Marc Vlessing

Marc is co-founder of Pocket Living, where he was CEO for 20 years and is now Chair.  In 2017 Marc was awarded an OBE for services to housing delivery.  Pocket was London’s first private developer of affordable starter homes. The company has delivered some 2000 homes with another 1000+ in the pipeline. Pocket’s innovation lies in combining purposeful and affordable high-quality design for single and couple households with a policy and brand approach that allows it to tap into both public and private finance.  In 2016 the US real estate major Related Companies became its major shareholder. Prior to Pocket, Marc worked in the media and entertainment sectors as CEO of Crescent Entertainment, owners of theatres and cinemas. He also produced and wrote a number of award-winning feature films.  He started his career at County NatWest, where he became an assistant director in corporate finance with responsibility for corporate work in the Benelux and in the media sectors. Marc also chairs ProVen Growth & Income VCT, one of the UK’s largest VCTs and is Senior Partner at Namier Capital, a London-based advisory firm that leverages its investment and corporate finance expertise across businesses in Energy Transition, Healthcare and the Creative Industries. Marc maintains his sanity by playing the saxophone (jazz).