Restore: Commercial and Natural Capital Director

The nature restoration service provider, Restore is looking to recruit a Commercial and Natural Capital Director to help the company grow and scale over the next 10+ years.

Common Crane (Grus grus) in flight

Restore specialises in ecological restoration projects for landowners across the UK, underpinned by the natural capital and financial advice. The company, formerly known as Restored Land Limited, Restore is a specialist nature restoration service provider for larger farms and estates, working on long-term, trust-based management contracts for nature recovery projects. Founded in 2023, by field naturalist and author, Benedict Macdonald, the company has a land portfolio of over 70,000 acres, with plans to extend its portfolio to 500,000 acres by 2034.

The Commercial and Natural Capital Director will be entrepreneurial and driven, see and create new business opportunities across the company’s land-management portfolio, whilst retaining a CFO capability to ensure the day-to-day financials, targets and overall commercial strategies remain sound and effective. You will rapidly increase short and long-term nat cap revenue streams, delivering for our business and critically, for our landowning clients.

The candidate will maintain Restore’s existing natural capital products and proactively structure, create and innovate new natural capital products and natural capital deals. In the capacity of a CFO, you will steer day to day commercial decision making at the business at a senior level, with a high degree of delegated responsibility, reporting only to the founding director and Board. Analysing the company both through the numbers and in terms of workflow and cash-flow, you will adroitly identify and proactively help improve areas of commercial productivity across the board, including staffing and staff decision-making, use of company time, ensuring each project remains profitable and viable, and helping steer major company decisions regarding commercial productivity. The candidate will proactively seek to maximise further commercial opportunities such as ecotourism, commercial lets or corporate events, whilst serving client needs. You will leverage Restore’s land portfolio and connections within NGOs and government, to enhance the company’s ability to allow its clients to access government funding streams. You would be an integral member of the senior management team, dovetailing your insights into other areas, such as its impact/vision, client needs, special projects and land management workflow. In time, you would be expected to manage a growing team on the commercial side, including a land finance agent and other natural capital specialists.

The candidate will have excellent interpersonal and business skills, proven track record of generating major financial growth of a land-based portfolio, and innovative expertise in natural capital that extends beyond knowledge of markets into practical implementation. You will demonstrate many of the skills of a top-level CFO, whilst having the adaptability, work ethic and team-work abilities of a startup entrepreneur. Your track record of success in commerce and natural capital, proven record of delivery and character in business, is more important to us than prior qualifications.

Remuneration as a senior-level director position and salaries will be competitive, further details to be shared to candidates selected for interview.

The senior team will select the top six candidates for a two-stage interview process. The first will be with the founder and director, and two senior partners, and the second with the Board of Company Directors. If successful, you will be notified immediately.

Further information about the position and application details can be found here.