# Ferdie Ahmed

London. me@ferdie.co. https://ferdie.co/ . https://www.linkedin.com/in/ferdieahmed/

Founder and operator. Founder of Barrio and Disrepute, sold to Nightcap plc in November 2021. Co-Founder and full-stack COO of EverGrowth Group. Invests his own capital through Clamshell Capital, his personal investment company.

## Now
- **EverGrowth Group**, Co-Founder and full-stack COO (2025 onwards). Co-founded with Chris West (CEO), a UK buy-and-build that partners with and grows B2B essential services businesses: cleaning, maintenance, compliance, waste and power. First business, Excell Cleaning Services (London, March 2026), funded with the founders' own capital and a loan from Allica Bank under the Growth Guarantee Scheme. Then private equity from FourLeaf Capital and senior debt from OakNorth Bank, with Forvis Mazars advising on both; Medway Heating (Bolton) and Haulaway (waste management, South East) joined in October 2026. Paul Barry is Non-Executive Chair; Jeremy Waud and Dane Houlahan are Non-Executive Directors. https://www.ever-growth.com/
- **Clamshell Capital**, Founder (March 2024 onwards). Personal investment company through which he invests his own capital in EverGrowth Group. https://clamshellcapital.com/
- **Zacal**, Adviser (May 2023 onwards). Mezcal from Michoacán, Mexico; launched in the UK in May 2025. Advises the founders, drawing on fifteen years in hospitality.

## Barrio, 2007–2022
- **Barrio Familia**, Founder (2007–2021). Opened the first Barrio on Essex Road, Islington (Barrio Angel) in May 2007, then Barrio Soho, Barrio Shoreditch and Barrio Brixton, grown organically and by acquisition. From 2011, ran a Barrio pop-up bar in Shangri-la at Glastonbury, three festivals running.
- Pitched a second concept to the landlord, Shaftesbury, and opened **Disrepute**, a 100-seat members' bar in Kingly Court, Soho, in December 2016.
- Raised equity from private investors, acquired leaseholds in high-footfall London and project-managed five fit-outs. At the peak: five London venues, 120 staff and £7m of revenue.
- Through COVID, introduced new revenue streams and temporary pivots; came through with all 120 staff.
- Built a senior team with heads of operations, sales and finance, installed a Managing Director and stepped back from the day-to-day.
- Sold the group, four Barrio bars and Disrepute, to **Nightcap plc** in November 2021. Gerald Edelman ran the sale; Adams & Remers also advised.
- Stayed on for a year as Barrio's brand steward for Nightcap, through new openings in Covent Garden and Watford.

## Technology, 1998–2007
- **Business intelligence consultant** (1999–2007). Built data warehouses and management reporting at UBS, Swiss Re, BNY Mellon, ING, Shell, GlaxoSmithKline, Eli Lilly, Universal Pictures, OAG and the Inland Revenue. Lived and worked in Zurich.
- **Logica**, graduate programme (1998–1999). Trained in data warehousing and business intelligence.
- **musicrooms.com**, co-founder of an early start-up idea (1998). Did not raise.

## Education
- **Brunel University**, BSc Mathematics and Statistics (1994–1998), with a work placement year.

## Areas
Hospitality, multi-site operations, brand and culture, buy and build, mergers and acquisitions, post-acquisition integration, private equity and debt fundraising, essential services, facilities management, data warehousing, business intelligence.