Podcast · Business

The Ownership Journey

The Ownership Journey is a podcast about what really happens before, during, and after business ownership. Hosted by Entrepreneur James Lamb, the channel explores buying, building, fixing, and exiting real businesses — particularly in operator-led SMEs. This isn’t theory or guru content. It’s hone

New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 1 hr 2 min
Latest: 14 Oct 2026
Language: English

Latest episode

14 Oct 2026 · 51 minNew

How to Sell Your Business for an Extra £1 Million | Zac and Jack

Join The Acquisition Masterclass with James Lamb on 21 November, 2026 and learn how to navigate the acquisition process and think like a business owner: Register here Learn how to sell a business with trust proof and clear money math in this conversation with Zac and Jack on The Ownership Journey with host James Lamb. If you want to sell my business language turned into a smart business exit strategy, this episode shows how empathy driven selling protects business valuation before you list. Zac opens with the extra million pounds story where owners say there is hidden profit they cannot see,…

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Earlier episodes 29 most recent

S1 · E37 · 7 Oct 2026 · 1 hr 15 min
How He Helped Owners Do 50 M&A Deals With No Money Down | Paul Avins
This M&A conversation reveals how Paul Avins helped owners do 50 deals with no money down plus scale to seven and eight figures and exit for sizeable amounts. You will learn why business exit strategy starts with clear strategic planning plus optimized money models plus strong senior leadership that buyers trust. If you want to understand how to sell a business for maximum value, this episode gives proof from £148 million in client exits in six years plus over 1000 entrepreneurs trained past seven figures. Paul shares his SCALE model covering strategic plan plus sales plus channels plus cash…
S1 · E36 · 30 Sep 2026 · 37 min
What Happens To Your Business If You Die Tomorrow? | Carl Jaffer
Business succession planning is central to What Happens To Your Business If You Die Tomorrow? In this episode of The Ownership Journey, host James Lamb sits with Carl Jaffer , founder of Legacy Vault Pro, to explore what happens to business value, staff, family and clients when an owner dies or loses capacity without a clear plan. This episode is built for buyers, sellers, scalers and exit planners who want stronger control over value, risk and legacy. Carl shares why 1 in 4 small businesses would stop at once if the owner died or faced critical illness and why 52 percent of owners still…
S1 · E35 · 23 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 18 min
Daniel Priestley’s CFO & Dealmaker on What Happens Behind the Scenes | David Horne
This Daniel Priestley focused episode with dealmaker David Horne reveals what happens behind the scenes when owners fund acquire consolidate and exit real businesses in the £2M to £20M sweet spot. Host James Lamb explores buying a business business exit strategy and mergers and acquisitions through £60M raised and 7 acquisitions that scaled turnover from £1.1M to £27.7M. You will learn why fractional CFO discipline business valuation and fundraising rigor protect price legacy and family wealth for anyone planning to sell my business. David breaks down Fund Acquire Consolidate Exit plus his…
S1 · E34 · 16 Sep 2026 · 53 min
How He Sold His Business for 8x Profit | Leigh Wells
Leigh Wells sold his business for 8x profit after building Comma Group from a bootstrapped start in 2016 to 80 headcount and a trade sale to Amplify in March 2021. This episode of The Ownership Journey with host James Lamb breaks down how to sell your business with real numbers on business exit strategy, business valuation and deal structure. If you want to buy, sell, scale or exit, you will hear exactly what worked, what went backwards in year three and what made due diligence fast and clean. You will learn how three cofounders funded growth by reinvesting profit, used software vendor…
S1 · E33 · 8 Sep 2026 · 44 min
From £10k Order to Million-Pound Contracts: Scaling BMS Services | Viv Sullivan
Scaling BMS Services from a £10k Order to Million-Pound Contracts is the blueprint Viv Sullivan reveals in this episode of The Ownership Journey. Founder of BMS Services, Viv built a specialist busbar installation and construction business from a single £10,000 hotel order to signing Million-Pound Contracts with hyperscale clients like Amazon Web Services, Google, Microsoft and Vantage Data Centres. If you are scaling a business in construction, this business growth strategy deep dive shows how repeatable systems, City & Guilds accredited training and engineering quality create real…
