Dr Peter McEwen (Phd. FRES)
An experienced CEO of multiple businesses across 4 countries and 2 continents, Peter successfully sold and exited from his ventures, and established PKMCConsultants in 2023. A graduate of Hatfield Polytechnic (BSc Environmental Studies), and University of Wales, Bangor (Phd Medical Entomology), Peter has a long and distinguished career, initially in applied entomology, but principally in Business Development.
With extensive overseas experience (Spain, Finland, USA, South America, Asia) and 60 scientific publications on various subjects from South American blood sucking bugs, to Andalusian olive pests, Peter’s career took him away from academia in his 30s, when he established his first company, BCC Consultants, a generic consultancy business covering web design, teaching, book reviews, field entomology and work for the British Council. During this time, Peter was the Treasurer and committee member of the Welsh Government Welsh Pest Management Forum (WPMF)
After securing a contract with a Cardiff University company, Insect Investigations Ltd., Peter took the company out of the University in an MBO in early 2000, relocating the small research group to a business park outside Cardiff, and relaunching it as a Contract Research Organization, under the name i2LResearch. Over the following 20 years, Peter diversified i2LResearch to become a global brand, focussing on insecticide, herbicide, and fungicide testing for the major multinational agrochemical and household pesticide companies, with clients in Japan, China, Australasia, USA, the UK and the EU. As part of the company’s offering of laboratory, glasshouse, and field testing, Peter expanded the company in to Spain, the Czech Republic, and the USA, building up a ‘mini conglomerate’ of 4 limited companies, all under the i2LResearch name, in 4 countries and on 2 continents. During this time, sales grew by 6000% to a peak of £3m, employing 50 members of staff globally. In 2020, Peter sold i2LResearch to Cawood Scientific, a UK based analytical group. Subsequently, Cawood Scientific was itself sold to Ensign Bickford Industries, an aerospace and pet food conglomerate, based in Denver, USA. Peter stayed on as CEO, to assist with the transition of i2LResearch in to the larger group.
Establishing PKMCConsultants in 2023, Peter returned to his consultancy roots. His background in life sciences, his extensive international network, and his experience of setting up and growing companies, to the point of successful exit, allows PKMCConsultants to offer the following services:
Small business mentoring
Non Executive Directorship
Business growth coach
Trials placement, monitoring, and trouble shooting
Peter is married, with one grown up daughter, and three grown up step sons. His wife, Nadia, is from the South of France, so Peter is busy trying to learn French, to add to his conversational Spanish and Finnish. In the rest of his spare time, he is an avid gardener, a poor swimmer, and enjoys travel, reading, and socialising.