Houman Ashrafzadeh

Houman Ashrafzadeh is a serial entrepreneur of Iranian heritage who grew up in Sweden before building his career in London. After moving to the UK to study, he earned a Bachelor's degree in Business Management and a Master's in Finance from Bayes Business School (City, University of London). He began his career in investment banking and financial brokerage, spending over a decade in the City before a growing restlessness with corporate life pushed him toward entrepreneurship.

His first major venture came in 2019, when he co-founded Urban Greens, a salad bar chain that grew to four sites across London. He also established Coffydoor, a direct-to-consumer coffee brand in Sweden, backed by Spotify co-founder Martin Lorentzon — the same investor who would later become the founding partner of Ashrafzadeh's most ambitious project. In 2013, he had also set up 360 Capital Ltd, an introductory brokerage business, demonstrating a consistent appetite for identifying and filling market gaps.

The idea for Padium — London's first premium indoor padel club — emerged during visits back to Sweden, where padel had grown into something close to a national obsession. Ashrafzadeh was struck by the absence of high-quality facilities in the UK and determined to replicate the premium Swedish padel experience for London's professional community. In 2021 he founded Padium, securing Lorentzon as an equal partner after pitching the concept to him at dinner. The club opened in Canary Wharf in August 2023.

Padium's flagship site spans 30,000 square feet and features nine courts, premium amenities, and coaching from British No.1 player Jorge Martinez. The club has attracted over 17,000 court bookings and 12,000 customers since opening. Ashrafzadeh raised £1.6 million to fund expansion, with ambitions to become the UK's largest premium padel brand and to open the club's first US location. He is a member of Helm (formerly The Supper Club), a community for established founders.