ADVISORY & EXECUTION SUPPORT
FOR SPORTS, FITNESS & LIFESTYLE BUSINESSES
Working with owners, boards, and leadership teams on execution.
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What We Do
Global Sports Advisory Ltd is the independent advisory practice of John Gearing.
John Gearing works directly with owners, boards, and leadership teams in sports, fitness, and lifestyle businesses on strategy, execution, and international growth. The focus is on decision quality, execution risk, and organisational effectiveness at senior levels, particularly where complexity and scale increase the cost of error.
ADVISORY FOCUS
Brand Acquisition & M&A Advisory
Buy-side and sell-side advisory for consumer brand transactions. Target identification, deal structuring, partner negotiation, and execution support — with particular depth in APAC and cross-border deals.
International Market Entry
Strategy and execution for brands entering or scaling in Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and beyond. Market selection, distribution models, partner governance, and the operational discipline to make expansion stick.
Board & NED Advisory
Independent non-executive and advisory board roles for consumer brands in sport, fitness, fashion, and retail. Bringing an operator's perspective to governance, strategy, and international growth decisions.
CEO Coaching Programme
A structured six-month engagement for CEOs and founders who want a sharper outside perspective. Built around the frameworks in The CEO Mirage and applied directly to your business. Two sessions per month.
WHO JOHN WORKS WITH
Founder-led and PE-backed businesses.
Boards and owners requiring independent operating judgment.
Leadership teams scaling across markets, brands, or geographies.
ABOUT JOHN GEARING
John Gearing is an operator and advisor with senior leadership experience in global sports and lifestyle businesses across Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East.
His background includes executive roles with Adidas, VF Corporation, and Kontoor Brands, with responsibility for market entry, brand turnarounds, and large-scale operational growth. Today, he works independently with owners and boards on strategy, execution, and governance.
John holds an MBA from Edinburgh Business School, with executive education in leadership at INSEAD and private market investments at Saïd Business School. His formal training covers leadership, governance, capital allocation, and private-market decision-making.
John is the author of The CEO Mirage, which examines the leadership myths, incentives, and distortions that quietly derail businesses. The thinking behind the book underpins his advisory work.
CONTACT
For advisory enquiries: gsa@johnbgearing.com