Skip to content

renÉe elliott, simon calver, tom adeyoola and john o’brien mbe to join seven hills board of advisors

Seven Hills is delighted to welcome four new members of its advisory board: Renée Elliott, the pioneering founder of Planet Organic; Simon Calver, Chairman of UK Business Angels Association, MuscleFood.co.uk and Firefly Learning; Tom Adeyoola, the tech entrepreneur and founder of Metail; and John O’Brien MBE, the founder of ONE HUNDRED, part of Omnicom Group, of which he is now the EMEA Managing Partner.

Renée Elliott has been a leader in purpose-driven businesses since opening the first Planet Organic store in 1995. At the time, the UK’s first organic supermarket – a one-stop shop full of all the right choices, Planet Organic is a health food haven. She continues to inspire through the Beluga Bean Wellbeing Academy for success in business and life.

Speaking about joining the board of advisors, Renée said: “I have had the pleasure of working with Seven Hills for a number of years and have always appreciated Michael, Nick and the team’s ongoing support of my work. Like Planet Organic and Beluga Bean, Seven Hills is a business with mission at its core and I look forward to helping the firm develop its vision for a new decade as a member of its advisory board.”

Simon Calver was CEO at LOVEFiLM for seven years, one of the successes of the UK venture industry – leading to its eventual exit to Amazon in 2011. Simon went on to become CEO of Mothercare plc. Before this he worked at multi-nationals such as Unilever, led PepsiCo in the UK, and was general manager at Dell. He was previously chair at Moo.com and Gousto and is currently chairman of the UK Business Angels Association.

Simon was head of BGF’s earlier-stage investments until June 2020. Simon still works alongside BGF as a member of its Talent Network and chairman of BGF portfolio companies MuscleFood.co.uk and Firefly Learning.

Commenting on his appointment, Simon said: “I am delighted to accept the position on the Advisory Board. I think Michael and Nick have an amazing business and I have experienced the great results they achieve across many sectors first hand. I am thrilled to be asked to be a small part of that journey.”

Tom Adeyoola is a technology entrepreneur passionate about disruptive technology for societal and climate good. He was CEO and founder of acquired apparel technology scale-up Metail (2008-2019). Tom is currently the co-founder of Extend Ventures, which aims to diversify access to finance for underrepresented founders through data and research.

Speaking of his appointment to the board of advisors, Tom said: “Seven Hills has, for more than a decade, worked with the most exciting entrepreneurs and purpose-led businesses in this country and beyond. Their mission focused approach was a perfect fit for me and my previous venture Metail. The team were not only a joy to work with, but also produced consistently excellent results.  I am therefore extremely excited and honoured to take up this position on their advisory board and hope to play a role in campaigning for and supporting new generations of purpose-led innovators in the years to come.”

John O’Brien MBE is a thought leader as well as a bestselling author on ethical business, purpose and mass mobilisation campaigning. He is EMEA Managing Partner at Omnicom’s ‘ONE HUNDRED’, a global consortium of nine marketing, public relations, digital and communications agencies creating purpose-based solutions for corporates and causes around the world.

After early years in banking and a decade as an Army Officer, John has spent twenty-five years at the interface of business and society. John said of his appointment “I have long admired the campaigning and often ground-breaking work which Seven Hills has become associated with, as well as their uniquely engaging approach to bringing people together for common cause. Their creativity and purpose driven commitment very much resonates with my own approach to having a positive impact in society, which is why I am delighted to become a member of the advisory team.”

Access your free chapter now

Access your free chapter now

Chapter 1 outlines the concept of mission and how the breakthrough brands of today have succeeded by building a mission that inspires belief, generates a following and instils a purpose beyond profit.