Michael Thomas
Entrepreneur/Investor/Technologist/Business Builder
25+ years building businesses, developing technology and creating commercial opportunities across Australia, the UK, Europe and the United States. I work with owners, founders and investors to build, acquire and transform businesses.
25+
Years
International business experience across Australia, the US, UK and Europe
£500m+
Revenue
Automotive aftersales revenue influenced by systems I built
165
Locations
Automotive retail sites running my technology, across 25 brands
6
Sectors
Businesses founded and operated, from software to property
What I do
01
Creating businesses, products and technology.
Taking an idea from first principles to paying customers, with the systems, people and capital needed to make it last.
02
Improving established businesses.
Better systems, sharper operations and intelligent use of AI to lift productivity, profitability and enterprise value.
03
Creating long-term enterprise value.
Identifying good businesses with strong foundations and developing them into something more valuable over time.
Track record
I’ve established businesses, led teams, developed commercial products and delivered technology for some of the world’s most recognisable automotive brands.
£500m+
01Through Sonocle, I developed customer engagement and marketing automation systems for Marshall Motor Group, one of the UK’s largest automotive retailers. Across 165 locations and 25 brands, those systems supported customer retention, service bookings and aftersales activity associated with more than £500 million in revenue.
National
02I’ve worked with organisations including Hyundai UK on technology that connects businesses with their customers, automates communication and creates measurable commercial opportunities.
6 sectors
03I’ve founded, developed and operated businesses spanning automotive technology, software, digital marketing, property development, education and media production, which has taught me what it takes to move from an idea to customers, people, capital and growth.
AI
04As co-founder of Tucana AI, I help organisations understand, adopt and deploy artificial intelligence. My interest goes well beyond automating individual tasks to rethinking how a business operates, how its people work and where new commercial advantage can come from.
How I think about business
My background is in Industrial Design, which I studied at the University of Canberra and the Istituto Europeo di Design in Turin. Design taught me to understand a problem properly before attempting to solve it, and that idea has shaped almost everything I’ve done since.
In business I look for inefficiencies, unnecessary complexity, missed opportunities and systems that no longer serve their purpose, and then I work out how to improve them.
Identify the real problem, the commercial opportunity and the outcome that matters.
Remove unnecessary complexity and challenge the assumptions everyone has stopped questioning.
Develop repeatable processes that deliver consistent results without heroics.
Apply technology intelligently where it genuinely improves productivity and performance.
Build the foundations for sustainable growth and long-term value.
“In my experience the best businesses are rarely the ones with the most people, the biggest budgets or the most sophisticated technology, but the ones that keep making better decisions and executing them well.”
What interests me today
I’m increasingly focused on opportunities to acquire, develop and transform established businesses. Many have strong customer relationships, valuable expertise and established markets, yet run on processes and systems that haven’t fundamentally changed in decades.
Artificial intelligence is creating an extraordinary opportunity to rethink those models. Combining a sound business with modern technology, intelligent automation and a better operating structure can unlock growth, improve profitability and create significant long-term enterprise value.
That might mean acquiring a business, forming a strategic partnership, developing a new venture or working alongside an existing owner. Industry matters less to me than the fundamentals: a good business, capable people and a problem worth solving.
The person behind the business
I’m Australian-born and a British citizen, and I’ve spent much of my professional life living and working internationally. After more than two decades abroad, my family and I have returned to Sydney’s Northern Beaches.
Outside business I’m a husband, a father of three, a keen cyclist and a lifelong automotive enthusiast. Whether it’s exploring somewhere new, testing my physical limits or taking on a business challenge that initially looks impossible, curiosity, determination and a willingness to take calculated risks have always been part of how I work.
I still get enormous satisfaction from taking a difficult problem, working through its complexity and finding a solution that genuinely makes a difference.
Let’s talk business
Some of the best opportunities begin with a conversation, and they don’t need to be fully defined before we have one. These are the people I most enjoy meeting.
Get in touch
Perhaps you run an established business and wonder how technology could transform its performance. Maybe you’re considering an exit, looking for a strategic partner or exploring an acquisition. Or you’ve spotted a commercial opportunity and need someone with the experience, technical understanding and entrepreneurial mindset to bring it to life.
I don’t claim to have every answer, but I bring experience, curiosity, commercial judgement and a determination to find solutions.
Michael Thomas
Sydney, Northern Beaches · Working globally