Rob
Toms
Partner
A frustrated physicist who did an MBA and went over to the dark side.
After six years at Bain & Company and a few years doing M&A in a corporate, I found my natural home at Smedvig. You meet some great founders, people brave and crazy enough to build a startup, and sometimes we can help them make it work which is very rewarding.
“I have been building companies for over 30 years and I have never seen an investor as interested in understanding every aspect of our business as if they were part of the management team as Rob. This investment of time is well worth it because his knowledge, connections and passion to get his hands dirty is very helpful. “RichardChair, Whip Media
A conversation with Rob
What's the best bit of advice you've ever been given?
Never lose that sense of humour, Toms (from my English teacher when I was 11).
What's your favourite challenge to solve in a scaling business?
I still haven’t seen a startup scale sales & marketing in a smooth controlled way, simultaneously preserving their growth and efficiency metrics – it’ll happen one day!
What gets you excited about a business?
Great people. On average we work with a startup for seven years - that's a long time to work with someone unless you like and respect them.
What do you do when you're not supporting great companies?
Outside of work I live in the country with my wife and occasional visits from our four (adult) kids. I’m a deeply average triathlete, but still seeking marginal gains, and took up cocktail making during covid lockdowns.