S1 · E32 · 2 Sep 2026 · 56 min
How High Performers Get Trapped by Their Own Success | Tayabba Jordan
High performers often look unstoppable from the outside yet many high performers feel trapped by their own success inside. In this powerful episode of The Ownership Journey , executive coaching expert Tayabba Jordan reveals why business success can quietly create misalignment between ambition, identity and wellbeing and how that misalignment fuels founder burnout, drains company culture and blocks sustainable high performance. Drawing on her Alignment Method and real world stories from boards and founding teams, Tayabba shows why achievement without alignment leads to a success trap that…
S1 · E31 · 26 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 18 min
91 Properties, £3M Raised & The Price of Success | Louis Jackson
How to buy a business with no money sounds impossible, but Louis Jackson did exactly that while living in a hostel. In this episode of The Ownership Journey , Louis shares how he went from homelessness and addiction to buying a debt recovery business for £100,000 with no capital, no business experience, and no safety net. He reveals the exact conversation that convinced the owner to lend him the money, and how he repaid every single penny. Louis's story does not start in a boardroom. Raised around organised crime, he witnessed violence and drug use from the age of four. By his late teens he…
S1 · E30 · 19 Aug 2026 · 59 min
How an Ex-Army Soldier Built a £27M Business Buying Companies | Robert Felters
Buying a business is the fastest route to business ownership, and Robert Felters explains exactly how to buy a business the right way. As founding partner of Wolfgang Capital, he has spent six and a half years acquiring eight profitable B2B companies, scaling his first deal from a £750,000 turnover medical lighting business into a portfolio he plans to hold forever. This episode is a masterclass in business acquisition for anyone who wants to buy, sell, or exit a business. Robert breaks down business exit strategy, exit planning, and business valuation with the numbers to back each one. You…
S1 · E29 · 12 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 18 min
52% of business owners have no exit plan | Adam Strong
Over 52% of business owners have no exit plan in place, and with the biggest wealth transfer in history already underway, the window is closing fast. In this episode of The Ownership Journey , Adam Strong breaks down exactly how to build a business that runs without you — the kind of company acquirers actually want to buy. If you are searching for a proven business exit strategy, this conversation delivers the blueprint to exit on your terms. Adam Strong is a strategic advisor and high performance business coach who has helped hundreds of founders scale, prepare, and exit their businesses…
S1 · E28 · 5 Aug 2026 · 55 min
Why 100+ UK Businesses Are Adding Bitcoin to Their Balance Sheets | Jordan Walker
Bitcoin for business is no longer a fringe idea. It is a rapidly growing movement among UK entrepreneurs. Bitcoin entrepreneur Jordan Walker , founder of the Bitcoin Collective and the Bitcoin Business Network, joins James Lamb on The Ownership Journey to break down what Bitcoin actually is, why over 100 UK companies are now holding BTC on their balance sheets, and how business owners can start accepting bitcoin as payment. From explaining the bitcoin protocol and self custody to demystifying volatility and intrinsic value concerns, this episode is a practical guide to understanding digital…
S1 · E27 · 29 Jul 2026 · 1 hr 26 min
From £5,000 Debt to Owning 12 Companies | Andy Hopper
Andy Hopper reveals his business acquisition strategy that took him from £5,000 in credit card debt to owning 12 companies across the globe. In this raw conversation on The Ownership Journey, the founder of Expand unpacks the exact frameworks, deal structures, and business systems he used to build his empire through mergers and acquisitions (M&A), starting businesses where it made sense and acquiring businesses when opportunity struck. James Lamb digs into the moments that matter most for any entrepreneur: how to buy a business without millions in cash, why scaling a business through…
