What It Takes to Build and Sell a Business Before 40 with Andrew Hulbert
Andrew Hulbert · November 4, 2025
Interview with Andrew Hulbert
Podcast: Screw It Just DO It with Alex Chisnall
November 4, 2025 · 7 min
Listen to Andrew Hulbert on Screw It Just DO It with Alex Chisnall.
Listen
About Andrew Hulbert
Entrepreneurial Mentor and Speaker on Growth, Exits, and Building a Life That Matters
£50M Company scaled from the ground up500 Staff built at Pareto FM40+ Awards across his leadership track recordNine-figure Private equity exit
Andrew Hulbert has lived two distinct lives. From his late teens into his thirties, every hour was consumed by building a business from the ground up. Coming from a council estate family, he wasn’t born into wealth or a ready-made network, he carved out a path through relentless effort, scaling Pareto FM into a £50M company with 500 staff, focused on a culture that treated people better than the industry standard, ultimately selling it in a nine-figure private equity exit.
After that decade of full-throttle growth, Andrew pressed pause. The past 18 months have been about school runs, berry-picking with his kids, and rediscovering the small rituals of family life. He is candid about the cost of his earlier years, the friendships he put on hold, the moments missed at home, and equally open about the gratitude he feels now.
Andrew’s story isn’t one of rags-to-riches slogans, but of real choices and trade-offs. He talks about giving his father the gift of early retirement, supporting his family financially, and redefining what success meant once the “big exit” was behind him. He brings the same honesty to discussing entrepreneurship, leadership, and legacy as he does to parenting or men’s wellness.
About this episode
My guest this week isAndrew Hulbert, founder of Pareto FM, who started his business from his bedroom at 27 with no name, network, or funding and grew it to a £42 million turnover before exiting less than a decade later.
Andrew’s story is one of calculated risk, relentless focus, and smart scaling. From landing his first £200,000 contract with the Bulgari Hotel to winning major clients like Twitter, ASOS, and Deliveroo, his approach to business growth was simple: do what big companies get wrong, and do it exceptionally well.
In this episode, we discuss the realities of starting from zero, why being “too small” can become your biggest advantage, and how creating sweet equity helped him retain every senior hire across nine years. Andrew also shares what life looks like post-exit. Family, friends, and purpose and what it truly takes to let go without losing identity.
If you’re at the stage where you’re thinking of starting, scaling, or selling, this conversation will help you think more strategically about risk, people, and purpose.
Key Takeaways:
Start with One Win: Focus on getting your first deal, not the perfect business plan. Momentum starts with movement.
People Are Everything: Hire for motivation, not CVs. Pareto’s 17 senior leaders stayed through to exit because they shared the vision and had skin in the game.
Be Willing to Bet on Growth: Andrew’s decision to reinvest £1 million into overheads helped double the company’s value in two years.
Know When to Step Back: The biggest challenge isn’t starting, it’s letting go. Learning to trust others is what takes a founder from operator to leader.
Redefine Success After Exit: Freedom doesn’t come from a payout, it comes from presence—being there for family, friends, and yourself.
🎧 New episodes of Screw It Just DO It drop every Tuesday & Thursday, so make sure you follow wherever you listen. You’ll hear real conversations with founders who’ve taken a risk, built something from scratch, and figured it out along the way.
Stay connected at www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk and follow @festivalofentrepreneurs for news, updates, and future events.
Real entrepreneurs. Real stories. Real strategies.
👉 Follow the show. Keep showing up. Screw It Just DO It!
#ScrewItJustDoIt #FestivalOfEntrepreneurs #StartupLife #Entrepreneurship
Guest: Andrew Hulbert
More from Andrew Hulbert
All episodes →
Sales POP! Podcasts: Insights from Top Experts in Sales, Marketing, Leadership & More.Interview with Andrew HulbertDec 2025Play episode →
David C Barnett Small Business and Deal Making M&A SMBLIVE- Grow by Selling to Big Companies with Andrew HulbertNov 2025Play episode →
The Exceptional Sales Leader PodcastAndrew Hulbert – The Secret Sauce of Sales Success-Donuts, Diversity & DisruptionOct 2025Play episode →
Fastlane Founders and Legacy with Jason Barnard: Personal Branding, AI Strategies, and SEO Insights for Visionary CEOsAndrew Hulbert with Jason Barnard on Fastlane Founders And Legacy. Exit. Reset. Legacy.Oct 2025Play episode →Book Andrew Hulbert for your show
5+ podcast & stage appearances. Remote or in studio, broadcast-grade audio.