Gabriella is currenly part of a competition for BBC called Be Your Own Boss competition where Richard Reed, the co-founder of Innocent Drinks is hoping to invest his £1 million in the next wave of young entrepreneurs. Gabriella has been given £100 to make a profit from, It’s sort of an experimental task she said.

She plans to make and sell 500 cupcakes from the £100 budget.

Hi Gabriella, great to have you on YHP, How are you doing?

Very well thank you!

Could you quickly give us some background information about yourself? Tell me about yourself growing up?

I had a very happy childhood – we’re very family orientated and with two older sisters there’s always been a lot going on. My mother is a brilliant cook and my father owns a restaurant so food had always featured strongly in my life. The recipe I use in my cakes was passed down by my grandmother who has been teaching me to bake since I was very young.

How did you get into business? Were you exposed to entrepreneurship as a child?

I was always academically driven. With no education himself, my father wanted to provide us with the schooling he had never had. I was always aware of the hard work that had got us into good schools and given us a comfortable lifestyle and was always proud of my father’s roots.

However, being the youngest of the three I was protected quite a lot and it wasn’t until recently that I started thinking about getting into business myself. Both of my sisters are very business-minded and I always saw myself as more relaxed – I always thought that life would fall into place! As I’ve got older I’ve realized that you have to go after what you want rather than wait for it to come to you.

Who was your inspiration growing up and why?

My father was born in a very small town in Southern Italy and moved to England when he was sixteen. He had one bag and less than £50 to his name! Meeting my mother just two years later he moved to Brighton and began working as a pizza boy. They worked incredibly hard, took some risks, and now have a successful business on Brighton seafront. My father is for me an example of what hard work and determination can amount to.

What was the inspiration behind Cupcake bakery? How did the idea come about?

I’ve just finished an English degree at university and my passion has always been for reading and writing. I thought temporarily about getting into advertising and it was from this perspective that I began thinking of business ideas. A Pound of Sugar was really a name before it became a serious project. I am passionate about baking but never thought of it as a career prospect until I discovered the Be Your Own Boss competition. I applied on a whim thinking it was a great idea but didn’t think I’d get through. Since then I’ve had to adopt a business mind in order to turn a dream into a reality and it’s been a really positive experience.

What was your biggest challenge during the starting up phase?

I think having £100 and a deadline yet having really only an idea was pretty daunting. I did think for a moment it would never materialize. However I took each step as it came and after getting a brand designed and the ingredients bought I felt a lot more confident. It was only after my first event that I felt like it could actually work!!

How have you been able to gain some traction to the business so far?

I think in this day and age social media is essential. I’ve worked hard creating a Facebook page and Twitter account and have been trying to raise awareness about the project via the internet. Also at the events I have attended I’ve been handing out business cards and flyers with information about A Pound of Sugar and BYOB. I’ve also got a friend of mine managing the PR side of things. It’s a really great opportunity for all of my friends to get involved in areas that they are potentially wanting to get into after university such as marketing and PR.

What would you say has been the highlight of your entrepreneurial journey so far?

I really enjoy setting up the stands! I get such satisfaction when I see the stall laid out beautifully and people commenting on how it looks. Before the cakes have been sold or eaten they do look delicious!

What can we be expecting from Cupcake bakery in 2012?

This really depends upon how far I make it in the competition! If I get through this round then I’ll be given up to £5000 seed capital and with that I aim to create a delivery service and cater for events. I’m working out of the back of my parents kitchen so investing in some decent utensils would be a necessary step!

What three pieces of advice would you offer entrepreneurs starting out today?

Determination, determination, determination!

How does a mother start and grow her business into a successful company while raising three boys?

I caught up with Cary Marsh, CEO and founder of Mydeo as she talks me through her journey as an entrepreneur, her background, growing her business and raising three boys.

Hi Cary, How are you doing, great to have you on YHP?

Hi, I’m good thanks. Shame about all the rain though

Could you quickly give us some background information about yourself? Tell me about yourself growing up?

I was born in West Sussex. My mum, my sister and I moved to London when I was 8 when my mum got a job as a researcher for the BBC.

I was very sporty as a child, and spent much of my recreational time doing gymnastics. I trained at my club almost every night after school and competed at weekends. I was Wandsworth and Merton borough champion from the age of 10 and went on to represent London and the South East at regional squad level. I guess my gymnastics success was an early sign I was a bit of a risk taker – you have to be pretty brave to do a backflip on a four inch beam or a handstand on a bar that’s 8 feet off the ground!

Who was your inspiration growing up and why?

My mother was my inspiration growing up. She raised my sister and I on her own whilst juggling a successful career at the BBC -she was Head of Schools Television. I always had her unconditional support and she told me I could be whatever I wanted to be in life.