S1 · E26 · 22 Jul 2026 · 48 min
From Redundancy to £22M in Deals: The Acquisition Entrepreneur Playbook | Lee Smith
Lee Smith is the ultimate acquisition entrepreneur, a deal maker who went from redundancy at Ratner to closing over £22 million in business acquisitions. In this episode of The Ownership Journey, he reveals the exact mergers and acquisitions playbook that took him from a struggling IT company to owning a £12 million roofing business and a £10 million HVAC company in the same year, one of them through a leveraged buyout with zero of his own capital. This conversation covers the full acquisition journey: sourcing deals, negotiating deal structure, navigating due diligence disasters, and…
S1 · E25 · 15 Jul 2026 · 1 hr 7 min
The LinkedIn Lie: Why Most LinkedIn Marketing Doesn't Generate Leads | Niall Ratcliffe
Is LinkedIn marketing really about going viral? Or have most businesses been sold the wrong strategy? In this episode, James Lamb sits down with Niall Ratcliffe, founder of one of the UK's fastest-growing LinkedIn marketing agencies, to uncover The LinkedIn Lie . Most businesses treat LinkedIn like any other social media platform chasing likes, impressions, and viral posts. Niall explains why that's costing companies leads and why the real opportunity lies in B2B lead generation, customer acquisition, and strategic relationship building. From LinkedIn content strategy and personal branding…
S1 · E24 · 8 Jul 2026 · 56 min
Your Employees Can Just Walk Out Tomorrow — Here's Why | Laura Tutt
What if your best employees walked out tomorrow — and there was nothing you could do to stop them? In this episode of The Ownership Journey , host James Lamb sits down with Laura Tutt , founder of The Partnership, to break down why people and culture aren't just an HR checkbox — they're the single biggest lever in business ownership, employee retention, and long-term growth. Laura spent 20 years building an HR consultancy that goes far beyond compliance. From mergers and acquisitions due diligence to succession planning and the new Employee Rights Act, she shares hard-won lessons on what…
S1 · E23 · 1 Jul 2026 · 1 hr 29 min
Selling Your Business for Millions: 3 ATMs to £100M Empire | Mark Mills
Selling Your Business for Millions begins with a single observation in a New York corner store — and ends with a £250 million exit. Mark Mills turned 3 ATMs into Carpoint, a £100M Empire dispensing nearly half a billion pounds monthly across 6,500 machines in the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands. In this episode of The Ownership Journey , Mark shares the complete entrepreneur success story — the business growth tactics, the business acquisition strategy, and the serial entrepreneur mindset that took him from spotting an idea to building a business from scratch that achieved £98.2 million in…
S1 · E22 · 24 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 1 min
How to Grow an Accounting Firm 5x in 5 Years (Acquisitions & AI) | Edmund Cartwright
How to grow an accounting firm is one of the most pressing questions for practice owners in today's rapidly consolidating market. In this episode of The Ownership Journey, host James Lamb sits down with Edmund Cartwright , Partner at Acumen — a firm that has scaled from 15 staff to nearly 90 and revenue from £1.2 million to over £9 million in just five years. Edmund unpacks the dual-engine strategy behind this explosive accounting firm growth: a sophisticated mix of organic marketing (revamping a near-dead LinkedIn presence, working with an ex-Google marketing expert, and refining lead…
S1 · E21 · 17 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 11 min
How This Entrepreneur Lost His House & Built It Back Bigger | Andrew Scott
What does it take for an entrepreneur who lost his house and everything he owned to rebuild a multi-million pound property empire? In this episode of The Ownership Journey, host James Lamb sits down with Andrew Scott — founder of Ascot Group, serial entrepreneur, and business turnaround specialist — who reveals how he overcame £100,000 in debt after 9/11 destroyed his business overnight and built it back bigger than anyone thought possible. Andrew shares the raw, unfiltered story of overcoming business failure at its most brutal level — losing his home, facing personal guarantees, and…
S1 · E20 · 10 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 16 min
