Mark Stuart is on a mission to grow Stuart Energy into Europe’s premier power generation business.
The Skelmersdale-based company’s generators power some of the UK’s most prestigious developments.
Mark Stuart founded Stuart Energy in 2017 alongside his dad Fred and brother Lee, and the company has been included in the Sunday Times Best Places to Work list for three successive years.
He’s the co-managing director and was identified as ‘one to watch’ in LDC’s Top 50 Most Ambitious Business Leaders in 2025.
In the latest episode of The Naked Founder podcast, Mark Stuart says following in the footsteps of a successful parent creates its own pressures.
Stuart Snr sold his previous business – Mather & Stuart – before coming together with his two sons, Mark and Lee, to go again by founding Stuart Energy.
Daughter Jane Stuart-Puttnam joined in 2024 after a long career in the education sector.
Mark told The Naked Founder podcast: “You see great footballers that have sons that go into football and you’re never as good as your father. There’s a bit of stigma attached to that.
“Let’s not forget that our father started with a B-reg Escort van and £250 in his pocket and he exited for high eight figures. That journey is incredible.
“To replicate that journey we’ve got massive boots to fill and the pressure we felt was immense.”
Hat-trick: Stuart Energy has been included in the Sunday Times Best Places to Work list for three successive years
At the heart of the company’s success is its ‘family first, work second’ approach.
Fred Stuart, who will be 80 this year, and his three grown-up children – Mark, Lee and daughter Jane – all continue to work in the business.
Mark calls his dad Fred at work and dad outside of work.
Despite the fact Lee is 54 and Mark is 44, their father still refers to them as ‘the boys’.
Mark said: “Fred always held Lee and I to a higher standard to the other employees. He was stricter on us than anybody else because we represent him at the end of the day.”
He said of their dad: “He’ll aways be the boss. We’ll always defer to him about decisions within the business. He does let us get on with it. He likes to keep one hand on the reins.”
Work has always been important for Mark and his siblings from an early age.
Work or want
“As kids it was a case of work or want,” he said. “If you wanted something you had to work for it and that type of work ethic stuck with us.”
Despite the previous eight-figure exit, Stuart Energy has always been bootstrapped – so much so that Mark and Lee assembled all the flatpack furniture himself in the early days.
Stuart Energy has achieved record growth and the target is to become the No 1 power generation business in Europe.
Hiring the best staff is crucial to Stuart Energy’s growth plans, which is why the company employs a unique three-stage recruitment process – ending with a trip to a restaurant.
Part one is an interview, part two is a practical and the final part is in a restaurant.
“One of the things I look for from new recruits is how they interact with other people,” said Mark.
Mark, who has just joined MukAway as a non-executive director, said luck is important when founding a business.
Stuart Energy siblings: Lee Stuart, Jane Stuart-Puttnam and Mark Stuart
“I wish someone had said to me (at the beginning) you need a huge tablespoon of luck to be successful,” he told The Naked Founder podcast.
The Naked Founder podcast is sponsored by Financielle and produced by Dan Brown.
You can listen to the latest episode here.