How did you get into business? How did the idea for Mydeo come about?

I graduated from Nottingham University with an Engineering degree, but couldn’t decide straight away what I wanted to do. I waited tables at Planet Hollywood for a while before getting a job as a recruitment consultant – which I hated!

In 2000 I joined a start-up called Servecast who had just raised 30m Euros to roll out a European Content Delivery Network (CDN). This was before video streaming really took off as there was little broadband at the time, but I learnt a lot about the economics of streaming and soon had ideas of my own about how I could run a business reselling CDN services to a new market.

In 2002, I went on maternity leave and started Mydeo. The idea was simple – build a website that would allow consumers to utilise CDNs to share personal videos securely.

What is Mydeo? What are you guys trying to solve?

Mydeo allows consumers and businesses to deliver their media via a high speed CDN. In short, if you put your media on a CDN, your website loads faster, so your visitors/customers are not waiting. The problem is that CDN’s have a minimum entry level of around $2000 per month, which means millions of consumers and small businesses cannot buy directly. The business model for mydeo is that I buy in bulk from the CDN, and the mydeo.com website retails in small chunks, giving automated CDN access, providing statistical reporting and transacting monthly payments by credit card. Small businesses need their websites to perform in exactly the same way large sites do, so Mydeo allows them access to a global CDN for a tiny fraction of the cost of buying directly. By building a site that automates the entire process, the service is massively scalable.

What was your biggest challenge during the starting up phase? Tell me about the first couple months?

My biggest challenge was raising the first round of seed funding. I applied for DTI Grant for Technical Innovation (known at the time as a SMART award), but the terms of the Grant meant you also need to raise matched funds from elsewhere. I needed to raise £56,000 from friends and family and spent months meeting friends, friends of friends and parents of friends to raise the cash we needed.

When I finally managed to raise the money, the SMART committee turned down our grant application, saying it wasn’t technically innovative enough. Instead of leaving it there, I wrote a 20 page document outlining how all the elements of the software we would be building were being brought together in an innovative new way to address a totally new market. They changed their minds and we got the grant!

Have you gotten any additional investments since then?

Following the seed round I met with quite a few VC’s, but the level of funding we were after (half a million) was too low for VCs, so we went down the angel route. I pitched to two difference business angel networks and had offers of funding from both. We supplemented the angel money with a bank loan under the Small Firms Loan Guarantee Scheme.

In 2007 we did a third funding round and took investment from BestBuy, plus two further business angels, valuing the company at £1.7m.

What has been some of the key things that you’ve over the year on your entrepreneurial journey?

Don’t take no for an answer! There will always be knock-backs, but as long as you get up one more time than you fall down, you’ll be ok.

What are the most crucial things you have done to grow your business?

The partnerships we developed have been absolutely crucial. The first was with Microsoft where we were integrated into their desktop editing software, Windows MovieMaker. I’ll never forget the morning the partnership went live – registrations went through the roof. It was a real step- change for us as a business, but the partnership with Microsoft was more important than just the uplift in traffic. We were picked up by their Emerging Business Team(EBT) (similar to what BizSpark is now) who support and promote high potential start-ups innovating on their platform. The EBT introduced us the investors and partners we could never had gained access to on our own and was the key to raising the next two rounds of funding.

Would you say the business has changed from the first initial idea?

Mydeo started out at a B2C service, but with the launch of YouTube we just weren’t getting the revenue traction from home moviemakers we’d hoped for. We analyzed our paying user base and it became very clear that the majority were actually small businesses looking for low cost CDN delivery. So in 2009 we launched a B2B version of the service. We had plenty of feedback from the user base about what business users wanted and we used that as the basis of the new service. Within 6 months the B2B service overtook B2C revenues and has been growing month on month ever since. If we had not made this change to B2B when we did, we would have run out of money and joined the list of the thousands of other video startups who have failed in the last decade.

One thing I’ve learnt is that, when starting a businesses, a large amount of your assumptions will be wrong and you will make mistakes. As long as you make your mistakes and make adjustments to your plans before you run out of cash, you stand a good chance of being a success. If the cash runs out first, you’re history.

How has it been raising three boys and running a business?

It sounds like an impossible mix doesn’t it – but it works for me! When I started Mydeo we had enough money to put my first son, Cameron, into nursery one day a week. As the business started a take off and he got older we increased the days at nursery so I could spend more time running Mydeo. I managed to work from home while all three boys were babies, and never had a nanny or any home help. My two eldest are at school now and do sport after school most days. By basing the office in Wimbledon I can do the school run and still be in the office for 9 and pickup at 5. My two year old is at the same nursery the other two attended and I take Fridays off to be with him – which I love.

