Mind Candy CFO Knowles moves to bring Pact to boil

THE CFO who helped bring Moshi Monsters into the lives of children up and down the country has taken the COO post at coffee start-up Pact Coffee.

Divinia Knowles is leaving Mind Candy after nine years, having spent her final year as boss of the company after its founder Michael Acton Smith stepped down in 2014.

During her spell as the company’s CFO, she built and established a finance function from the ground up.

“I was the finance department,” she told Financial Director during a 2012 interview. “So… having built the finance function from scratch, I have also educated [Acton Smith] about the way we plan things, the way we do business models – why that is important and you cannot go gung-ho.”

Subscription coffee service Pact has ambitious growth plans, with Knowles charged with growing the outfit from 50 to 500 people as it seeks to make a dent in the UK market.

“Pact is incredibly similar to Mind Candy seven or eight years ago,” Knowles told the Telegraph. “There’s a great vision and mission, a young team full of talented people, and some initial success which I will build on.”