Business Acquisition Strategy: How I'm Building Zero to £150M in the Built Environment | Sam Turner
Sam Turner's business acquisition strategy is reshaping how specialist technical services companies in the built environment get scaled. In this episode of The Ownership Journey , Sam shares his complete roadmap for buying a business, integrating it, and repeating the process until his group hits £150M. After 22 years in global corporate roles — including scaling a travel tech business from €750M to €6B — Sam left it all behind to start his entrepreneurship journey as a group CEO building from scratch, without taking a salary for three years. The reality of business acquisitions in the built…
S1 · E19 · 3 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 24 min
Buying a Business: The 5-Step M&A & Acquisition Strategy That Built a £3.5M Empire | Guy Barlett
Buying a business is one of the most powerful — and most misunderstood — paths to entrepreneurial wealth. In this episode of The Ownership Journey, serial acquirer and M&A coach Guy Barlett reveals exactly how he went from an accidental Army career and a gap-year sales job to building and acquiring multiple companies — including a £3.5M national services firm and a £3.5M construction business. Guy is the creator of "The Blueprint," a 12-month coaching programme built around his proven 5-step acquisition strategy, and in this conversation he holds nothing back. This is the complete,…
S1 · E18 · 27 May 2026 · 51 min
Why I Bought an Architecture Firm Instead of Starting One | Nick Johnson
What does it really take to own an architecture firm — and is buying one smarter than building from nothing? In this episode of The Ownership Journey , James Lamb sits down with Nick Johnson , architect and owner of Johnson Pinney Architects, to unpack the reality of running an architecture business, from surviving the 2008 financial crisis to buying into an established practice and transforming it from within. Nick's story is anything but conventional. After studying biology, geography, and maths, a single school lecture about architecture — described as the perfect blend of artistic…
S1 · E17 · 20 May 2026 · 1 hr 2 min
Buying A Business: What Every Seller Gets Wrong | Saul Cohen
Buying a business is one of the most complex decisions an entrepreneur can make — and most sellers get the process completely wrong. In this episode of The Ownership Journey , Saul Cohen , a chartered accountant and M&A specialist who has worked on over 150 deals, unpacks what really happens when you buy or sell a business. From unrealistic valuations to deferred consideration traps, Saul reveals the hard truths that brokers won't tell you. If you're thinking about selling a business, buying a business, or simply want to understand how business valuation and M&A deals actually work, this…
S1 · E16 · 13 May 2026 · 49 min
Business Exit Strategy: Selling a Business & Entrepreneur Journey | Sarah Jane
Knowing your business exit strategy before you need one can be the difference between a life-changing sale and a costly mistake. Selling a business requires legal foundations most founders overlook — and that's exactly what corporate lawyer turned entrepreneur Sarah Jane breaks down in this episode of The Ownership Journey . From building Firing for Legal with 30 team members across four continents to advising on M&A deals worth up to £35 million, Sarah shares the entrepreneur journey lessons she learned the hard way — including why her first business collapsed after COVID, why 75–80% of her…
S1 · E15 · 6 May 2026 · 1 hr
Entrepreneur Resilience Under Pressure: Corporate Career to Recruitment Empire | Angela Middleton
Entrepreneur resilience under pressure is the defining theme of this powerful conversation with Angela Middleton , who left a secure corporate career at BP Oil and Barclays to build a recruitment empire from scratch. In this episode of The Ownership Journey , Angela shares the unfiltered reality of what it takes to pivot from employee to entrepreneur — and how resilience under pressure became the skill that saved her business more than once. Starting with nothing but corporate experience and determination, Angela launched her recruitment company in 2001 with no prior industry knowledge. She…
S1 · E14 · 29 Apr 2026 · 1 hr 24 min
From Council Estate to £100M Exit || Andrew Hulbert
