---
title: Don’t Chase Hype | Build Sustainable Businesses | Crushing It
description: Explore insights from Jeremy Middleton on bootstrapping, disciplined growth, and building sustainable businesses that thrive beyond hype and inflated valuations. Learn to prioritize proven models and strategic scaling.
image: https://bawn.com/hubfs/shutterstock_2076678445.jpg
---

# Don’t Chase Hype. Build What Works.

## Jeremy Middleton

### Bootstrapping, raising at the right time, and scaling with discipline.

Episode 7

Runtime: 40:16

March 10th, 2026

 

 

In this episode of*Crushing It*, we sit down with entrepreneur and investor **Jeremy Middleton**, founder of Middleton Enterprises and co-founder of HomeServe — a company that began with just £10,000 on a credit card and ultimately grew into a FTSE 100 business employing 10,000 people. Jeremy shares the unvarnished reality of building a company from scratch, including early failures, financial pressure, and the tough decisions that shaped his approach to risk, persistence, and growth.

Jeremy reflects on the difference between being a founder and being an investor. While entrepreneurs often start with ideas and optimism, Jeremy explains why he now looks for businesses that have already proven their model and reached profitability. He discusses why founders frequently misunderstand investors, why raising money too early can be dangerous, and why bootstrapping or turning to friends and family is often a smarter first step than chasing venture capital.

The conversation also tackles some of today’s biggest startup narratives — including hype around AI, inflated valuations, and the belief that capital can solve fundamental business problems. Jeremy explains why investment money should accelerate a working model rather than fix a broken one, and why disciplined growth and strong fundamentals still outperform trend-driven business plans.

Finally, Jeremy shares the story of how his struggling plumbing startup nearly collapsed before pivoting into a subscription-based warranty model that transformed the company’s economics. The episode offers candid lessons for founders on persistence, knowing when to pivot, protecting equity, and building companies that compound value over the long term.

- Prove the business model before raising capital.
- Bootstrapping builds discipline.
  
   
- Raising money too early can cost founders dearly.
  
   
- Persistence matters—but successful founders pivot when needed.
- Sustainable businesses are built on real cash flow, not hype.
  
   

### From the Conversation

 "I think it's taught me as an investor to have some sort of proven model before you start."

 

 "I tend to think the best way to start a business is by bootstrapping it, by funding it yourself, if you possibly can, by using your own funds."

 

## “Stay small until you’ve got something that works.”

## “If you expand a failing model, you’re just creating bigger problems.”

## “Investment money should help you scale faster—not solve your problems.”

[![middleton-jeremy](https://bawn.com/hs-fs/hubfs/middleton-jeremy.webp?width=540&height=600&name=middleton-jeremy.webp)](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jemiddleton/)

### Jeremy Middleton CBE

#### Founder and CEO

#### Middleton Enterprises | Family Office

### About the Guest

**Jeremy Middleton** is a British entrepreneur, investor, and the founder and CEO of **Middleton Enterprises**, a family office focused on investing in and supporting growing small and medium-sized businesses. Over the course of his career, Jeremy has built, scaled, and backed numerous companies, earning a reputation for championing patient capital and practical, founder-focused investment strategies.

Jeremy is best known as the co-founder of **HomeServe**, a home emergency repair and services business he started with just £10,000 on a credit card. What began as a small plumbing service evolved into a global company employing more than 10,000 people and serving millions of customers. HomeServe went on to become a **FTSE 100 company** before being acquired by private equity in 2023.

Today, through Middleton Enterprises, Jeremy focuses on partnering with profitable small businesses that are ready to scale. Rather than investing in early-stage ideas, he typically backs entrepreneurs who have already proven their business model and are generating around £500,000 in annual profit. His goal is to help founders grow those businesses toward £5 million and beyond through disciplined scaling, strategic guidance, and long-term alignment.

Jeremy is widely respected for his candid advice to founders about raising capital, protecting equity, and building sustainable companies. Drawing on decades of experience as both a founder and investor, he emphasizes bootstrapping, realistic valuations, and the power of long-term compounding to build enduring businesses.

## About the Hosts

### Jonathan Trimble

Jon is a former FBI Special Agent and cybersecurity executive whose career focused on intelligence, analytics, and technology development. A graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, he brings a strategic, systems-level perspective to how leaders understand risk and make decisions in complex environments.

![Jonathan Trimble](https://bawn.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Untitled%20design%20(8).png?width=250&height=250&name=Untitled%20design%20(8).png)

![Cochran Headshot](https://bawn.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Cochran%20Headshot.png?width=250&height=250&name=Cochran%20Headshot.png)

### Robert Cochran

Rob is a former FBI Special Agent who led and supported extensive international cyber investigations involving complex threat actors and cross-border risk. A graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, he brings an operational, real-world lens to conversations about resilience, accountability, and leadership under pressure.

Together, Jon and Rob bring FBI-honed lessons about risk and resilience to every conversation.

[Previous Episode](https://bawn.com/crushing-it/ed-mcdermott?hsLang=en)

### Turning Insight into Action

#### If today’s conversation raised questions about managing complex risk, we help business leaders understand cyber risk and turn complexity into clear, actionable decisions.

#### [Learn how Bawn works](https://bawn.com/about-us?hsLang=en)

 

Interested in being a guest on **Crushing It?**

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Listen on [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/crushing-it/id1854903281) | [Spotify](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/crushing-it/id1854903281)| [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTdlFlAlE7qscHIo9ppB_5jM9epuGGfKX)

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