Have you considered revisiting and updating your recruitment firm’s pricing structure? Andrew Mears had the same idea. That’s why he co-founded Lead Candidate, a specialist search firm serving the pharma and bio-outsourcing sector with a pricing structure that prioritizes transparency, partnership, and predictable revenue. Lead Candidate adopted a novel fixed project cost subscription model, making their services 20-30% more cost-effective than traditional contingent fee structures.
In this episode, Andrew unpacks how they went from break-even to 133% revenue growth by rethinking everything: pricing, positioning, sales, even internal rituals like “Tom’s Day of Bad Ideas.” You’ll learn how their flexible subscription model works, why they built the business with their market, and how they’ve grown entirely through relationships, not cold outreach.
Andrew started his career in HR before leaping to the recruitment industry, and for the last 16 years, he’s grown national and international practices.
Episode Outline and Highlights
- [3:24] From HR to headhunting: Why Andrew left a high-paying COO role to start over during COVID, and how a personal health scare shifted his perspective
- [12:22] How Andrew co-founded Lead Candidate and built a flexible subscription model instead
- [22:30] How Lead Candidate defined a “niche within a niche” to create a standout proposition
- [31:55] “Capsule” vs. “Scale” vs. Annual Subscription: how their pricing works and why clients love it
- [43:39] Why the business broke even for two years and then tripled during the industry downturn
- [56:42] The secret to landing clients without cold outreach or outbound sales
- [01:08:06] “Tom’s Day of Bad Ideas”: how this internal ritual drives real innovation
- [01:19:20] AI in recruitment: how they’re using tools like Quill to create more space for human interaction
Business Model Innovation: Why the Subscription Model Works in Executive Search
Andrew and his team at Lead Candidate designed a non-traditional, highly tailored pricing structure to address industry-wide dissatisfaction with the legacy percentage-based commission model. Rather than charging clients a fixed percentage of a hire’s annual salary in three installments (as is standard in recruitment), they created custom fixed-cost projects based on client needs and scope. These projects are delivered via subscription models, typically lasting three (capsule), six (scale), or more months, offering predictability and flexibility for clients.
Their pricing is developed collaboratively with clients and accounts for factors like project complexity, number of hires, and economies of scale. This structure supports startups and growth-stage companies, especially those with tight cash runways, by providing cost transparency, budgeting certainty, and continued service engagement. It also positions the firm as a long-term partner rather than a transactional vendor, helping to build stronger, more embedded client relationships and higher retention. The firm’s deliberate approach of involving clients in shaping services and pricing further strengthened trust and buy-in.
Below is the structure of their pricing model:
- No traditional % fee: Avoids the standard percentage of salary model split into retainer/shortlist/completion fees.
- Fixed project pricing: Each recruitment project has a custom fixed cost, tailored to the company’s specific hiring needs.
Subscription-based:
- Capsule projects: Short-term, typically 3-month subscriptions for smaller or single-hire engagements.
- Scale projects: Mid- to long-term, 6+ month subscriptions, generally involving 3 or more hires.
- Longer engagements: Can extend to 10–18 months based on scope and client growth plans.
A Values-First Growth Story
Andrew’s journey is filled with lessons for founders building purpose-driven recruitment firms. The Lead Candidate didn’t chase revenue at all costs. It was not an easy journey at all with the business just breaking even for the first two years. But they stuck to their niche, doubled down on quality, hired with care, and let word-of-mouth do the work.
“You know, stay true to your purpose, stay true to your cause, stay true to your niche. Don’t diversify. Focus on what you’re doing. It will come. And, you know, I was going out to trade shows and meeting people…”
By 2024, they’d grown 133% in revenue and 250% in headcount—without compromising their delivery model or culture. “We built the business the market told us it needed,” Andrew says. “And we just stayed true to it.”
To our resilient recruiters and business owners listening out there, keep in mind that there will always be a point of struggle, but just like with so many of our valued guests sharing their story of resilience, a transition to success is always possible.
A “No Cold Calls” Approach That Works
While most recruitment founders launch with cold outreach and job scraping, Andrew took a different approach, with no cold calls, mass emails, or outbound campaigns.
Instead, Lead Candidate was built by listening first. Before launching, they surveyed their target market, involved prospects in co-creating the offer, and leaned on relationships, referrals, and meaningful conversations. Their early clients didn’t need convincing; they felt invested from the start.
The result? A high-conviction pipeline, sticky clients, and zero time wasted on unqualified leads.
“We never sold. We just listened. The worst outcome was a great conversation.”
This approach shows recruitment agency owners how to grow through relevance and trust, not tactics, and proves that deliberate positioning can be more powerful than relentless prospecting.
