RECOGNISING OPPORTUNITY
CREATING COMMERCIAL ADVANTAGE
THE FOUNDER
DAVID ABINGDON.
Commercial Strategist. Business Builder.
Recognising Change. Creating Opportunity.
For more than three decades I’ve been fascinated by one question:
Why do some people recognise commercially significant opportunities while others walk straight past them?
Throughout my career I’ve worked across multiple industries, building businesses, developing commercial models and helping organisations grow.
The industries have changed. The technologies have changed. The opportunities have changed.
But one thing hasn’t.
I’ve always started by asking:
“What has changed… and what does that make possible?”
That philosophy eventually became Commercial Leverage Group.
Every commercially significant opportunity begins with something that catches our attention.
The difference is what we do next.
RECOGNITION IN ACTION
From Clue to Commercial Advantage
Throughout my career I’ve learned that sustainable commercial advantage begins with recognising something others haven’t yet seen. These are four examples.
Recognised that the greatest commercial opportunity lay in distribution rather than the insurance product itself.
Outcome
Built a national direct sales operation from the ground up.
£35m ($70m) recurring at 2.5 years
Recognised that the greatest opportunity wasn’t another insurance product, it was reinventing how income protection was sold.
Outcome
£4.5m ($9m) first year.
Recognised that consultancy itself could become a scalable commercial system rather than a traditional advisory business.
Outcome
Built one of the UK’s & Australia's fastest-growing business development organisations.
Recognised that business knowledge could be commercialised globally through partnerships and licensing instead of one-to-one consulting.
Outcome
Expanded into more than 20 countries.
COMMERCIAL THINKING BACKED BY RESULTS
35+
Years building businesses.
5
Businesses launched that made multi-millions in Year One.
300+
Largest organisation built and managed.
8
Countries where David has spoken at business events.
2
Published business books.
32+
Business systems and commercial manuals created.
Commercial Leverage Group is built upon years of observation, experimentation and practical commercial experience.
Along the way I’ve published books, developed business systems, spoken internationally and documented ideas that continue to shape the way CLG thinks today.
PUBLISHED WORKS
SPEAKING
Business conferences, seminars and corporate events throughout:
UK, Australia, USA, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, France and India.
MEDIA RECOGNITION
Featured across television, radio, newspapers and business publications
See below:
LESSONS FROM
THIRTY-FIVE YEARS
Commercial advantage usually comes from seeing what others haven’t yet recognised.
“What has changed?”
“What does this make possible?”
Ideas don't change business. Execution does.
Commercial advantage usually comes from seeing what others haven’t yet recognised.
Commercial thinking isn’t industry-specific. The same principles work across industries because they’re based on observation, not sector expertise.
It's still the most valuable commercial question.
RECOGNISED & TRUSTED
Over the years people have often described the results. More interestingly, they’ve described the thinking behind them.
DAN PEÑA
“David Abingdon is certainly an ‘out of the box’ phenomenon. In the 20+ years I’ve known him, he’s built five multi-million organisations from scratch. His hands-on approach has been instrumental in driving growth for many businesses.”
Founder, Guthrie Group - 'The Trillion Dollar Man'
KERWIN RAE
“David... By far the most comprehensive, detailed and step-by-step system for business and consultancy success that I have ever seen.”
Founder & CEO, K2
CARL ALLEN
“Probably the most invigorating professional experience of my career. Cheaper and infinitely more practical than an MBA… David’s confidence in me and investment in my success made all the difference.”
Founder & CEO, The Wealth Society
MEDIA & INDUSTRY RECOGNITION
THE AGE
CHANNEL 4
THE SYDNEY HERALD
DAILY MAIL
BRW
WEALTH CREATOR
THE INDEPENDENT
DAILY EXPRESS
THE MONEY PROGRAMME
MARKETING MAGAZINE
THE SCOTSMAN
BBC 1
THE AUSTRALIAN
SUNDAY TIMES
THE GUARDIAN
MAIL ON SUNDAY
PERSONAL SUCCESS
HINDUSTAN TIMES
103.8 DUBAI EYE
FINANCIAL REVIEW
VENTURE ONLINE
BBC RADIO 4
WHY COMMERCIAL LEVERAGE GROUP EXISTS
Commercial Leverage Group wasn’t created to promote a particular technology or methodology.
It exists because every generation brings new commercially significant opportunities.
Some businesses recognise them.
Most don’t.
CLG exists to help bridge that gap.
AITRA is the first flagship initiative developed from that philosophy.
It won’t be the last.
A PERSONAL NOTE
Looking back, I’ve realised that I’ve never been particularly interested in following conventional business models.
What has always fascinated me is recognising commercially significant opportunities that others haven’t yet recognised, then building practical businesses around them.
Some ideas succeeded beyond my expectations.
Others taught me valuable lessons.
Both have shaped the way I think today.
Commercial Leverage Group is the natural expression of everything I’ve learned about recognising opportunities and turning them into commercial advantage.
Every business I’ve built, every commercial model I’ve developed and every organisation I’ve helped grow has reinforced one belief: Commercially significant opportunities are rarely hidden, they’re simply recognised by those who have learned where, and how, to look".
Recognition is only valuable when it leads to action.
LET'S START A CONVERSATION
Whether you’re responding to change, exploring new ideas or simply wondering whether there are commercially significant opportunities your business hasn’t yet recognised…
I’d welcome the opportunity to talk.
RECOGNISING OPPORTUNITY
CREATING COMMERCIAL ADVANTAGE
info@CommercialLeverage.com
CommercialLeverage.com
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