped guide the company through acquisitions, joint ventures, and international expansion, and in 2017 oversaw the sale of a majority stake to an Employee Ownership Trust.AI and StrategyHaving steered businesses through the arrival of the internet, the growth of e-commerce, and the rise of social media, John now applies the same experience to the changes brought by artificial intelligence. He focuses on strategic advice and implementation, with much of his time spent helping organisations design bespoke AI tools for marketing and communications. This combination of active involvement with advisory work keeps his insights grounded in practical implementation rather than abstract theory.