I don't feel competent to contribute here essentially to the discussion, but one thing I noticed in the past is, that people often create consulting companies a

I don't feel competent to contribute here essentially to the discussion, but one thing I noticed in the past is, that people often create consulting companies as "placeholder" spots. Meaning they are good at creating "real" businesses and when there is no high profile project for them to work on, consulting is a way that makes them feel busy. Not sure if the CEO is that kind of a person, but I would consider that option especially because of the "serial entrepreneur" background.