Recognised among today’s top marketing speakers, Timothy’s journey from launching his first company at just 14 to building and selling multiple ventures before the age of 30 has made him a rising star on the global stage.
As one of the most in-demand inspirational leadership speakers and a go-to expert in business and economics, he shares powerful insights on digital growth, entrepreneurial leadership, and how brands can build lasting loyalty with Gen Z in an era of rapid disruption.
In this exclusive interview with The Champions Speakers Agency, Timothy reflects on the early lessons that shaped his career, the realities of scaling a business from scratch, and what it really takes for brands to stay relevant and impactful in today’s hyper-competitive digital economy.
Q: Timothy, you founded Fanbytes after already launching and selling earlier ventures as a teenager. What sparked your entrepreneurial journey so early, and how did those first experiences shape the way you built Fanbytes?
Timothy Armoo: “Yes, good question. Fanbytes is actually my third company. I started my first at 14. Then my second business, which I ended up selling, was called Entrepreneur Express. That was the venture that really got me into social media, because it was a business media publication — kind of like Entrepreneur or Fast Company.
“But the thing I was really good at was growing these Facebook pages centred around motivation. I would take the traffic from those pages and direct it to the site.
“So, when I eventually sold that business, I looked at what had been most valuable, and I realised it was actually the Facebook pages that had been the most interesting and powerful asset. That was what got me thinking — this is where the magic is.
“In my second year at university, I thought, “Wow, okay, wouldn’t it be cool if we could do this at scale — not just for one business, but across every vertical?” And as someone who was part of Gen Z, I decided the market to focus on would be the Gen Z audience. That’s pretty much how it all started.”
Q: As Fanbytes scaled from a small start-up to a 60-person company generating multimillion-pound revenues, what were the most significant challenges you faced as a founder — and how did you personally navigate those hurdles?
Timothy Armoo: “There were so many challenges — the struggles came from all directions, because everything was new. Today, we’re around 60 people, we’ve raised millions for the business, and we’re generating multiple millions in revenue. But as with anything that’s new, you basically figure it out as you go along.
“I think the core issue is that you don’t know what you don’t know. When we were six people, there were so many things I didn’t even realise I didn’t know. You end up on this ever-evolving journey of learning and learning and learning.
“There are all sorts of struggles — hiring, motivating people, marketing, sales — but the overarching challenge is managing the constant uncertainty and gaps in your own knowledge. You have to be confident and comfortable navigating that uncertainty. That’s probably the single biggest underlying challenge.”
Q: Fanbytes has become a standout leader in connecting brands with Generation Z. From your insider perspective, what are your top three strategic tips for brands that want to genuinely engage and win the loyalty of Gen Z consumers?
Timothy Armoo: “First, people often think Gen Z are these massively different creatures compared to older audiences — but that’s not true at all. What’s different is that we’ve grown up with the phone as our remote control to the world. It’s very easy for us to amplify things we like and amplify things we don’t like.
“When you look at it that way, you realise the myth that Gen Z have short attention spans is just that — a myth. It’s not that Gen Z have short attention spans; they have short interest spans. You can’t say someone has no attention span if they’re also spending 10 hours watching Netflix. It’s about being interested.
“So, the first key is storytelling. Stories are what rule the world.
“The second point is to understand that every social feed is like a TV show. The people who get promoted most in those feeds are the ones who make the individual’s “TV show” look good. The brands that succeed are the ones helping people create the best possible content and make them look cool.
“Look at brands like Gymshark. Gymshark built a whole brand and movement where if you’re associated with them, you’re seen as a cool person. Another example is Blinkist, the book summary app — the way they market makes it feel cool to be someone who’s using it.
“It’s all about understanding that everyone is essentially their own TV show, and as a brand, your job is to help them look good to their audience.”
Q: In today’s hyper-competitive digital marketing landscape, what do you believe is the real secret to not only capturing but sustaining audience attention over time — especially among younger, digitally native audiences?
Timothy Armoo: “It sounds simple, but honestly — just be interesting.
“Again, the reason people spend hours watching Bridgerton or similar shows is because the stories are interesting. When you lead with storytelling, rather than just pushing “Here’s my product, here’s my product,” that’s when you really win.
“Capturing attention is about being interesting. Sustaining attention is about consistently being part of the cultural conversation your audience is engaged in.
“A lot of people think the way to win big is to spend a lot of money, run big-budget campaigns, and so on. But the smart brands are the ones that focus on trends — on the ongoing conversations happening in culture — and they consistently show up in small, meaningful ways.
“Many old-school marketers are used to the TV advert model, the “big bang” approach. But today, it’s about small, consistent contributions to the cultural conversation. That’s what really works.”
This exclusive interview with Timothy Armoo was conducted by John Hayes of The Champions Speakers Agency.