Explore every episode of the podcast Exit Ready

Mark Kelso co-founded Glaze Digital with Richard over 12 years ago. What started as a do-everything agency (websites, video, photography, app development) is now a Shopify Plus partner in the top 1.5% globally, with 250+ stores built for brands doing over £20M a month.

The technical side was never the problem. Glaze had the reputation, the clients, and the platform expertise. The commercial engine just had not kept pace.

Over 13 months working together, Glaze saw a 47% increase in revenue and a 110% increase in profit.

In this episode we talked about:

The month Mark had zero revenue coming in, and the wake-up call it created

Why being brilliant at Shopify does not automatically grow your agency

Moving from white-label work to direct strategic partnerships

The resistance to hiring middle managers (and what changed their minds)

Restructuring billing so you are not sending every invoice at month-end

How Glaze uses AI (Flora for product imagery, clients bringing Lovable designs) without losing what makes them them

If you run an agency where the work is already excellent but the business side has not caught up, this conversation is for you.

FREE AGENCY VALUATION (PDF report): http://moveatpace.com/agency-valuation

WEEKLY NEWSLETTER: http://moveatpace.com/newsletter

#agencyowner #agencygrowth #shopify #agencycoach #exitready

Cathal O'Reilly started Rooftop Twenty Two from his bedroom in January 2020. No clients, no team. Six years later: 14 full-time staff, a studio in Dublin, and a client list of Irish and international brands.

Growth was not a straight line. For the first few years the agency was doing good work, bringing in solid revenue, and barely making profit. Cathal was the salesperson, the account manager, the point of contact for everything. The business worked because he never stopped.

In this episode we talked about:

• The difference between a lifestyle business and an actual business
• Why referrals alone will not get you where you want to go
• The production manager hire he wishes he'd made 18 months earlier
• What changed when he started speaking to clients like an entrepreneur, not a creative
• Why you need to treat yourself as your own best client (and why agencies are terrible at this)

If you run an agency and the business side hasn't caught up with the quality of the work, this conversation is for you.

FREE AGENCY VALUATION (PDF report): moveatpace.com/agency-valuation

WEEKLY NEWSLETTER: moveatpace.com/newsletter

BOOK A DISCOVERY CALL: cal.com/moveatpace/discovery-call