Matthew Clark

Entrepreneur / Investor / Growth expert

“Clearly, the thing that’s transforming is not the technology — it’s the technology that is transforming you”

Jeanne W. Ross, MIT

About

Hi, I’m Matt.

Matt Clark is a UK-born entrepreneur and growth expert based close to Amsterdam, where he lives with his Dutch wife and three daughters. After a 15+ year career driving strategy, marketing, and digital transformation at brands including Nike, Uber, and eBay, Matt now builds and invests in businesses that blend brand, performance, and operational scale.

Matt is currently building three ventures with a single unifying philosophy: Combine creativity with commercial discipline, use technology to unlock scale + leverage, combine hands-on execution with long-term strategic thinking.

  • DEN (2023) is a design-led furniture brand built through smart acquisition. DEN is known for increasing the accessibility of premium design furniture with a seamless customer experience.

  • Growth Story (2023) combines the creativity of an ad agency and the financial focus of a PE partner. Matt acts as Fractional CMO, helping high-potential companies scale profitably.

  • Van Clark (2020) is a private investment vehicle for a UK residential property portfolio and start-up seed investments.

Matt is known for applying a creative approach to business strategy — challenging the status quo, to reimagine business models, GTM strategies, and operations. With a tech-first approach, he builds businesses that are brand-led, data-driven, and operationally lean.

Matt holds an Executive MBA from IE Business School (Dean’s List, 2021) and a BA in Political Science from the University of Leeds (2008).

#1 Vision.

Identify opportunities. Identify solutions. Share a vision.

 

#2 Plan.

Develop plans. Identify supporting capabilities. Align organisation.

 
 

#3 Act.

Resource. Implement. Measure. Optimise.

 
 
 

#4 Grow.

Capture value. Take forward learnings. Iterate + repeat.

Matt Clark.jpg

“I believe digital has the power to transform every organisation. The key to successful transformation starts and ends with people.”

People + Process + Technology

Track record

Key roles

  • Investor

    Van Clark is a private investment vehicle for a UK residential property portfolio and start-up seed investments.

  • Founder

    DEN is a design-led furniture brand known for increasing accessibility of premium design furniture with a seamless CX..

  • Founder

    Growth Story helps high-potential companies scale profitably. Matt acts as Fractional CMO, combining creativity and financial focus.

  • Head of Strategy

    I led the Strategic Programs team at Uber. 25+ talents responsible for optimising + elevating the CX for Uber Eats users across EMEA.

  • Global Head of Strategy

    I previously led strategy globally for the classifieds division of ebay, focused on Marketing + Growth. More than a 1B weekly users.

  • Marketing Director

    I established the Consumer Knowledge function within Marketing in the Nike EMEA business. Leading digital + data tranformation.

  • Strategy + Analytics Lead

    At Wunderman Thompson, I led analytics and strategy workstreams to drive insight based digital strategies.

  • Founder

    In 2010, I founded Userlfow a international boutique agency, which grew quickly through a focus on performance + customer experience.

Organsiations

Key skills

  • Marketing

    Deep experience in developing + executing marketing strategies to drive incremental awareness, engagement, purchase + loyalty.

  • Strategy

    In particular, defining competitive advantage by identifying market opportunities + deploying technology to drive new business growth.

  • Leadership

    Experienced in building + leading high performing teams. Developing agile performance management systems (e.g. OKRs) + coaching for excellence.

  • Digital Transformation

    Extensive experience connecting people, process + technology to deliver breakthrough transformation in the digital era.

  • Data

    Unlocking the value of data as a strategic asset through insights, personalisation + measurement across functions.

  • Technology

    Utilising technology for more than 25 years to create + capture value. With a focus on mobile, data, cloud + automation.

Education

Executive MBA

I hold an Executive MBA from IE Business School in Madrid.

The EMBA at IE is an intense program, combining best in class academics, case analysis and business development, with an entrepreneurial and digital focus.

IE Business school was ranked #4 in Europe, #9 Globally in 2021.

GPA: 3.94 (4.0 scale). Dean's List (top 10%). Beta Gamma Sigma.

  • Yale School of Management

    During my EMBA studies. I joined an exchange program at Yale SOM.

    Grade: 4.0 GPA

  • Harvard Business School

    Prior to the EMBA, I completed the CORe program at HBS.

    Grade: Pass with Honors

  • University of Leeds

    I completed my undergrad in Political Science at the University of Leeds.

    Grade: 2:1

 

Contact Matt.

If you think there could be an opportunity for us to work together, please reach out to me – I’d love to hear from you. I aim to reply within 24 hours.