The story
RE_SET was founded in 2017 by James and Sophie Bidwell as a next-generation strategy consultancy focused on navigating disruption. Our mission is to ‘Create a Better Future. Today.’ We put innovation, agility and sustainability on Board agendas as levers of strategic value creation in a disrupted world. Uniquely powered by Springwise (which we acquired in 2014), RE_SET was bold, ahead of its time and helped high profile clients reset their strategies for the future. We worked with the Boards of Grosvenor Estate, Eurostar, The Crown Estate, Tesco, Ingka, Arsenal FC, Primark, Michael Kors, the BFI, Cooper Consumer Health, Retirement Villages, The Eden Project and many others. RE_SET became one of the early UK B Corps in 2021.
By 2022, most of our projects were sustainability strategies and the market had caught up. The major strategy houses then entered the market and much of the value chain became commoditised. At this point we took the strategic decision to “reset ourselves”. We released our incredible team of “Re_Setters” and helped them find their dream jobs. They are now entrepreneurs, in Big Tech and in world-class consulting and sustainability roles.
Springwise, also a B Corp and 1% for the Planet member, re-launched in 2022 as a global thought leadership and membership platform. We grew quickly with clients from Edelman to CBRE and Kantar as well as forging influential partnerships dedicated to positive change with ChangeNOW and The Earthshot Prize. In 2024, Springwise was acquired by edie, the go-to media brand for sustainability in business.
Fast forward to today, and Sophie and James now focus on what RE_SET was born to do: influencing and agitating for positive and transformational change at the highest level. We continue to ‘Create a Better Future. Today’ with next generation leaders, in front of global audiences, and through our investments.
Read Sophie and James’ stories below.
The founders
Sophie Bidwell
Sophie is an entrepreneur and investor specialising in bold strategies and positive change. Her background is in private equity and investment banking. She advises Boards and Funds on their strategies for the future, invests in mission-aligned opportunities, and holds an active role as a speaker and facilitator at global events such as ChangeNOW, the World Retail Congress and Blue Earth Summit.
Before co-founding Re_Set in 2017 as a next-generation strategy consultancy, Sophie co-founded eNova, a high-end boutique strategy consultancy focused on digital, in 2010. Sophie spent the first 10 years of her career in roles at Goldman Sachs, Change Capital Partners and HgCapital.
As an investor, Sophie is strategic partner to CapitalD, a next-generation private equity fund, and runs a family office focused on positive change. She was an investor and board advisor in Spherics, the carbon accountability software bought by The Sage Group Plc in 2022, yReceipts, a digital receipts and data software solution merged into Eyos in 2020, and Springwise.com, the global innovation platform acquired by edie in 2024.
A commitment to positive change is the thread that runs through all Sophie’s current business activities. Re_Set is a B Corp.
James Bidwell
James specialises in leading positive and transformational change in business and has held many Board level and CEO roles. He outlines his philosophy in his Amazon-bestselling book, Disrupt! 100 Lessons in Business Innovation. He was listed in the Financial Times Creative Business Top 50, and named as one of London’s 1000 most influential by the London Evening Standard. During his time as Marketing Director at Selfridges, he was described as the “ring master extraordinaire” and “a theatrical agitator”.
James is also a high-profile speaker and commentator. He speaks regularly on navigating disruption, the rapid pace of change, the role of innovation in helping solve the climate crisis and how to achieve cultural shift. He is a visiting lecturer at the University of Bristol and Cambridge Judge Business School, a participant in the London Business School Innovation and Entrepreneurship programme, and an active supporter of The Earthshot Prize, Change Now and Rewilding Britain.
Committed to protecting and securing the future of the natural world, James set up the UK Steering Committee for 1% for the Planet, an international organisation, whose members contribute at least one per cent of their annual sales to environmental causes.
Disrupt! 100 Lessons in Business Innovation
Compiled by Springwise, the global innovation discovery engine, Disrupt! explains and highlights the best, most disruptive and most useful ideas of the 21st Century, showing which themes underpin their success and which ideas can best be used to drive creativity in your workplace, office or industry.
From London to Buenos Aires, from Beijing to Chicago, learn from the world’s most forward-thinking businesses how to disrupt, innovate, collaborate, learn new skills and do business better and more sustainably.
We live in remarkable times. These 100 extraordinary and inspiring innovations will help you ask questions, think creatively and create a positive future.
How to Buy
Order From: Bookshop.org | Waterstones
In the media
Our people, as featured in the news
Harnessing Innovation to Drive Sustainable Transformation
Sophie Bidwell on What makes a good impact investment?
James Bidwell on Embracing the Full Potential of Transparency and Traceability
Sophie Bidwell on the life-giving carbon cycle
James Bidwell on changing the ‘business as usual’ mindset
Sophie Bidwell in conversation with Satish Kumar
James Bidwell in conversation with ‘Doughnut’ economist Kate Raworth
Sophie Bidwell on resilience and adaptation
James Bidwell on designing sustainable and resilient cities
Sifted – how to fast-track your sustainability transformation
Edie – Re_Set leads discussions at Sustainability Leaders Forum
Impact All Stars – Sophie Bidwell on the ‘S’ in ESG
ESSEC – Alumna, Sophie Bidwell, on creating tomorrow today
Great British Brands – Why brands must innovate at pace
World Retail Congress – Re_Set predicts future of retail for 2022
Business Leader – Re_Set chair James Bidwell on what he loves about his electric car
Quartz at Work – How to build social impact into your career
