The Entreprenora Podcast features whip-smart founders, sharing candidly about their experiences. Flood your brain with inspiration, ideas, motivation, top-tips (and sporadic doses of off-road nerdiness!).
We've got some heavy-hitters, new-beginners, and everything in between. From founders who have grown businesses to near BILLION-dollar valuations to those who are bootstrapping from their home HQ. The learnings are deep and the stories are real. Join us and become a part of the conversation.
We've got some heavy-hitters, new-beginners, and everything in between. From founders who have grown businesses to near BILLION-dollar valuations to those who are bootstrapping from their home HQ. The learnings are deep and the stories are real. Join us and become a part of the conversation.
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Season Two: Growth & Mindset
In Season Two of the Entreprenora Podcast, we talk about stories of growth and the mindset and habits required to succeed. From riding the wild waves of pivoting and starting again, to dealing with recessions and external shocks, our founders share candid insights about how they grew, scaled, exited, "failed", or reinvented themselves and their businesses.
Season Two, Episode One: with Debbie Wosskow OBE, co-founder of The All Bright Collective
We kick off Season Two with the wonderful Debbie Wosskow OBE, angel investor and serial entrepreneur. Debbie tells us all about her early days in Sheffield (where her first business selling scrunchies won her a Young Enterprise award at 15!) and the ups and downs of growing and selling two successful ventures before co-founding The All Bright with Anna Jones. Debbie's tips on mindset, habits, and resilience are invaluable for founders at any stage of growth, and her candid insights about the importance of community offer a fresh perspective on forging a path to success with friend-preneurs and mentors at our side.
Season Two, Episode One: with Debbie Wosskow OBE, co-founder of The All Bright Collective
We kick off Season Two with the wonderful Debbie Wosskow OBE, angel investor and serial entrepreneur. Debbie tells us all about her early days in Sheffield (where her first business selling scrunchies won her a Young Enterprise award at 15!) and the ups and downs of growing and selling two successful ventures before co-founding The All Bright with Anna Jones. Debbie's tips on mindset, habits, and resilience are invaluable for founders at any stage of growth, and her candid insights about the importance of community offer a fresh perspective on forging a path to success with friend-preneurs and mentors at our side.
Season Two, Episode Two: with Sujata Rastogi CEO and Sophie Goddard CPO of You've Got This
In this episode, I talk to Sujata and Sophie about the serendipity often involved in finding the perfect early team members and the willingness to pivot and adapt that can be the lifeblood of an early-stage startup. From mindset hacks and taking care of business to becoming your own best advisor, Sujata and Sophie share advice that every new entrepreneur can benefit from. You've Got This is going to change the way we work, so join the conversation and get ready to glimpse the future!
Season Two, Episode Three: with Anna Szymanowska, founder of Fighter Shots
Join me and Anna and we talk about the Fighter Shots story, from finding a niche in the noisy health and wellness industry to the challenges of working with perishable products, and how her previous career as an industrial engineering helped lay the foundations for her logistics-heavy business. Using herself as her first customer "avatar" ("If they didn't sell, I could drink the inventory!..."), Anna formulated a range of delicious health shots that are taking London by storm. Her insights into doing what you love and using entrepreneurship to be 100% yourself are life-lessons and business-lessons all of us can take to heart.
Season Two, Episode Four: with Mex Faxon, founder of Mirza
In this electric conversation with Mel, we talk about her lightning fast pivot from closing down her first startup and launching her second. She shares how understanding her customer led to the creation of Mirza, and how she and her co-founder are working to close the gender pay gap through educating women about their bodies and providing essential financial planning tools. Mel offers invaluable tips for navigating the self-doubt, isolation, and external pressures that so many founders face, and her interview will leave you “ah-ha”-ing and “I didn’t know that”-ing. Tune in and get ready to rethink the way you look at your body and your finances.
Season Two, Episode Five: with Mel Berry, co-founder of HerSpirit
In this conversation with the wonderful Mel Berry we talk about the vision behind Her Spirit, a community that provides a fun, safe, and supportive space to get fitter and healthier on your terms and without the screaming distractions of what women "should" look like or "should" do to be fit. With community and well-being at the forefront of all of our minds, especially now, Mel's interview offers insights into a deeper and more sustainable version of health and fitness that nurtures the whole person, not just one muscle group.
Season Two, Episode Six: with Stacia Keogh, founder of Story Prez
Join me and Stacia Keogh as we take a wild story telling ride! Through Story Prez, Stacia has helped startups and big organizations uncover, structure, and deliver their unique stories in ways that create genuine connections and bring their founders and businesses to life. We talk about politics, gender, hidden bias and a host of other "taboos" as we dissect business paradigms and uncover the "heroine's journey." This is a thought-provoking interview that will help you think deeply about your own story and how you share it with your world!
Season Two, Episode Seven: with Rachel Carrell, founder of Koru Kids
In Episode Seven, Rachel and I get honest about her journey to founding Koru Kids and the dozens of discarded ideas until the ah-ha moment when she saw how deep the childcare problem was and decided to create a solution. Rachel shares her vision for fulfilling her maximum capability, bringing Koru Kids to the world, and helping families flourish each day. We talk about solving one of many Founder's Dilemmas (pivot or stay on course?), about the received wisdom that isn't always wise, and the importance of having a community of founders around you. Rachel's energy, honesty, and thoughtful approach to startup and solo-founder life will leave you buzzing and inspired.
Season Two, Episode Eight: with Aarti Parmar, founder of AP Brand Communications
In this episode Aarti and I talk about her fascinating business and spiritual journey from South East Asia to London and how "hanging out with monks" in her early 20s shaped who she became and how she formed her branding and communications business. That early "rewiring", the resilience she built from being professionally scared every day, and "experimenting" with her family business led Aarti to found a company that helps others create intentional and powerful brands. Aarti's interview will take you on a whirlwind ride through the mindset hurdles, self-discovery process, and purpose-focused questions all founders need to face.
