Business Leader

She raised £6.5mn then everything changed - Sharmadean Reid MBE | Part 2 15.09.2026 34min

In the second part of our interview with Sharmadean Reid MBE, we chart the rise and fall of beauty tech platform Beautystack, what it really takes to secure venture capital investment, and the launch of her latest venture – luxury bathing brand 39BC. Reid tells Sir Richard Harpin how she "collects people" and turns her network into her greatest business asset, why she swears by a paid business coach, and what she wishes she'd done differently at Beautystack. She also makes the case for storytelling as the single most important skill any entrepreneur can have — and explains why failing to document your playbook could be the most expensive mistake you ever make.Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast for weekly entrepreneur stories from founders and CEOs who’ve built and scaled great businesses. Join the Business Leader community for coaching, peer to peer forums and exclusive learning events. Sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters.Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From £5 an hour to £1000 a day: How Sharmadean Reid MBE built her career | Part 1 08.09.2026 40min

Sharmadean Reid MBE started working as a hotel chambermaid in Wolverhampton when she was 14 years old, before learning the lingo of business while waiting tables at the business Rotary Club of the hotel. Her career has been driven by the 'two wolves' inside of her – artistic and business. Reid has spent twenty years at the intersection of beauty, technology and women's empowerment. With a real talent for spotting trends, she founded a cult nail salon in Dalston called WAH Nails, before creating the tech platform Beautystack, a women's business community The Stack World, and most recently the luxury bathing brand 39BC.In the first part of the interview with Sir Richard Harpin, she talks about what it takes to build a business from scratch, learning to ask for anything and overcoming fear of “no” as well as learning to “never split the difference”. She also shares her views on why aren’t there more successful female entrepreneurs in the UK and how domestic cognitive load can lead to burnout. Stay tuned for part two, next week.Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast for weekly entrepreneur stories from founders and CEOs who’ve built and scaled great businesses. Join the Business Leader community for coaching, peer to peer forums and exclusive learning events. Sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters.Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PizzaExpress CEO: "You Need To Obsess About Your Product" 01.09.2026 50min

When Paula MacKenzie took over as CEO in 2022, PizzaExpress had been through seven CEOs in eleven years, a billion-pound debt restructuring, 73 restaurant closures, and a pandemic that decimated the casual dining sector. Four years on, she has refurbished three quarters of the estate, grown a loyalty app to four million members, and is targeting 1,000 restaurants worldwide by 2030. In this episode, Sir Richard Harpin, the host of the Business Leader podcast, delves into the numbers, the decisions, and the leadership thinking behind the business turnaround — including why profits fell even as revenue rose, what a refurbishment actually does to a restaurant's economics, and how MacKenzie is expanding PizzaExpress into new formats and new markets.They also cover her career journey — from Ernst & Young auditor to Diageo, GSK, Innocent Drinks and eleven years at KFC — what it takes to go cross-functional and make yourself the obvious CEO candidate, and the leadership lessons she has taken from four years running one of Britain's most scrutinised businesses. And, her advice to the new Chancellor of the Exchequer.In this episode:What PizzaExpress actually looked like when MacKenzie walked in — and the one thing the business needed mostWhy she changed much of the leadership team in her first months, and what a CEO transition coach told her before she even startedHow the loyalty app grew to four million membersThe refurbishment programme — and why underinvested restaurants are delivering 5–10% revenue upliftsThe 1,000 restaurant target — and the new formats, franchise markets and US ambitions behind itHer four-stage playbook for any new CEO: arrive, assimilate, articulate, accelerateWhy she believes you cannot overcommunicate — and how she mystery shops her own restaurantsSubscribe to the Business Leader Podcast for weekly entrepreneur stories from founders and CEOs who’ve built and scaled great businesses. Join the Business Leader community for coaching, peer to peer forums and exclusive learning events. Sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters.Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How Quooker UK Built a £100m business out of hot water taps 25.08.2026 43min

Sir Richard Harpin talks to Stephen Johnson, Managing Director of Quooker UK & Ireland, about how to scale a business to a £100m turnover without sacrificing culture. Stephen Johnson spent 26 years in his father's fitted furniture and kitchen business, Neville Johnson, then couldn't get hired anywhere else. Rejected by employer after employer who saw no value in "just working for your father," he eventually talked Quooker's Dutch owners into a six-month trial. With a hire car and 40 taps, he sold 999 hot water taps in his first year and that was the start of Quooker in the UK. Now he’s running a business with 750,000 customers, Johnson tells Sir Richard how he grew the business from his home office to £100m turnover, and why he's employed a full-time psychologist and a Premier League performance coach along the way. Also, the rationale behind his mantra of doing better than yesterday.Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast for weekly entrepreneur stories from founders and CEOs who’ve built and scaled great businesses. Join the Business Leader community for coaching, peer to peer forums and exclusive learning events. Sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters.Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Emmie Faust secured a Dragons' Den deal - now she's helping Female Founders Rise 18.08.2026 45min

