‘The reality of being a founder…you make it up as you go along!’
More Founder Stories
6 ways to create a killer brand
Why do some brands fly? What is it exactly that makes the ‘feel’ of a product or service so instantly enticing that it attracts customers like a magnet? To find out from someone who’s built one of the most successful UK brands of the past 10 years, we interviewed Juliet Barratt, co-founder of sports-nutrition brand […]
HOW A SHOP IN BOLTON GREW INTO A £30M GLOBAL FINTECH
Many people begin their lives with uncertainty, unsure of the paths they will take or the heights they will reach. This is the story of Aftab, whose story is one of extraordinary achievement and perseverance in the face of uncertainty and daunting challenges. Ace Money Transfer started out as the most unprepossessing of fledglings but […]
We made millions from Spandex costumes…then we nearly lost it all
MorphCostumes is an online fancy dress costume retailer founded in 2009 by brothers Ali and Fraser Smeaton and their flatmate Gregor Lawson. The company started as a small online business selling full-body skintight costumes – commonly referred to as Morphsuits, after the founders noticed their popularity at a stag do. In 2014, the Edinburgh-based company […]
‘How we’re building a £200m business’
The Skinny Food Co sells low-calorie products such as ketchup, beef jerky, low-carb rice and ‘100% Pure Cookie Dough Skinny Peanut Butter’. It sells online through its website and via the likes of Morrisons, Spar, B&M, and Holland & Barrett. Wayne Starkey and James Whiting co-founded the Nottingham-based company in 2018 with £3,000. The pair […]
Lessons from a ‘Best 100’ company: Hire on attitude, not skill
Moneypenny is the biggest and fastest-growing company of its type in the world. Founded by sister and brother Rachel and Ed Reeves in 2000 from a £10,000 investment, it provides call-answering, digital switchboard, live chat and tech based communication channels to 225,000 clients around the world – from small start-ups to Google-sized corporates. These impressive […]
FROM BRITISH KICKBOXING CHAMPION TO A £23M COMPANY IN FEBE’S G100
How Andrew Wright harnessed the self-discipline learned from championship fight training to unleash a multimillion-pound retail business. What do elite pugilism and entrepreneurship have in common? A great deal if you ask 36-year-old former British kickboxing champion turned company founder Andrew Wright. Don’t worry, we’re not about to duck and dive into a series of […]