Timpson attended Uppingham School and gained a Bachelor of Arts degree in geography from Durham University before joining his family business.

[1] He was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2011 Birthday Honours list for services to training and employment for disadvantaged people.

He was the co-chair of the Small Business, Scale ups and Entrepreneurs Council, alongside Brent Hoberman and Emma Jones.

[7] In March 2021, he was reappointed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, as a trustee of Tate for a four-year period.

[9] Timpson wrote a column on business and leadership for The Sunday Times[10] throughout 2021, and this inspired his book The Happy Index: Lessons in Upside-Down Management, which was published in February 2024 by HarperCollins.