Emmie Faust founded 11 businesses - some of them failed and some of them succeeded - one sold for £7 million. She now runs Female Founders Rise, a 12,000-strong community helping women build, grow and scale their businesses. Faust talks to Sir Richard Harpin, host of the Business Leader Podcast, about the advantages of bootstrapping and scaling a business without outside investment, the real story behind her Dragons' Den investment from Theo Paphitis and why it ultimately failed, and how a personal health crisis during the pandemic led her to build a community for female founders - backed by Google, Shoosmiths, and the British Business Bank. Faust explains how she is supporting women in business at the early stages, through 127 angel investments in women-led businesses, and gives advice for founders preparing to pitch for investment.Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast for weekly entrepreneur stories from founders and CEOs who’ve built and scaled great businesses. Join the Business Leader community for coaching, peer to peer forums and exclusive learning events. Sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters. Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How a Police Officer built a £100m business: Mehma Bridgen's Fuel Store 11.08.2026 37min

Mehma Bridgen co-founded The Fuel Store with her husband Jamie after leaving the police force — where she was working on a covert operation at just 22. Starting with nothing but cold calling and a small Birmingham office, she helped build a fuel card and fleet management business turning over more than £100 million. Bridgen talks to the host of the Business Leader Podcast, Sir Richard Harpin, about scaling a business from zero — the discipline, the mistakes, the moment they knew they needed an external CEO, her sales philosophy, and what working with your spouse is really like when the pressure mounts.Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast for weekly entrepreneur stories from founders and CEOs who’ve built and scaled great businesses. Join the Business Leader community for coaching, peer to peer forums and exclusive learning events. Sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters.Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Moonpig Founder Nick Jenkins: "We Came Close To Failing Several Times" 04.08.2026 44min

Nick Jenkins, founder of Moonpig, former Dragons' Den investor, and now a prolific angel investor with over 38 investments to his name, talks to Sir Richard Harpin on the Business Leader Podcast about the lessons he has learned along the way. Jenkins reveals how the business nearly collapsed several times and how a single comment from an investor director (raising the price of a card from £1.99 to £2.99) turned Moonpig from a business on the brink into a survivable, scalable company — and how a bold £50k TV advertising bet snowballed into £1.2 million a month in spend, taking turnover from £3 million to £45 million in three years. Also, how the money on the table in Dragons’ Den is not all real.Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast and sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters. Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dame Irene Hays: “Never one penny of debt” | How Hays Travel reached £3 Billion 28.07.2026 51min

In 1980, a young couple opened a travel agency in the back of a baby-wear shop in County Durham. Forty-six years later, Hays Travel is the UK’s largest independent travel agency with over 500 branches and more than £3 billion in annual turnover. It has never taken on a penny of debt. Dame Irene Hays talks to Sir Richard Harpin, the host of the Business Leader Podcast, about acquiring the entire retail estate of collapsed travel giant Thomas Cook in a matter of days, saving nearly 3,000 jobs with little due diligence and no safety net. Then the covid pandemic hit and her husband died suddenly — leaving Dame Irene as sole leader of a company haemorrhaging £1million a day. She didn't just hold it together. She built it into something bigger.Dame Irene explains what the golden thread of the business looks like — putting her staff at the heart and how nearly half of Hays Travel's senior managers started as apprentices. Also, she reflects on her success as part owner of Sunderland FC and the importance of sport for young people.Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast and sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters. Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

She turned £6k into a £1bn business 21.07.2026 45min

£6,000, 399 meetings and one idea. Mia Drennan, founder and CEO of GLAS, turned a gap in bank-led loan administration into a global platform for servicing institutional debt that manages over $850 billion assets under management. GLAS, Global Loan Agency Services Limited, is now valued at over £1 billion. On this episode of the Business Leader Podcast, host Sir Richard Harpin unpacks how she bootstrapped her way to a successful business without giving up a single share until 2022, how she scaled it internationally and how to encourage more female-founded unicorns.Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast and sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters. Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Loveholidays CEO: From Covid to £350m revenue and the road to IPO 14.07.2026 43min

