Your trusted partner for SME businesses, at every stage, across five countries.
At thexton armstrong, we believe stronger businesses are built by capable, well-supported leaders. Our purpose is to help SME owners strengthen their leadership, sharpen their strategic decisions and build businesses that are more resilient, more profitable and more valuable, whatever stage they are at. A stronger business is also a more rewarding one to lead, and a more valuable asset to eventually pass on or sell.
Achieving this depends on being able to speak openly about what is happening in your business, including the parts that are not going well. Every conversation with a thexton armstrong mentor is treated in confidence, and the relationship is independent of your suppliers, lenders or other advisers, so the advice you receive serves your business and nothing else.
thexton armstrong began with a straightforward observation. Our founder, Coen Vleesenbeek, had spent years working across accountancy, finance, marketing and e-commerce, in businesses of every size, across the Netherlands, Australia and the United States. Wherever he worked, he saw the same challenges: business owners and senior leaders driving growth and managing change with no independent, structured support to guide them.
In 2007, Coen chose to focus his own work exclusively on supporting SME owners. Four years later, in 2011, he founded thexton armstrong in the Netherlands and developed the five-stage framework (an adaptation of Managing Corporate Lifecycles as written by Ichak Adizes) that still shapes our approach today: Start Up, Acceleration, Growth, Flow and Exit. His ambition from the start was for that support to reach business owners well beyond the Netherlands. The business grew under his leadership for close to a decade, and in 2020 he handed over day-to-day leadership to a team of partners so he could focus on expanding thexton armstrong internationally. It now operates in five countries. You can read more about how the five-stage approach works in Our Approach
Donald Stuart leads that expansion in the UK. After a career spanning senior leadership roles across four continents, he wanted to apply that experience to building something of his own, bringing thexton armstrong’s five-stage framework to UK business owners. He launched thexton armstrong in the UK in 2025 and has a growing network of business advisors. If you are interested in becoming a franchisee, find out more here
Donald Stuart – Managing Partner
Donald Stuart leads thexton armstrong’s launch in the UK. He is a longstanding champion of SME owners, drawing on an executive career spanning professional services, technology, software and systems integration across four continents.
Donald has restored underperforming businesses to profit, led periods of rapid growth, and guided businesses through venture capital funding and management buyouts. This breadth, from distress through growth to successful exit, gives him a first-hand understanding of the challenges SME owners face at every stage.
As Managing Partner, Donald leads and supports thexton armstrong’s franchise partners across the UK, applying that experience and thexton armstrong’s methodology to help SME owners plan for growth and realise the value already built into their businesses.
Graeme Cleland – Partner, North Essex
Graeme Cleland is a Senior Executive whose career spans start-ups, private equity-backed businesses and international groups, with responsibility for 2,500 employees and a P&L ownership of over £100 million.
Graeme took a health and social care start-up from three people to £10 million turnover and 600 staff in six years, and grew turnover by 50% in an underperforming private equity acquisition that later sold at 12 times EBITDA.
As Partner for North Essex, Graeme works with owners across North Essex and the East of England.
Ben Williams – Partner, York and Harrogate
Ben Williams has owned, launched and exited businesses since completing his first management buyout at the age of 21, with experience across food and beverage, wine, B2B wholesale and events.
He led his first restaurant to a Michelin Bib Gourmand and two AA Rosettes in its first year, built a London wine bar and shop concept across multiple sites before a successful exit, and relaunched a pub group’s offer around craft beer.
Ben works with business owners, covering the York and Harrogate areas.
Coen Vleesenbeek – Founder
Coen has spent over twenty years improving business performance and creating value for SMEs and large corporations, in the Netherlands and internationally. He founded thexton armstrong in the Netherlands in 2011, leading the business for close to a decade before focusing on expanding the franchise internationally, growing it to five countries to date.
Coen’s role today is to support experienced professionals in building successful consultancies under the thexton armstrong brand, helping SME owners grow their businesses while giving franchise partners a financially rewarding and professionally fulfilling career.
Paula Parker – Marketing Director
For over 30 years, Paula has built her career in marketing across both B2B and B2C sectors, working with large organisations and SMEs in the UK and internationally. Since 2015, Paula has focused on supporting SMEs directly through her consultancy business, PP8 Marketing, working with founder-led businesses and professional services firms.
Today, Paula supports thexton armstrong UK as Marketing Director, working closely with Donald Stuart and the UK franchise partners. Through her consultancy, she leads a small team that provides ongoing brand, content and communications support as the UK network develops.
Whatever stage your business is at, from building strong foundations to preparing for a sale, we can help. Get in touch to arrange a conversation with Donald and the team
If you want a clearer view of where your business could improve, our Profit Leakage test is a quick way to find out.
