Long-Term Business Growth: Jeremy Middleton on Thinking in Decades

What does it really take to build a business that can keep growing for decades?

In this episode of ScaleX Insider, Brendan McGurgan is joined by Jeremy Middleton, co-founder of HomeServe and founder of Middleton Enterprises, to explore what long-term business growth looks like from someone who has experienced it first-hand.

Jeremy co-founded the business that would become HomeServe alongside Sir Richard Harpin, beginning a journey that would span around 30 years and ultimately create a multi-billion-pound business.

But Jeremy's role in that journey was different from Richard's.

As HomeServe developed, Jeremy recognised that Richard was the stronger operator. Rather than competing for the CEO position, they adapted their partnership, allowing each of them to focus on where they could create the most value.

It's a lesson Jeremy has carried into his work as an investor today: know what you're good at, know what you're not, and build around those strengths.

Jeremy and Brendan explore what founders need to prove before a business is genuinely ready to scale.

For Jeremy, it starts with the economics. The business needs to generate cash, the model needs to be repeatable, there needs to be a genuine competitive edge, and the founder needs a sensible plan for growth.

And believing those things isn't enough.

You need evidence.

The conversation also challenges the pressure many entrepreneurs feel to grow faster, enter new markets or raise significant external capital.

Jeremy explains why he often finds himself encouraging founders to do the opposite: get the existing model right, prove it works repeatedly and then keep building on it.