What Elephants Child does

Elephants Child (legal entity Elephants Child Advisory Limited) is a UK-based business advisory firm founded in 2007 and headquartered in Gosport, Hampshire, serving small and medium-sized enterprises nationwide. The firm engages SME business owners, founders, managing directors, and senior leadership teams on growth planning, funding and capital-raise facilitation, business valuation, exit preparation, governance and board advisory, ESG implementation, and HR consulting. Its value proposition is built on operator-experienced advisors (a former FTSE 250 board member, a former European VP in tech, an ex-RAF sales leader, a qualified litigation solicitor, and an HR outsourcer who exited her own firm) and on a holistic methodology that converts strategic intent into actionable one-year operating plans and three-year growth roadmaps. The firm explicitly does not sell proprietary software or platforms; delivery is human-expert-led advisory under a quote-based, multi-phase engagement model (e.g., 'phase 1 to deliver a 1-year operational plan').

Go-to-market is sales-led with content-marketing and referral as the primary demand engines. Elephants Child publishes a steady cadence of blog content covering exit planning, funding, HR, governance, AI and ESG topics, distributes via LinkedIn, Twitter/X, and webinars, and has earned coverage in Your Business magazine (guest-edited by Deborah Meaden) and the St. James's Place Entrepreneurs Club newsletter. Service delivery is direct (no channel intermediaries), with client engagements starting from a free, no-obligation discovery conversation and progressing into structured advisory programmes. Distribution is supported by a curated affiliate network: TC Group for accounting and tax, Capitalise for finance options and credit profiling, vetted business brokers for exit transactions, and insolvency practitioners for distressed situations.

Commercially, the firm is founder/management-owned with no disclosed outside capital, venture, or private-equity backing. Headcount sits in the 11-50 range with roughly six revenue-bearing senior advisors and support staff identified by direct contact (Martin Brown, CEO; Richard Murray, CCO; Steve Bird, Geoff Gwynn, David Humby as Business Growth Advisors; Chloe Carey, HR Consultant). Revenue is fee-based professional services, not publicly disclosed, and engagements are quoted on a bespoke basis. Named clientele is concentrated in UK SMEs across technology/software, flooring, accountancy, and retail, with case studies citing engagements of 6 to 18+ months in duration.

Name

Elephants Child

Legal name

Elephants Child Advisory Limited

Website

https://elephants-child.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Elephants Child is a UK business advisory firm, founded in 2007 and headquartered in Gosport, that helps SME owners and leadership teams with growth planning, funding, exit preparation, business valuation, ESG, board advisory, and HR consulting, delivered through a sales-led, referral- and content-driven model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Gosport

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Business Advisory and Consulting Services: Elephants Child generates revenue through fee-based advisory and consulting engagements with SME business owners. Services include growth planning, exit preparation, funding facilitation, and tackling business challenges. Engagement models appear to involve structured advisory programmes with phases (phase 1 to deliver a 1-year operational plan), and ongoing board advisory support.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Elephants Child is a UK business advisory firm that helps SME business owners and leadership teams grow the value of their businesses, secure funding, and prepare for successful exits. Its core offerings are fee-based consulting engagements covering Business Growth Planning, Exit Planning, Business Finance Advisory, Business Valuation, ESG Advisory, Board Advisory Support, and HR Consulting, delivered through structured programmes that begin with a deep-dive discovery conversation.

Product overview

Elephants Child is a holistic business advisory company offering a unified platform of advisory services for SMEs. The core offering consists of business advisory consulting with integrated modules for growth planning, exit planning, funding advisory, business valuation, ESG advisory, board advisory support, and HR consulting. The services work together as a comprehensive approach to help business owners navigate growth, secure funding, and achieve successful business exits.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SME Business Advisory Services Core business advisory engagement helping UK SMEs grow, raise capital, and plan for successful exits, providing practical business support, strategic guidance, and specialist expertise for sustainable long-term growth.
• Business Growth Planning

Quantifiable outcome

• Advisors have worked with over 50 businesses over a five-year period on Business Growth Plans and board advisory support
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• TC GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTC Group is a trusted affiliate of Elephants Child, providing accounting and tax expertise. Alison Price, Partner at TC Group, co-authored an article on salary vs. dividends for business owners, providing tax and financial planning insights as part of Elephants Child's thought leadership content. The partnership extends Elephants Child's advisory capabilities into financial and tax advisory.
• CapitaliseminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCapitalise is a financial platform partner that Elephants Child works with to help clients understand and improve their business credit profile, explore finance options, and access tools for financial management. Elephants Child publishes co-branded content with Capitalise on topics such as cash flow, business credit, and invoice finance.
• Trusted Business BrokerscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorElephants Child has developed relationships with a number of trusted business brokers over several years of helping businesses prepare for exit. The firm recommends and introduces brokers to clients based on the size or sector of the business, having vetted them for high success rates. This is a referral-type channel partnership supporting exit transactions.
• Insolvency PractitionersminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerElephants Child works with a number of excellent insolvency practitioners throughout the UK to assist businesses facing financial distress. The firm refers clients in difficulty to these trusted partners to properly assess their situation and explain their options. Early intervention through these partnerships can help businesses avoid administration.
• Insolvency PractitionersminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerElephants Child works with a network of insolvency practitioners throughout the UK to help clients facing financial distress. Referrals to trusted insolvency partners allow business owners to understand all available options, supporting early intervention to avoid formal insolvency where possible.
• St. James's PlaceminorGTM or Marketing PartnerElephants Child co-authored content published in the St. James's Place Entrepreneurs Club newsletter, reaching a broad audience of entrepreneurs and business owners with thought leadership on post-pandemic growth and exit planning strategies.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Succession Plus: Specialist in exit and succession planning for SME owners, offering structured preparation programmes. Closely comparable to Elephants Child's Exit Planning module and the broader owner-readiness proposition.
• ActionCOACH: Global business coaching franchise with a strong UK presence serving SME owners on growth, sales, and team performance. Most directly comparable firm in terms of target customer (UK SME owner) and offered services (one-to-one advisory, growth planning, accountability).
• Hilton-Baird Group: UK commercial finance broker supporting SMEs with funding, refinancing, and credit profile work. Comparable on the funding advisory side of Elephants Child's offering and on UK SME target segment.
• Business Doctors: UK network of business advisors supporting SME owners with growth planning, sales, and operations improvement. Comparable scope of services and SME target segment, delivered through a distributed advisor model.
• Birchall + Haydock: UK firm providing business advisory, exit planning, and funding support to SME owners. Comparable on both the advisory service mix and the SME/exit-planning go-to-market.
• Shirlaws Group: Business coaching and advisory firm working with owner-led and SME clients on growth and leadership. Comparable positioning, target customer, and reliance on operator-coach delivery model.
• The Alternative Board: Provides peer advisory boards and one-to-one business coaching for SME owners across the UK. Highly comparable on target segment, advisory-led delivery model, and focus on owner-led growth and exit-readiness conversations.

Broad incumbents

• KBS Corporate: UK corporate finance firm advising SME owners on sales, acquisitions, and funding. Overlaps with Elephants Child's funding and exit advisory services but operates further down the transaction funnel.
• Gravita: UK advisory, tax, and accounting group serving SMEs and owner-managed businesses across the lifecycle. Overlaps with Elephants Child's growth, finance, and exit advisory offering, with broader scope and larger headcount.
• Smith Cooper: Mid-tier UK advisory and accountancy firm offering business advisory, M&A, and funding support to SMEs and owner-managed businesses. Larger and broader than Elephants Child, but directly competes for the same SME advisory wallet.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/elephchild
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/elephants-child

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Elephants Child