CO-FOUNDER & SENIOR PARTNER

Damian Hackett is a dynamic executive leader with over two decades of experience transforming sports and media businesses through strategic leadership, commercial realignment, and global market development. He founded Last Mile Consulting to bridge the critical gap between sourcing commercial finance and deploying it for maximum operational success, driven by a passion for supporting the cycling and last-mile transport sectors.

As GM and Country Manager for the UK and Ireland at Orbea, Damian spearheaded the brand’s transformation in his markets, elevating its market position from outside the top 40 to within the top 10 in the specialist cycle market. During his time there, he devised an industry-leading retailer stock finance program that heavily supported dealer liquidity and cash flow. This crystallized his view that key industries (such as seasonal dealership focused businesses) required far deeper working capital solutions than were easily available in the open market.

Prior to his role at Orbea, Damian demonstrated his entrepreneurial acumen by founding and growing several successful ventures. He launched Ireland’s first adventure and outdoor pursuits magazine, which achieved profitability in its first year, and built a successful marketing and distribution business for premium cycling brands.

Earlier in his career, Damian drove significant commercial growth in the media industry, notably driving a 12x increase in sales revenue across the Regional Newspapers Association over five years. This deep commercial and marketing foundation underpins the strategic expertise he brings to his consulting work today.

Having earned his MBA in Marketing, Damian combines a proven track record of business transformation with the strategic vision to build high-performing teams, drive operational excellence, and deliver outstanding results in competitive markets.

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER

Tej Searle is a dynamic and results-driven business development professional with nearly two decades of experience driving commercial growth and operational excellence across the automotive, retail, and hospitality sectors. With a strong reputation for delivering measurable improvements, she excels at business process optimisation, strategic marketing, and enhancing the full customer lifecycle to build lasting value for the organisations she supports.

Over a decade-long tenure at P&H Motorcycles, one of the UK’s leading motorcycle dealerships, Tej progressed through several key roles, culminating in her position as Director of Operations. In this capacity, she was responsible for ensuring that each department achieved its targets while adhering to brand standards, and she led the continuous evolution of the customer process through detailed reporting and analysis. Her leadership was instrumental in overseeing manufacturer targets and franchise standards across multiple brands, ensuring all teams worked cohesively toward a common goal.

Prior to her operational roles, Tej built a strong foundation in business support and marketing, developing a deep understanding of data-driven marketing and CRM implementation. This expertise has enabled her to develop and execute comprehensive customer retention and loyalty initiatives for major automotive brands like Jaguar Land Rover and Honda Motor Europe, where she contributed to global loyalty and customer engagement strategies.

Armed with a BA in English from Brunel University, Tej combines her strong academic background with a passion for building strong client relationships. She brings a unique blend of strategic vision and hands-on implementation to the Last Mile Consulting team, with a focus on crafting and executing solutions that not only meet but exceed client expectations.

Sue Tucker is an accomplished CIMA Management Accountant and former Finance Director with extensive experience spanning corporate environments and high-growth start-ups. Commercially astute and highly motivated, she has built a reputation for driving strategic financial leadership, implementing robust systems, and supporting organisations through periods of rapid growth and operational change.

Over her six years as Finance Director and member of the Senior Leadership Team at Emtac Limited, Sue played a pivotal role in shaping the financial and operational strategy of a fast-growth logistics stock finance start-up. Her leadership experience includes managing multi-disciplinary finance teams and delivering high-quality financial information to both internal and external stakeholders.

Prior to her role at Emtac, Sue ran a successful financial consultancy, supporting start-ups and SMEs with management accounting, training, and specialist projects. Earlier in her career, she held financial management roles across the healthcare, manufacturing, defence, and technology sectors, building the deep technical grounding that underpins her strategic leadership today.

Fully qualified and professionally accredited (CGMA, FMAAT), Sue also holds a BA (Hons) in Business Studies and a PGCE in Post-Compulsory Education. She combines strong technical capability with the ability to innovate, lead teams, and shape financial strategy—bringing clarity, structure, and value to every organisation she supports.