The best thing about running your own business and having kids is the flexibility and work-life balance it affords you. I never miss a rugby or football match, and I can be there at the drop of a hat if they are sick. I’m CEO from 9-5, but after that I’m mum. Plenty of people would argue you have to work 7 days a week, 18 hours a day to be a successful entrepreneur, but I don’t agree. Work smart – quality not quantity. Life’s too short.

What would you like to say to other mums thinking about starting a business?

My advice would be to make sure you try to understand what you can do by yourself and what you need help with. Knowing what you don’t know is key. I worked with a business incubator in the early years, who put a team around me to support me when I needed help and advice on finance, marketing, legal issues etc. I’d never started a business before and it was a huge learning curve, but by having the support of the incubator I found I could always find a way round the stumbling blocks.

What would you say has been the highlight of your journey so far?

Last year I was named as a winner one of Red’s Hot Women Awards – I won the Breakthrough Pioneer award for Business and Innovation. I got a huge amount of press coverage and it was a very glitzy evening ceremony, but the highlight was a breakfast at Downing Street. It was an amazing day from start to finish – and the other winners were inspirational.

What can we be expecting from Mydeo in 2012?

More features, more growth, more customers – and perhaps even an exit. Watch this space J

I’ve been trying to get hold of her, like forever, a few weeks ago she was at the Natural and Organic show in london and quickly apologised that she was all tied up and was too busy and couldn’t do the interview. Running a startup can be like that, especially when you are the only employee in it and you’re also raising two kids.

Fiona is someone I’ve been following since she won the £50,000 in Barclays take one small step competition in 2010 and have been so impressed with her progress, which was one of the reasons we named her in our YHP’s Top 20 Young Entrepreneurs to watch out for 2012.

Yesterday, I finally got the chance to speak to to Fiona Wood about her company – Naturally Cool Kids, being a mum, challenges she faced when starting up and advices for other mums out there.

Please introduce yourself to the YHP readers?

I’m Fiona Wood creator of Naturally Cool Kids, a natural winter and summer skincare for children.

I am married to David and we have two children Rhys 17 and Finlay 5 years old. I live in Cleckheaton West Yorkshire and in the last 12 months have gone from stay at home mum to business woman.

How were you able to fund the business at the start?

I won the Barclays take one small step competition in 2010 which provided me with £50,000 to make my business idea a reality. I created the whole business from formulas to branding. I pride myself on it been a wholly made in the UK business that cares about the environment and the little people within it.

Tell us about your products?

I wanted to create a range that were free from nasties, I was fine with my everyday skincare products for my children, but when it came to coughs and colds in winter and sun cream for protection in the summer, I felt let down by the lack of great products that don’t just appeal to mum but that the children actually want to use. The innovative stick packaging is great for little people and is fun and parents have the piece of mind that they are safe and less likely to react as with using a chemical version.

What was the next step for you after creating the products?

I launched in March 2011 and John Lewis were the first stockist to take the range. We only had two meetings with them and they loved it and placed an order straight away, then along came lots of independents and Tesco Nutri Centre and Amazon. After a whirlwind year I thought how do we top that in year two, we celebrated our birthday three weeks ago the big 1 year, and yes we continue with plenty of health food shops and now pharmacies stocking us. We have worked with the UKTI and we are now exporting and selling in Sweden, Malta, Gibraltor, Poland and South Africa are sights are now set on Australia where the British Embassy have taken a look at the range.

What can we be expecting next from you and Naturally Cool Kids this year and years to come?

We are working hard to take on as many retailers as possible in the UK and also setting ourselves in other countries too. I would love to see everyone using Naturally Cool Kids and will work hard to achieve it. I am still juggling the business alone and doing the school run but it’s the best decision I have ever made and wouldn’t change it.

What would you suggest other stay at home mums go about starting a business?

I think a lot of mums have ideas but feel there is no way they could ever follow it through and that is such a shame.  I would encourage anyone with a great idea to take the first step which is scary but every step after that becomes so much easier is to look at their competition visit consumer or trade shows, take photos of what you see, chat with people aske them what the industry is like or any tips they may have.

Is there a company in the industry that isn’t in direct competition that you can make friends with and ask advice and help from. Helen and Polly at Cuddle Dry were great with me I visited them at the trade shows and they gave me valuable advice about how to save money and the does and don’ts, we forget that people love helping others and by asking you can learn so much.

I would also suggest buying magazines about your idea and looking at websites and you tube at what other people are doing and how they have done it, there is a wealth of information only a click away.

The one thing I didn’t take on board which many people said was “just think how difficult it will be working for yourself and that you will put more hours in than any employed job” I didn’t believe anyone I thought it would fit in perfectly and I’d get round it.  I have worked around it but it’s a damn site harder than I ever imagined it would be don’t get me wrong I wouldn’t change it for the world but be prepared for some long long days.

