Aaron Simpson is a British businessman, entrepreneur and former film producer. He is the co-founder and executive chairman of Quintessentially Group, an international members-only lifestyle management company and concierge group. Simpson is also a founding trustee of the Quintessentially Foundation. A former film producer, Simpson has worked with Scala Films, Rocket Pictures and he founded his own company, Flashlight Films.
Early life and education
Simpson was born in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, England, the son of teacher and shoe manufacturer. Simpson was educated at Oxford University. He studied geography and achieved a 2:1. He was elected Steward at St Edmund Hall. He founded the Oxford and Cambridge Shakespearian Festivals producing over 300 plays in those university towns.
Career
Early career
Simpson worked in film production as an assistant photocopier for Steven Woolley's Scala Films, the production company behind Interview with the Vampire and the Oscar-winning The Crying Game. After a year with the production company, Simpson was promoted to head of development. Later, Simpson began working as a producer at Elton John's Rocket Pictures before starting his own production company, Flashlight Films.
Quintessentially
Simpson co-founded Quintessentially Group in 2000 with Ben Elliot and Paul Drummond. Simpson serves as the group executive chairman. Simpson and Drummond met at Oxford and started the company with Elliot as a small, London-based concierge service. Since then, Quintessentially Group has expanded to 78 countries with over 1,500 employees, 33 sister businesses, and works with over 400 outside brands. In 2017, Simpson began work on the "world's biggest superyacht", the Quintessentially One, backed by five billionaire investors. The 722-foot yacht is scheduled to launch in 2019.
Other activities
Simpson is involved in various other companies serving as a consultant and board member of businesses such as The Entrepreneurs Exchange, which assists young entrepreneurs develop their ideas and concepts into new ventures. He serves as a Non-Exec Director of HeadBox - an Airbnb for event spaces. He is the Founder of Kindred.co a new marketplace for Brands and Advocates. He is Non- Exec Chairman of Lexihealth - a healthcare company to assist patients navigate the UKhealthcare system. He also serves as non-executive director of the Moon Ltd. – 3D Virtual World 365, and non-executive director at Idris Ltd. In 2014, Simpson started an online investment platform with David Mickler and Lex Deak called Q Ventures, which has raised over £50m in capital for new ventures. Simpson has invested in other ventures including Velocity, an e-commerce mobile app.
Philanthropy
In 2008, Simpson and other executives of Quintessentially started the Quintessentially Foundation, a charitable organisationoperated by a board of trustees. As one of the founding trustees, Simpson has raised donations for various charities around the world through affairs such as auctions and events. The Foundation has raised over £14m for good causes. Simpson has created the platform Kindred.co to specifically raise money for charities via social networks. Its aim is to be one of the most significant donor to charities worldwide.
