Business Leader

At the height of Covid in 2021, Olivia Jenkins felt her life was in "the perfect storm". Foremost in her mind was the loss of her mother, to cancer. It was at this moment that she decided with her partner (and now fiancé) Jack, that they would start a jewellery business, named after her mother. Jewellery was an area she was passionate about and had some retail experience in. She developed stylish and hard-wearing stainless steel products designed to work well with activewear. She was able to tap into the wellness industry boom and by 2026 her annual revenues would be close to £12m. Olivia explains to Sir Richard Harpin how she overcame imposter syndrome to build the business and reveals the lessons she has learnt along the way, covering everything from product development, to trade shows, external investment and marketing spend.Join the Business Leader community at Business Leader Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stuart Machin, CEO of Marks and Spencer, talks to Sir Richard Harpin at the Business Leader Summit about leadership and encouraging "positive dissatisfaction". He also says he doesn't like to use the c word - cyber - as that was one of the hardest things he and the company have ever gone through. He gives a run through of his typical morning as a CEO, how he walks the floors of stores and the secret of protecting the magic of M&S whilst modernising the rest.Join the Business Leader community at Business Leader Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gary Lubner, the former CEO of Belron, discusses his journey scaling the vehicle glass giant from a value of €200 million to €24 billion over 23 years. Lubner explains to Richard Harpin how the company achieved global dominance through strategic acquisitions, a standardised operational model known as 'The Belron Way', and the iconic "Autoglass repair, Autoglass replace" jingle – which Richard sings along with him! Lubner reflects on his upbringing in apartheid-era South Africa, which instilled a deep sense of social responsibility and influenced his people-centric leadership style. Join the Business Leader community at Business Leader Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After just over 12 years as CEO of global pest firm Rentokil Initial, Andy Ransom shares what he has learned as he prepares to step down. In that time the share price has quadrupled and profits breached $1bn. Ransom discusses how he progressed from a working-class background to a legal career at ICI, where he took charge of a legal case in the US that cemented his reputation. When he joined Rentokil, it was involved in many business areas, from parcel delivery to laundry. One of his first decisive actions, he explains to Sir Richard Harpin, was to focus the business on pest control. Ransom explains how he prides himself in being a deal-maker and has used a strategy of M&A to grow the global business and make it more efficient through operational “density”. He also discusses the challenges of cracking North America, which is responsible for half the global pest-control market. Join the Business Leader community at Business Leader Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dash Water is a UK-based, challenger drinks brand that was founded in 2017 by Alex Wright and Jack Scott. With a team of just 35 people, it sells more than 60 million cans of fruit-flavoured, sparkling water drinks a year. It focuses on a new category of mass market drinks which promise to be healthy and sustainable. In this Business Leader episode, Wright explains his growth strategy with Richard Harpin. He explains how Dash tackles food waste by using “wonky fruit”, which would otherwise go to waste – like 40% of the food globally that is made but never consumed. Wright also shares how they found investors to help them grow (with three rules for choosing them), how he’s built a healthy workplace culture while scaling and how to use a combination of coaching and mentoring to improve as a leader.Join the Business Leader community at Business Leader Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Laurence Newman, founder and CEO who grew a Manchester start-up into a London-listed beauty tech firm. He talks about creating clinical at-home devices, the four tech pillars behind the product range, choosing e-commerce first, navigating global manufacturing and regulation, and the realities of fundraising and running an IPO.

Ben Askins, co-founder of Gaia and serial entrepreneur who built and exited a digital marketing agency, discusses hiring practices and interview tasks that reveal real talent. He talks about building diverse leadership, keeping culture healthy, preparing a company for sale, and launching green tech products like carbon accounting and nature-finance marketplaces.

Sam Stoffel, entrepreneur who bootstrapped Outplayed from a matched-betting idea to a multi-million pound exit and now building Subspot. He talks about copying and improving business models, switching to subscription revenue, marketing and affiliate tactics, the pitfalls of rebranding and shiny-object syndrome, hiring and delegation lessons, and his ambition to scale a global subscription platform.

Hub van Bockel, founder and CEO of Tenzing and former marketer at Unilever, MTV and Red Bull. He recounts spotting a gap for low-sugar, plant-based energy drinks. He explains bootstrapping, targeting niche communities like climbers and runners, and the quirky tactics that won major retailers. He also covers product development, retail pitches, and international growth lessons.

In this episode of The Business Leader podcast, Richard Harpin interviews Caspar Lee, the YouTube pioneer who successfully transitioned from influencer to powerhouse entrepreneur. Lee reveals the strategies behind co-founding Influencer.com, a marketing agency with multi-million pound revenues and his subsequent move into venture capital with Creator Ventures. The conversation explores vital insights for scaling businesses. Lee explains why hiring 'big company' veterans can backfire in mid-sized firms. He also outlines how partnerships can be used to drive organic growth when building communities. He also shares his tips for personal branding, reflecting on the strategies he used to build his own following.Join the Business Leader community at Business Leader Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.