You also need maximum support from your partner as there are times when you really do need someone to fall back on be it the house work, shows to attend etc and they need to be able to just take over from you.

What were your main challenges starting up and how have you managed to get around them?

Time and lack of it, I need an extra couple of days in a week just to get even.  It’s also difficult when you have meetings with manufacturers or retailers then its show time and you have to be out at different times of day and away for days at a time.  It is hard as I am very maternal and don’t like leaving home.  I do get around it by making sure we take the kids with us wherever possible or that I am not away for more than two evenings.  I would say this is one of the hardest parts of running your own business.

Another challenge I would say is juggling the amount of work there is to do, as my company is only 12 months old I still do the majority of the work myself, this is everything from marketing and PR to building our customer base both with consumers and retailers and then also arranging the orders and having them shipped, I then have all the follow ups and exhibitions to arrange too, it can be very demanding at times and you do think at extreme times how will I get through this or I can’t cope anymore but that is such a normal feeling and it does pass and you get back on with it.

How is your work/life balance now?

I am one year in and we are starting to get a routine flowing a little better than it has been.  I don’t think you can ever get the right balance but I try my best.  If I need an afternoon off for home life then I work my way up to it and prepare to cause as little disruption to work as possible, if we have a few days away then I will make sure that I work for an hour or so when the kids are in bed or if my husband takes them to do an activity, just so that I don’t fall behind.

I am always there to take the youngest to school and pick up, I would never miss a school pantomime or anything like that as you never get those precious moments again. You have to also remember to embrace them while they are young and growing as it doesn’t last very long then they are off doing their own thing and you wonder where the time went.

The dot-com bubble was a hard time for businesses, a lot of companies especially start-ups went from overnight success to bankruptcy, a few survived while others were left hanging to what was left of their companies.

Even though, millions or perhaps billions were lost during the dot-com bubble, a lot of entrepreneurs also made their name during this time.

One of those entrepreneurs is Nina Hampson, Nina was the founder of Myla, an international luxury lingerie brand founded in 2000 during the dot.com bubble and after 6 years of building the startup into a multi-million pound business decided it was time move on and sold the business.

I recently caught up with Nina as she shares her entrepreneurial story with me and also the story behind her latest startup, Zinc.

Hi Nina, thanks for doing this with me, how are you doing?

I’m well, thanks. Currently in Dusseldorf and I’ve just discovered that it has the highest Japanese population of any city in Germany – which explains why the sushi’s so good.

Can you give us some background information on yourself? How did you get into business?

I wanted to be a wildlife photographer but can’t sit still, so I started out as a management consultant and quickly became interested in customer (rather than animal) behaviour analytics. I moved to a customer intelligence consultancy, a (then) small outfit called dunnhumby and worked as an analyst on the Tesco account. It was the late-90s and we trialled and implemented ground-breaking insight work (such as customer segmented pricing) which had a dramatic effect on Tesco’s business (and on dunnhumby!). It was there that I caught the retail bug, and met both my first, and my current business partner, Charlotte and Susan.

Who was your inspiration growing up and why?

My dad. He ran his own business from the age of 20 and taught me that it’s possible to achieve your dreams, with hard work, some luck and a dose of imagination.

You started Myla in 2000 and sold it in 2006, tell me about that period in your life and your experience running the business? It was during the dot-com bubble, things must have been crazy then?

It was a rollercoaster! Typically, the dot.com bubble burst at the time we were raising money for Myla. Not surprisingly it was a tough market. But Charlotte and I were very focused on what we wanted to achieve- Armani meets Ann Summers – and it took off very quickly. A steep learning curve would have been an understatement! We taught ourselves product development, sourcing, buying & merchandising and retail/mail-order/web management. Inevitably we made a few mistakes on the way, but we worked well as a team and had a shared vision, which was key to Myla’s success.

Why did you decide to sell the company in 2006?

Myla had become a very strong brand. We had great product and had a good UK business, but cash flow is critical in retail. We’d opened our first store in the USA and realised that we were over-stretched. We needed investment from an experienced partner to help us roll out distribution. The plan was to stay and grow Myla with them, but that didn’t pan out….!

What would you say were some of the key things you learnt from that experience?

It’s really obvious but focus on getting the basics right. It’s not always the most exciting aspect of business but it’s easy to get distracted by exciting things that cost you money, rather than make you money.

Invest in your best people. Recruiting good people is hard so when you find a star then develop them. Once you’ve gained their trust, don’t let them down and if you make a recruitment mistake (easily done!) then end the relationship quickly.

Love your customers. They pay your salary! If you work in retail then the best way to learn about your customers is by serving them in-store, if you think you’re above working in a shop then you’re in the wrong job.

