The big exit is sold as the ultimate milestone for founders. Headlines make it look clean and easy: sign the deal, cash the cheque, celebrate. The truth? It’s messy, emotional, and full of hard decisions that don’t make it into the press release.
The truth is, an exit is never as simple as the highlight reel makes it look. It’s emotional, complicated, and full of decisions that can change everything. There are sleepless nights, relentless negotiations, and the gut-punch moment when you realise that life after the sale isn’t what you expected.
That’s why at this year’s Ideas Fest, we’re putting this conversation front and centre. We’re talking about the part of selling a business that no one puts on LinkedIn. It’s the unfiltered version, straight from four founders who’ve lived it: Andrew Hulbert, Rachel Murphy, Sophie Milliken MBE, Kim Antoniou and James Sinclair.

Andrew Hulbert knows what it means to build something from nothing. At 26, he founded Pareto Facilities Management with a vision to shake up an industry dominated by big players. His approach of putting people and social value at the heart of the business was radical for its time. Nine years later, Pareto had grown into one of the fastest-growing facilities companies in the UK, pulling in £150 million in revenue and earning a place on the Sunday Times Fast Track 100 list. Along the way, Andrew led acquisitions and positioned Pareto for long-term growth. His take? Purpose is vital, but if you want the option to sell, you can’t ignore the commercial structure that makes your business truly exit-ready.