Season Two, Episode Nine: with Sigrun, Business Mentor for Six- and Seven-Figure Online Entrepreneurs
Sigrun is the powerhouse behind SOMBA and the Self-Made Summit, and in this episode we talk about her journey of discovery, setbacks, internal doubts and the nagging feeling of knowing she was meant for something big, but not being quite sure what "it" was until she allowed herself to embrace and scale what comes naturally to her. Her story is one many founders can relate to, and her path to success and impact-at-scale offers invaluable insights about tuning into ourselves and creating profitable businesses that amplify our strengths. Sit back, take notes, and get ready for some serious ah-ha moments.
Season Two, Episode Ten: with Sara Duchovnay, Opera Soprano and founder of Songbird Sara Antique Jewelry
As a professional opera singer and antique jewelry curator, Sara knows how tricky it can be to have a foot in two worlds and navigate an un-pigeon-hole-able professional identity. In this episode, we talk about fine art, resilience, setting targets for rejection (yes that's right!), and the shared challenges performers and founders face. Through her operatic work and her fine jewelry business, Sara knows all about connecting with people in a deep and powerful way, and her refreshing enoughness - "I see 'colleagues' not 'competitors'" - sets a tone that all founders can sing along to.
Season Two, Episode Eleven: with Scarlett Allen-Horton, founder of Harper Fox Partners
What a thrill to have Scarlett with us for this episode! She is a powerhouse founder - who was also a top-TWO finalist in The Apprentice in 2019 - with a calm and unflappable approach to managing her global company through the challenges of COVID.
Scarlett shares openly about crisis management (the personal and professional kind), her "divorce" from a co-founder, tapping into her inner strength when she had only one month of living expenses left, and discovering new outlets to fuel her inner professional fire. Scarlett's honesty, calm confidence, and focus on positively impacting others is as inspiring as it gets. Listen in to hear from a true leader in every sense of the word.
Season Two, Episode Twelve: with Aron Gelbard, founder of Bloom & Wild
In this fabulous conversation with Aron, we talk about his journey from strategy consultant to co-founder of a beloved flower brand. We talk about the early days of growing Bloom & Wild, the shoe leather and grit required to build a business - "I walked around London hand measuring 100s of letter boxes and spent hours packing flowers" - and his industry-changing work with the Thoughtful Marketing Movement. His views on creating community, having an impact, and being customer focused are invaluable for founders at any stage, and his approach to growth, quality, and sustainability is a model for us all.
Season Two, Episode Thirteen: with Sara Milne Rowe, founder of Coaching Impact
Join me and the ever-insightful Sara Milne Rowe as we talk about her journey from performer, dancer, and inner city teacher to executive performance coach. Sara's work has armed dozens of leaders, teams, and organisations with the practices and tools they need to achieve the results they want and have an impact for good, and in this mind-expanding, deep-diving episode we talk about COVID, her must-read book The SHED Method (which Penguin Random House commissioned!), "encouraging courage", and about being better when it matters - lessons for leaders and founders at every stage of life and business.
Season Two, Episode Fourteen: with Felicia Myerowitz-Singh, founder of Akoni Hub
Throughout her journey as a fintech founder, Felicia has encountered it all: questions about what her husband thinks about her business (!), juggling the many pulls on her time and energy, hustling like crazy, and working on her mindset. In this whirlwind chat, we talk about the dangerous illusion of work-life balance, managing guilt, the subtle and not-so-subtle issues women founders face, deciding what you care about, and then owning what it takes to make it a reality, sacrifices and all. Felicia's advice for founders - "Be brave, find a mentor, find a support group, cut out negativity, and just do it!" - is a rallying cry to get $hit done despite the challenges and difficulties. After all, she reminds us, "You, and only you, can make your vision a reality."
Season Two, Episode Fifteen: with Helena Chan, founder of HYC Jewels and Add Salt Studios
Join me and Helena as we follow her journey from an international career at the UN and law to bespoke luxury jewelry and subscription fashion jewelry. We talk about seeking out new challenges, the "human factor" in business, following breadcrumbs of advice and ah-ha moments, and then taking measured steps towards your dream (not every business has to be leapt into!).
From seeking out mentors, to following your intuition, to partnering with the right people, Helena's story - and her beautiful jewelry! - are worth indulging in.
Season Two, Episode Sixteen: with Sandra McDermid, Life Coach
A self-proclaimed serial professional (accountant, tax lawyer, MBA student then management consulting), Sandra first considered Life Coaching after a period of family grief brought to light her natural talent for helping others "see a better way." In this episode, she shares invaluable and practical tough-love lessons for all of us: being self-full instead of burning out; being curious instead of judgemental; seeking harmony not balance; owning your decisions; and being kind to yourself when scheduling your time. Being a founder - and a person! - requires "a lot of hard stuff and you're not always gonna be happy... connect with that." But with someone like Sandra by your side, or in your ear, it's a lot easier to push through to the other side.
Season Two, Episode Seventeen: with Narisa Chauvidul-Aw, founder of Kogo Pay
What a great way to close out Season Two of the podcast! Narisa is an absolute breath of fresh air when it comes to talking about the guts and hustle required to start and grow an international fintech business that has a deep social mission as well.
Narisa shares candidly about the struggles that continue to chase founders even after they've "made it", the resilience needed to keep going, the support required from communities around us, and the quiet faith that comes from focusing on your own mission. Join us with a glass of bubbly, a hot cuppa, or just an ice-cold water, and refresh your founder's soul in this wonderful closing episode.