Looking back and comparing it to now, what are some of the things that have changed in running a business or in building a successful company?

On the upside, you don’t have to have grey hair and wear a suit to be taken. But, on the downside, I do think we suffer from ‘always-on’ syndrome! So, we insist on retro-meeting etiquette – you know – where everyone actually listens to what’s being said and contributes, rather than looking at emails on their phone or tapping away on their laptop….

Let’s talk about Zinc, tell me how the idea came about?

I was working with my business partners, Susan and Stephen Rose who co-founded the customer intelligence company, 5one. When they sold 5one, we decided to start afresh and launch Zinc with Stephen Jones who is an expert in Change Management.

So many companies collect data yet don’t necessarily have the systems, experience or culture to turn this into customer knowledge and profitable actions. Most consultancies specialise in providing a solution to one of these challenges. We recognise that many businesses struggle to identify what solutions they need (and would make them money!) in the first place, and this is where Zinc’s strength and value lies.

What were you doing before you founded Zinc?

Having a nap on a beach in Devon!

What is Zinc and how does it work?

We’re an advisory firm with a difference, as we believe that all businesses should be built on a strong foundation of customer knowledge. We help companies understand how they can translate their data into customer knowledge, turn this knowledge into real actions and support them through the cultural change needed to sustain this in the long term.

So in non-technical speak, we look at client’s data, show them what they can do with it, tell them what it means and how they make money from it. Then help them change their business processes and culture.

What is your business model?

Staying focused and happy – anything else is boring!

What makes Zinc different from any service out there?

We are world-class experts in our field who provide jargon-feel practical advice that drives bottom-line profitability. A rarity in consulting.

What are the most crucial things you have done to grow your business?

Developing our client relationships and delivering top quality work to them so that they continue to work with us, and refer us to others. We get a lot of word of mouth referral, so we must be doing something right!

Would you say the business has changed from the first initial idea?

Our initial idea of what Zinc would be remains the same, but we are constantly evolving the business. We like to stay ahead of the game so we put a lot of effort into enriching our methodologies and finding new, smarter ways of approaching our clients’ issues.

How have you been able to fund the business?

Our start-up costs were minimal (laptops and phones). We worked from home for the first year and paid ourselves when we had money, so Zinc has funded itself from inception. Having a client from day one also helped!

What has been the highlight of your entrepreneurial journey so far

So many highlights. Opening our first Myla store, winning various business awards (doing the photo-shoot for Vogue’s Superwomen of Fashion in 2005 always sticks in my mind) and more recently, Zinc winning projects over the big management consultancies – a great feeling!

What can we be expecting from your company in 2012?

More of the same. We’ll continue to build our client base, grow our team and get a bigger office. We also have a few exciting new projects in the pipeline but I’ll have to tell you about these in the future!

What three pieces of advice would you offer entrepreneurs starting out today?

1. Be focused. Write a business plan with financials – then double the costs and halve the revenues and see if you are still making money

2. Work smarter, not harder. Running a business is hard work, so understanding when you are at your most productive is key. The same task can take me 15mins or 1.5hours depending on my mood. Knowing this helps me plan my day more effectively and now I don’t waste time staring at my Mac when I know I’d be better off in the gym…

3. Have the courage of your convictions. You know your business the best. Know your market. Know your customers. There will still be times when you feel like you’re winging it, this is all part of being an Entrepreneur so enjoy the ride!

Sarah Wood is the COO/CMO of Unruly Media. The Shoreditch-based company not too long ago raised $25m in Series A investment from Amadeus Capital Partners, Van den Ende & Deitmers and Business Growth Fund.

Unruly’s social video platform delivers and tracks active video views for major global brands and their media agencies including T-Mobile’s acclaimed Life’s for Sharing series, Evian’s global Roller Babies hit and Heineken’s Open Your World campaign.

I recently caught up with Sarah as we took a trip down memory lane, talking about her background to her inspirations growing up and finally speaking about how the idea for Unruly Media came about and her plans to grow the business even further.

Hi Sarah, How are you doing, great to have you on YHP?

Thanks for having me!

Could you quickly give us some background information about yourself? Tell me about yourself growing up?

As a child, I was the archetypal bossy big sister – according to Mum, my younger brother didn’t learn to speak until he was 4 yrs old because I did the talking for both of us. At school, I worked very hard to be the best at everything I did, but when I fell short of my own expectations I would get way too upset. As a grown up, I try not to beat myself up so much when things don’t go to plan.

How did you get into business? Were you exposed to entrepreneurship as a child?

Funnily enough, my father is a trade unionist, so my childhood and teenage years were spent on the other side of the fence – supporting workers and decrying the greed of big business. Both my parents have a very strong work ethic, though, and a stoic determination never to give up, no matter how tough things get. I’ve carried that with me.