Donat Rétif joined Loveholidays in December 2019 — just three months before Covid shut down global travel. In this episode of the Business Leader Podcast, the CEO of the UK's largest online travel agent for package holidays talks to Sir Richard Harpin about how he not only survived that crisis but used it to triple the size of the business, build one of Britain's most impressive tech-driven growth stories, and put Loveholidays on course for an IPO. Also, what it's really like to run a private equity-backed business — and he advises CEOs to never deviate from your North Star.Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast and sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters. Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Barclays CEO Venkat: business turnaround, cancer, capital requirements and an £800m crisis 05.07.2026 44min

C.S. Venkatakrishnan — known as Venkat — took over as Barclays CEO in 2021, inheriting a bank with a share price under pressure and no shortage of sceptics. Four years on, profits are up, returns are up, and Barclays has committed to returning over £15 billion to shareholders by 2028. In this episode of the Business Leader Podcast, host Sir Richard Harpin asks the Barclays chief executive to unpack the strategy behind one of the UK's most closely-watched banking turnarounds. Venkat shares his lessons from 22 years at JP Morgan and working with Jamie Dimon, the inside story of Barclays' 2024 restructuring, why he believes the UK's Consumer Credit Act of 1973 is holding back consumer lending, and what banks should — and shouldn't — be liable for when it comes to motor finance, heat pumps and solar panels.He also opens up about being diagnosed with cancer four months into the top job, working through treatment, and the leadership lessons that got him — and Barclays — through it.Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast and sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters.Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Seams Impossible: How Nadine Merabi built a £40m fashion brand 30.06.2026 46min

Manchester-based Nadine Merabi played Hockey professionally for England, bought a £250 sewing machine from Argos and taught herself how to sew. With no formal training she sold a collection to Selfridges and from there she stitched together a £40 million luxury fashion business. She talks candidly with host Sir Richard Harpin about the resilience needed to build a business from scratch —the only thing standing in entrepreneurs’ way is themselves. Merabi pivoted during covid into a Darcie pyjama line, which was worn by celebrities and still makes up a significant proportion of sales, but she draws the line at loungewear. She reveals why growing 800% in a year was her biggest mistake and what it taught her about culture and leadership. And her why her mantra has shifted from "pressure makes diamonds" to "planning makes profit". Also, she explains how her decision to hire a CEO frees her up to focus on what she does best: giving women confidence. Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast and sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newslettersBusiness Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The CEO who doubled Blue Light Card membership in 3 years 23.06.2026 41min

Alidad Moghaddam, CEO of Blue Light Card the UK's leading discount platform for frontline and emergency service workers, talks to Sir Richard Harpin about what he's learned on his journey as a first-time chief executive and from his experiences in a private equity environment. Blue Light Card has grown from a small startup founded by a serving police officer into a platform supporting more than six million frontline workers. From expanding into Australia, to building a high-performance culture rooted in radical candour and mission-driven hiring, Alidad offers tips for any business leader scaling a business. He shares the lessons he learned helping grow Trainline and taking it to a successful IPO, what the perspective of an angel investor taught him, and why culture matters most during periods of mergers and acquisitions. He explains why being clear about the strategy and vision, defining the operating model and making the difficult calls early are key to success.Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast and sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newslettersBusiness Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How Little Moons went from family bakery to TikTok star 16.06.2026 37min

Vivian Wong, co-founder of Little Moons, shares the unfiltered story of building the UK's most talked-about mochi ice cream brand — from a small family bakery to a £27mn pound run rate overnight.Vivian talks to Sir Richard Harpin, founder of Homeserve, about how a single TikTok video sent shoppers queuing outside Tesco at 7am, and why ten years of groundwork meant Little Moons was ready to seize the moment rather than be consumed by it. She reveals her learnings from a costly factory mistake — and the sunk cost fallacy that nearly upended the business. Vivian also shares the personal catalyst that made her start the business, the reality of co-founding with a sibling, and how she now lives by a simple rule: no regrets.Themes covered:Why owning your manufacturing is a genuine competitive advantage in the FMCG worldHow Vivien bootstrapped Little Moons for 12 years before taking private equity investmentWhen and how to bring in a professional CEOThe difference between a coach and a mentor, and why you need bothSubscribe to the Business Leader Podcast for weekly entrepreneur stories from founders and CEOs who’ve built and scaled great businesses. Join the Business Leader community for coaching, peer to peer forums and exclusive learning events. Sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters.Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Vinted nearly went bust, now it's worth €8 billion 09.06.2026 37min