Business growth doesn't require a silver spoon — it requires relentless execution, creative sales tactics, and the courage to start from nothing. In this episode of The Ownership Journey , James sits down with Andrew , the founder of Pareto, who built a facilities management business from his bedroom to a £50 million turnover before exiting at just 37 years old. Andrew's story is one of the most compelling entrepreneurship journeys you'll hear. Raised on a council estate with working-class roots, he climbed the corporate ladder to become a director at 24 — only to realise the corporate world…
S1 · E13 · 22 Apr 2026 · 1 hr 18 min
Buying a Business: Serial Entrepreneur Reveals Turnaround Strategy | Sacha Jak
Buying a business is one of the most powerful wealth-building strategies available — and in this episode of The Ownership Journey , serial entrepreneur Sacha reveals exactly how he does it. From his very first hustle selling photocopied football autographs at school, to acquiring distressed companies and turning them around in as little as a week, Sacha's story is a masterclass in buying a business and scaling it fast. If you've ever wondered how to buy a business without putting your personal assets on the line, or what it really takes to build a portfolio of acquired companies, this…
S1 · E11 · 8 Apr 2026 · 1 hr 17 min
Serial Entrepreneur Bought & Sold Multiple Businesses | Richard Woods
Serial entrepreneur Richard Woods has bought and sold multiple businesses — and his journey from schoolyard hustler to acquisition entrepreneur is packed with lessons for anyone looking to buy a business, scale with virtual assistants, or master lead generation. In this episode of The Ownership Journey , Richard shares how a financial crash forced his first pivot, how appearing on The Apprentice supercharged his marketing agency, and why the "Power of One" strategy is the single most important framework for any entrepreneur starting out. If you've ever wondered whether buying a business…
S1 · E10 · 1 Apr 2026 · 54 min
Buying a Business Changed Everything: From Family Collapse to M&A Deals | Steven Pettigrew
Buying a business is one of the most powerful ways to accelerate wealth — but it can also destroy you if you get it wrong. In this episode of The Ownership Journey , Steven reveals how his family business collapsed after reaching £35 million in revenue, and how that devastating loss became the foundation for his career in business acquisition and M&A. Steven grew up sweeping warehouse floors at 13 and eventually helped run a family business with 400 staff, £35M revenue, and £4M profit. But when it all came crashing down, he learned the hardest lesson in business growth strategy: never put…
S1 · E9 · 25 Mar 2026 · 1 hr 7 min
Power Dialogues: The Conversation Skill That Closes Deals | Des Vadgama
Power dialogues are the single most important skill for anyone serious about business acquisition, deal making, and closing deals. In this episode of The Ownership Journey , Des Vadgama reveals how mastering the art of conversation — not spreadsheets, not pitch decks, not legal templates — is what actually gets deals done. If you've ever wondered why some entrepreneurs convert leads into deals while others watch opportunities slip away, the answer lies in the quality of their dialogue. Des shares his remarkable journey from the seminar industry of the mid-90s, where he worked alongside Tony…
S1 · E8 · 18 Mar 2026 · 51 min
Business Rescue: How to Save a Company from Insolvency | Nick Simmonds
Business rescue is the critical process that can mean the difference between a company surviving or closing its doors forever. In this episode of The Ownership Journey , insolvency practitioner Nick pulls back the curtain on how business rescue actually works — from liquidations and administrations to Company Voluntary Arrangements and moratoriums. Whether you're a business owner facing financial trouble, a director worried about personal guarantees, or simply want to understand how business restructuring and business turnaround strategies operate in the real world, this conversation…

About The Ownership Journey

The Ownership Journey is a English business podcast from James Lamb. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.

Publisher: James Lamb
Language: English
Category: Business
New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 1 hr 2 min
Latest episode: 14 Oct 2026
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1882591694
Rights: James Lamb

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