Who was your inspiration growing up and why?

Anne Frank, The Famous Five and my teachers. My teachers used to let me hang around them at break times. We would talk politics and bash the Tories. I was a total geek and a political idealist. Robert Tressell’s Ragged Trousered Philanthropist made a deep impression.

So tell me about Unruly Media and how the idea came about?

There are 3 cofounders – myself (COO), Scott Button (CEO) and Matthew Cooke (CTO). Scott and I had been together since university and had run a couple of small businesses after graduating from uni – nothing serious, but we did have a lot of fun and were keen to work together again. I went on to become an academic and Scott joined an ad-serving start-up in the late nineties, at the height of the Internet boom. That’s where he met and got to know Matt Cooke.

When the company (Connextra) was sold in 2005, the three of us decided to join forces and build a technology business. The Web 2.0 phenomenon was getting underway and we were keen to build a business that made the most of the social web. The availability of open source software and the cheap office space we were able to sublet in the Truman Brewery meant that the barriers to entry were low so we started up without a business plan or a commercial model – just a lot of ideas! We hired another developer, built a bunch of stuff, failed fast and learned fast during the first half of 2006.

We became especially interested in the fragmentation of online media, the explosion of social networks and the emergence of the blogosphere – all of which created a problem for any online video junkie: how to decide what to watch and how to be the first to find great content.

In September 2006, we had our first taste of success with ViralVideoChart, a cool-hunting website powered by a proprietary blog-scanning engine that scoured the web for video links and identified the most shared videos on the web. Described by Will.I.Am as “the Billboard Hot 100 of our generation”, ViralVideoChart now maps the dissemination of 300 billion video streams and tracks over 2 million video shares each day.

When brands and agencies asked us to help them launch their own films across the social web, we spotted an opportunity to build a scalable video seeding platform that identified influential sites and bloggers, invited them to run branded content and enabled brands and agencies to launch, optimise and measure their own social video campaigns.

We’re now the leading social video business in the world, with 9 offices spanning the US, Europe and Asia Pacific. Since launching our proprietary platform in 2007, we’ve delivered over 1,400 campaigns, 1.34 billion views and worked with over 300 brands. We’ve had the privilege to distribute iconic campaigns such as Compare the Meerkat, Barclay’s Waterslide, Old Spice Guy, Evian Roller Babies and T-Mobile’s Royal Wedding spoof.

Sustainable advantage comes down, ultimately, to your company’s DNA and Unruly’s DNA combines a fascination with video content, a love of the random and demotic nature of the web, with a big data approach to understanding the who, how, and why of what makes content work.

What were you doing before you founded Unruly Media?

I was a lecturer in American culture at Sussex University. I’ve never lost the teaching bug – now I convene an MPhil course at Cambridge University on Online Video Culture.

Can you explain to me what Unruly Media is and what you guys do? What is the process?

Unruly’s social video platform delivers and tracks active video views for major global brands and their media agencies.  Our distribution network includes more than12,000 blogs, sites, social platforms and mobile apps globally across the social web. We have 9 offices and 120+ employees across three continents and 11 time zones.

We use our proprietary technology to target relevant audiences and identify the brand and content advocates that start conversations.  Our proprietary video player and robust sharing & tracking tools ensure delivery of desired brand engagement across key campaign metrics — Awareness, Attention, Advocacy, Action.

How have you been able to fund the business?

We bootstrapped the business up until the raise, using seed capital from the sale of Connextra to carry us through to profitability in 2009. From then on, we funded growth organically from cash flow.

The headlines reads “Unruly Media raises $25 million” and all of a sudden it seems like an overnight success story, I’m sure you guys have gone through a lot of intense moments since starting almost 6 years ago? What was your biggest challenge during the whole starting up phase?

We’ve doubled headcount every year since 2007, so preserving the Unruly culture that made us successful in the first place is an ongoing challenge. Maintaining focus can be difficult as there’s so much going on in the online video landscape and we’re compulsively drawn to new ideas. There are so many awesome new technologies, bringing with them new problems to solve and new digital ecosystems to solve them – it’s a great time to be an entrepreneur!

Why do you think you were very successful in raising that kind of amount and what was your experience and some of the key things you learnt during that process?

We’re a profitable company, we’re scaling revenues fast and we’re leading the field in a high-growth advertising sector. Industry experts predict that by 2015, half of all marketing campaigns will include video bought on a cost-per-view basis and 75% of video ads on the web will be social in nature. Operating at the intersect of social and video, Unruly is exceptionally well positioned to take advantage of this shift in advertising spend from offline to online.

What are the most crucial things you have done to grow your business?

