Commercial Director | Trainer & Advisor
I help companies understand sustainability and make it commercially viable and practical.
Workshops • Training • Advisory
“Gavin combines commercial thinking with practical sustainability expertise. He focuses on what sustainability means in real business terms rather than theory or ESG reporting.”
-Nick Payne, MD, SA Brain
“What really sets Gavin apart is how well he gets both the sustainability world and the commercial one”.
-Group Managing Director, Retail Marketing & Logistics Company
"Gavin facilitated a full-day sustainability session for a room of people from the same sector but with very different commercial priorities. He managed something genuinely difficult - bridging real commercial pressures with genuine sustainability ambition, without making either feel like a compromise”.
-Cheryl Chung, Corporate & Government Affairs
RECENT WORK IN PRACTICE
The work takes different forms: embedded commercial and sustainability leadership, practical projects, workshops and capability building.
FRACTIONAL ROLE · 18 MONTHS
Retail marketing services business
Working within the agency to strengthen its ESG credibility and response to client tenders and RFPs across FMCG, food and beverage, tobacco and confectionery.
This included ESG audits linked to key client accounts, alongside development of a clear sustainability strategy, plan and measured pathway for the business.
STRATEGY
Craft brewery
Sustainability strategy and a practical pathway for the leadership team.
CAPABILITY BUILDING
Workshops, training and teaching
Work with an insurance PLC, the German National Tourist Board, a Corporate Sustainability Tutor for the Chartered Institute of Marketing and a Carbon Literacy Training Facilitator.
PRACTICAL ACTION
Carbon, cost & operational priorities + risk assessments
Carbon footprint audits and practical initiatives to reduce energy use, waste and cost + sustainability reviews and materiality assessments.
Business first
Before talking about sustainability in isolation, I start by understanding your business.
Where do you make money?
Where is margin being lost?
What is your proposition?
What do your customers value?
How do you compare with competitors?
What are the barriers to growth?
Where are the operational constraints?
Always applying a sustainability lens to identify the risks, opportunities and priorities that matter commercially.
How I Work
I use the issues businesses are facing as the basis for practical workshops, training and advisory that build business and sustainability knowledge, skills and capability.
Commercial Workshops
Practical, facilitated sessions built around issues such as:
Growth and strategy
Customer demands and changing markets
Sustainable products and propositions
Supply-chain and responsible sourcing
Cost, energy and resource efficiency
Carbon accounting and Scope 3
Climate and sustainability risk
Marketing’s role further up the value chain
Communications and greenwashing
Training
Building the business and sustainability knowledge, skills and capability teams need to understand these issues and act on them.
Advisory
Helping leadership teams turn the learning into practical strategies, plans, priorities and pathways.
About Me
I’m a Commercial Director with 25+ years’ experience across commercial strategy, growth, marketing, customer development and business improvement.
My career has spanned BBC Worldwide, Universal Pictures and mid-market leadership roles. Alongside that commercial experience, I have developed specialist expertise in sustainability, including sustainability strategy, ESG, carbon, responsible business and capability building.
I use both perspectives to help companies build the knowledge, skills and capability they need.
Commercial Experience
Commercial strategy & growth
Business improvement & performance
Marketing & customer development
Commercial sustainability
Leadership & change
Qualifications
MBA, Durham University Business School
Fellow, Chartered Institute of Marketing
Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership
Corporate Sustainability Tutor, Chartered Institute of Marketing
Carbon Literacy Trainer & Facilitator
Contact
Gavin Miller
London • Thames Valley
SOME CLIENT TESTIMONIALS
“Gavin combines commercial thinking with practical sustainability expertise. He focuses on what sustainability means in real business terms rather than theory or ESG reporting.
He provided clear, actionable advice and a coaching style that helped us rethink how we approached the challenges we were facing. He also delivered a written strategy document that gave us a practical foundation and pathway for moving forward.
It was a strong mix of commercial clarity, practical sustainability insight and hands-on support.” May 2026
-Nick Payne, Managing Director SA Brain
"Gavin facilitated a full-day sustainability session for a room of people from the same sector but with very different commercial priorities. He managed something genuinely difficult - bridging real commercial pressures with genuine sustainability ambition, without making either feel like a compromise.
His candour, warmth and depth of experience created an environment where people felt comfortable being honest and had their thinking genuinely challenged. Lively, enjoyable and substantive - a rare combination.
If you're looking for a facilitator who can hold a complex room and leave people energised, I'd recommend Gavin without hesitation."
-Cheryl Chung, Corporate & Government Affairs
“What really sets Gavin apart is how well he gets both the sustainability world and the commercial one. That mix meant we ended up with a strategy that wasn’t just ‘nice to have’ but something people could get behind and deliver. He brought our teams along for the ride and helped us talk to clients about it in a way that felt honest, inspiring, and practical.
He made a big difference to our journey. I’m really glad we had him on board and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him to anyone looking to do sustainability properly." November 2024
-Group Managing Director, Retail Marketing & Logistics Company
“Gavin consistently demonstrated an exceptional ability to engage audiences, from CEOs and senior directors to junior colleagues. His commercial leadership and deep ESG knowledge enabled teams to build practical capability that translated into meaningful outcomes.
He played a pivotal role in strengthening Acosta’s ESG credibility and retaining key clients. His impact as a commercial ESG professional is both lasting and measurable”.
-Michelle Carter, Interim Head of HR Acosta Europe
"We had a brilliant workshop with Gavin – lots of fantastic insights and a whole new perspective on sustainability and marketing in a sustainable world."
-German National Tourist Board
"Gavin is consistently helpful, knowledgeable, and a pleasure to work with. He's helped us to get started with clarity about sustainability and what this means in practice, well beyond carbon footprints. Thought-partnership in these early stages has been invaluable."
-Saskie Dorman, NHS Palliative Care Consultant, Forest Holme NHS Hospice
“We would like to thank Gavin Miller for his time with the Climate Partnership Steering Group. He has had a brilliant and useful impact on business interactions and the Climate Strategy.”
-RBWM Climate Partnership Committee Chair