Vinted wasn't an overnight success. The game-changing decision that saved it from failure? Making selling completely free. Adam Jay, CEO of Vinted's Marketplace arm, talks to Sir Richard Harpin about how he helped perfect the Vinted playbook and rolled it out into 26 markets worldwide – France was the first success story.Adam reveals the mistakes made along the way, the pivots that mattered, and the leadership lessons every founder and CEO needs to hear. Drawing on his experience at Boston Consulting Group and Expedia, he breaks down how Vinted transformed from a struggling startup into a profitable, fast-scaling platform now valued at €8 billion. Themes include:Why removing seller fees was the turning point for Vinted's growthHow to scale a marketplace business across multiple international marketsWhat CEOs can learn from failure, pivoting, and resilienceWhy joining an external board of directors can sharpen your leadershipVinted's mission to make second-hand items the first choice globally Join the Business Leader community for coaching, peer to peer forums and exclusive learning events. Sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters.Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How Humble Crumble went from viral video to stores across London 02.06.2026 38min

Kim Innes, the founder of the dessert brand Humble Crumble, recounts her extraordinary business journey to Sir Richard Harpin. It begins with tough shifts at a vendor's stall in Spitalfields market in east London and ends with a chain of successful shops devoted to her product, the fruit crumble pudding. She didn't get it right at first in the market stall, she explains. She was too fixated on exotic flavours and she hadn't yet started to cook live on site, creating those appetising aromas. She also had to learn, as a small brand, how to leverage social media though a series of posts that went viral. These cooked up huge demand and people began to seek her out, including the Royal Family. Though looking back, she thinks she could have approached it in a smarter way. She also shares with Harpin her plans for the future, which include a possible move into retail environments like supermarkets.Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How to build an AI startup in the UK 26.05.2026 46min

Nnamdi Emelifeonwu left a top London law firm to set up one of the UK’s fastest-growing legal tech companies. He talks to host, Sir Richard Harpin, about how building a tool to help his visually impaired colleague to navigate complex legal documents led to co-founding Definely. It is an AI-powered legal tech platform designed to help lawyers access definitions, clauses and key information instantly without leaving the Word document they’re working on. It is used by some of the world’s leading law firms and global businesses and is now integrated into Anthropic’s Claude. Nnamdi shares the reality of becoming a founder, the challenges of raising investment, and how solving one deeply personal problem evolved into a multi-million-dollar AI business. Themes include:The future of AI in the legal industry Building a startup from scratch Entrepreneurship, risk and resilience Scaling a B2B company Expanding into the USStarting a business in the UKBusiness Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From €2.5bn to €16bn: How Sephora redefined beauty retail 19.05.2026 51min

Chris de Lapuente, former Executive at LVMH and CEO of Sephora, played a pivotal role in scaling the business from €2.5bn to €16bn during his 13 years at the helm of the beauty retailer. He first met host Sir Richard Harpin at Procter and Gamble and shares reflections on their training which led to many successful business leaders. Chris describes how he grew Sephora, expanded globally and learned to be adaptable, as well as the mistakes that define his journey. Also, what is it like to work with Europe’s richest man and CEO of LVMH, Bernard Arnault?Topics covered:Procter and GambleWork-Life balanceTransformationExpansionRetail brands and experienceHigh-performing teamsLVMH and Bernard ArnaultTips for Scaling businessesBusiness Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Using AI to fight cyber risk 12.05.2026 43min

Jonathan Spry, co-founder and CEO of reinsurance startup Envelop Risk, talks to Sir Richard Harpin about how cyber-attacks are now inevitable for modern businesses — and how business leaders can mitigate the risks. From ransomware and Black Swan events to AI-generated threats, Jonathan reveals how his company uses AI and advanced analytics to model catastrophic cyber scenarios for insurers around the world. He also shares how he scaled a Bristol-based B2B business, raised major investment and built competitive moats. Also, how many Jonathans has he hired? Topics covered:InsuranceArtificial IntelligenceB2BSalesCyber attacksBlack SwanGeopoliticsInvestmentQuantum ComputingLeadershipHiring talentLondon and IPOBristolMentoringBusiness Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The art of the possible: Scaling to £240M 05.05.2026 38min

If something isn’t working in your business – at what point do you say – let’s adapt and change course? Sir Richard Harpin talks to Kai Feller, the co-founder of Bark.com, the online marketplace that connects you to a local gardener or event planner. Kai Feller had a make-or-break moment and changed his business model in response. After that the company grew by 200 percent over three years and Kai sold it for £240 million. How did he pivot so successfully and how important is harnessing AI for the future of businesses? Also Kai Feller recommends reading Stephen Covey's book "The 7 habits of highly effective people" and he compares notes with Richard about buying the local village pub.Topics covered:LeadershipBuilding and scaling a businessArtificial IntelligenceInternational expansionManaging peopleWork/Life balanceLocal pubBusiness Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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