Entered new markets – opening in New York was a significant milestone – and hired awesome people, with the aptitude to scale as the company grows.

What’s your business model?

We work on a cost-per-view basis. Brands pay us each time someone actively views their ad in the Unruly player and we share the revenue with the sites where the views occur.

Would you say the business has changed from the first initial idea?

Since we launched the platform in 2007, the social video format has certainly come a long way and our platform has rapidly developed to meet the changes in the social media landscape. As well as being a Facebook-whitelisted partner, Unruly’s player is integrated with Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ and Pinterest – platforms that were either nascent or non-existent five years ago.

What advice can you give to other entrepreneurs looking to raise money for their start-up?

Be clear about why your business is unique; be clear about your vision for the company and be sure to know your numbers inside out!

What would you say has been the highlight of your entrepreneurial journey so far?

Ooh, that’s a difficult one to answer. Having the opportunity to spend lots of time in New York, making it into the Sunday Times Top 100 Companies to Work For, closing the Series A funding round were all highlights, but honestly, nothing beats the satisfaction I get from delivering kick-ass campaigns that exceed the client’s expectations.

What can we be expecting from your company in 2012?

We’ll be striving to live up to our mission statement – to deliver the most awesome social video campaigns on the planet, and we’ll be doing that from more offices and for more clients, reaching consumers across more devices and a greater number of emerging social video platforms.  We’ll be continuing to innovate our technology platform and products and working closely with the IAB to ensure we’re leading the sector as it matures.

What three pieces of advice would you offer entrepreneurs starting out today?

1. Choose cofounders you trust; high-integrity individuals who share your values and vision for the company

2. Talk to your customers as soon as possible – the sooner you get your product out to market, the sooner you’ll find out whether it has any legs.  If it doesn’t, at least you’ve failed fast. If it does, then you’ll benefit from having real customers making suggestions as to how you can improve the offering, iterate the product, or solve a larger problem.

3. Invest in a kitchen table – this is the most important piece of office furniture you will ever buy; it’s the ideal place for a team to swap ideas and spend time building friendships with their peers.

Alice is the co-founder of LUX FIX, an online platform that does two jobs – (1) It’s new way of engaging with fashion enthusiasts, offering members super-curated luxury deals. (2) It helps designers showcase their products towards a targeted customer base .

Alice quit her job in the city last year having spent most of her time speaking to entrepreneurs as an investor. I recently caught up with her as she sheds more light on her recent journey into the startup world.

Hi Alice, How are you doing, great to have you on YHP?

Thanks it’s great to be speaking to you guys!

Could you quickly give us some background information about yourself? What were you doing before you founded LUX FIX?

Straight after leaving Oxford, where I read History, I worked as an investment banking analyst at Goldman Sachs working on UK Mergers & Acquisitions, followed by three years in private equity at Quilvest Private Equity, where I was involved in the execution and monitoring of direct and fund investments in the UK and Europe. Then I left finance behind to found LUX FIX!

So Alice tell me how you got into business? Were you exposed to entrepreneurship as a child?

Sitting the other side of the table as an investor at a Private Equity firm, I was always struck by the passion and energy of the entrepreneurs I met and was very keen to join them when I found the right opportunity.

Who was your inspiration growing and why?

My grandmother! She has worked all her life and is at the top of her field (she is a jewellery historian) even today.

So tell me about LUX FIX and how the idea came about?

We felt there was a need for a service offering time-poor professionals cherry-picked luxury, countering the “inventory overload” of the web and rewarding them with special offers each week.

What is LUX FIX and how does it work?

For our members, we are solving the issue of online inventory-overload and making buying luxury online fun and experience led (all our offers are one-off), for our designers we are a marketing platform which drives targeted consumers directly to their own online presences.

What is your business model?

LUX FIX works hand in hand with designers to offer super-curated luxury with members-only deals – like discounts, limited-editions and previews. We introduce brands and their current season to members via our newsletter/blog, engage members through the fun & interactive LUX FIX platform, and convert sales both on lux-fix.com and through referrals to designers’ own websites.

LUX FIX currently generates revenues directly on lux-fix.com and via affiliate sales.

What makes LUX FIX different from any service out there?

We are the only site in the UK where top luxury brands give regular offers on current season merchandise; this is possible because we provide marketing and sales generation for our designer partners’ brands and websites. Our customer is interested in current collections and the provenance behind them, she also appreciates deals and one-off offers to draw her attention.

What are the most crucial things you have done to grow your business?

Building a portfolio of luxury designers from scratch pre-launch was a big challenge — designers are approached by online startups all the time and we had to show them why we were different, all before we actually had a website to demo.

