Graeme Donnelly in

Graeme Donnelly

Go-getter · DISC type d
Founder at 1st Formations
📍 United Kingdom

Graeme Donnelly is the Founder and CEO of 1st Formations and BSQ Group, a leading UK company formation service. With over 35 years of experience, he is dedicated to simplifying the process of starting a business, having helped hundreds of thousands of entrepreneurs. Colleagues describe him as a visionary, inventive, and dedicated leader.

Outside of work, Graeme draws inspiration from classic literature, business philosophy, and films. He enjoys reading crime novels, such as those by Elmore Leonard, and often uses quotes and analogies from books and movies to illustrate his business principles and share practical wisdom with other founders.

Graeme follows his grandmothers advice: "Never do business with anyone you meet in a pub, ” seeing it as a reminder to not confuse friendship with proven capability.

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Experience
26 Years
Current Role
Founder
Job Level
Leadership
Location
United Kingdom
Personality Overview

How Graeme shows up

Direct & Candid
Vision Oriented
Fast-Paced

They care equally about the product and its potential impact. They respond well to confident salespeople. They focus on objectivity in a pitch and pay little attention to bells and whistles.

Priorities

Topics Graeme cares about

Empowering Entrepreneurs
Has spent his 35+ year career building businesses like 1st Formations with the express purpose of helping entrepreneurs launch and grow their companies.
Business Philosophy
Frequently shares insights on leadership and growth, drawing from personal experience and thought leaders like Reid Hoffman to guide other founders.
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Career

Work history

1-2014
Founder
1st Formations
1-2014
Founder and CEO
1st Formations
5-2025
Founder
Linnear Legal
3-2023
Founder
71-75 Ltd
10-2020
Founder
Linnear COSEC
In the press

Media appearances

Founders Story – Graeme Donnelly, Founder of 1st Formations. Featured in 1st Formations
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Brexit hasn't impacted non‑Brits forming UK companies, but e‑commerce is booming – interview with 1st Formations CEO Graeme Donnelly. Featured in Investment Monitor
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Education
9-1978 - 5-1982
Bachelor of Science - BS
Glasgow Caledonian University
Social presence
in
Behavioral profile

DISC profile (public)

d

Dominance (D)

Dominance (D) reflects how goal and task oriented a person is, and their ability to accomplish results irrespective of how demanding the circumstances might be. Those scoring high tend to be motivated by winning, competition, and success.

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