We focused on explaining to designers how Lux Fix differs from other online multi-brand retailers — how we work directly with designers to raise awareness of their brands and grow their own e-commerce sales rather than competing for customers. Also, we showed no compunction in calling brands again, and again, and again, until they agreed to give us a meeting.

Who are your competitors?

Well…we think LUX FIX occupies a unique space in the UK, offering members deals on in-season luxury alongside fresh editorial!

How have you been able to fund the business?

We raised a small initial round from private investors.

What can we be expecting from your company in 2012?

In the next year we are looking to grow a fantastic team, particularly on the buying side so that we can grow our engaged database of luxury consumers to our next milestone and also to expand our offering cross-vertical and to serve new markets!

What three pieces of advice would you offer entrepreneurs starting out today?

The best advice we have ever been given? Never take no for an answer and always negotiate! Other than that….Use your network — friends, family, former colleagues, random person you meet at a party, it’s amazing how many people you know will be able and happy to help. Also be prepared to be flexible and responsive — we’re constantly iterating and many of the features on the latest version of the site came from customer and designer feedback.

After profiling Sarah April last year, We finally got the opportunity to sit down and discuss her start-up Dressipi. Sarah is currently the co-founder and CEO of Dressipi. Dressipi is an online styling service – Think having your own personal stylist online.

Prior to founding Dressipi, Sarah was the co-founder and CEO of Texperts.com, the world’s first text message question answering service which was sold to KGB, owners of the 118118 directory enquiries service, in a multi-million pound deal.

Below is the full interview.

Hi Sarah, How are you doing, great to have you on YHP?

Thanks, it is great to be here! I love your site and the fact that you are promoting young entrepreneurs – something I am also very passionate about. So, very excited to be featured.

Could you quickly give us some background information about yourself? Tell me about yourself growing up?

Well, I am 34 years old and have greatly enjoyed life so far. My Dad was in the army, so as a child I lived everywhere! Since leaving school in 1995, I spent a year teaching English in China. I then completed my education at Edinburgh University where I studied Economics and Chinese (gaining a 2:1) and was then offered a job in an investment bank working as an analyst in Corporate Finance.

At University, I developed a passion for motorbikes and fuelled by my year in China had a desire to ride my motorbike from London to Beijing across the Silk Route. I managed to convince 5 other friends to join me, the investment bank to give me a year off and we set off in 2001 on 2 Ural motorbike and sidecars, a Land Rover and a lot of spare parts! Thousands of miles, 13 countries and many breakdowns later we made it to Tiananmen Square having raised £50,000 for Cancer Research and Mercy Corps.

I started my first job but quickly realized that life in the city was not for me! But, it was my first job that inspired me to start my first business. Along with my first co-founder (Thomas Roberts) we spotted a gap in the information market and in June 2003 to set up my first business, Texperts. We ended up selling Texperts to our largest competitor (the company that own 118118) in 2008, I then went out to New York to work for them and then quickly realized that being an entrepreneur was now firmly in my blood so then resigned and came back to start Dressipi with Donna Kelly (amazingly talented lady!).

How did you get into business? Were you exposed to entrepreneurship as a child?

Purely by chance, it was literally whilst working for the investment bank that we got the idea for the first business and starting a business when you are younger is a much better time to do it. I was 25, had nothing to lose – no mortgage, no kids, and no real responsibilities so if it all went wrong I figured I would have learnt a fair bit and would just go back into a normal job! Although I have amazing role models in my family they were mostly in services or teachers so very little exposure to entrepreneurship. I honestly believe that if you see an opportunity or have an idea there is nothing better than just going for it – of course you’ll make mistakes but as long as you learn quickly it is an amazing experience and one that cannot be replicated in an office.

Who was your inspiration growing up and why?

I would say that one of my greatest inspirations growing up was my grandfather, not necessarily from an entrepreneurial point of view but he was without doubt the most time-less, class-less principled person I have ever known. Him and my grandmother were full of fun, laughter and always surrounded by people of all generations and from all walks of life. My parents have also been an inspiration to me, always encouraging me to do what I enjoy and to never give up!

You founded and sold Texperts, tell me about your experience running that company and the idea behind it, that was just after the dot-com bubble – it must have been a hard to start and grow a business?

The idea for Texperts came from our time as analysts on the graduate training program at the investment bank. We spent so much of our time having to locate very accurate information and numbers for very demanding bosses and client at all times of the day, night and weekend. We got fairly frustrated that we were being paid a good graduate salary to do lots of analysis but spent more of our time locating various bits of information. We could find a service that could deliver good quality information quickly (this was 4 or 5 years before the advent of the smart phone) so we decided to have a go at it ourselves!

We were very young and so, as you can imagine, made many mistakes but we also managed to build a good business with really great technology. One of the great things about starting a business when you are young is that you don’t know what you don’t know and so everything seems very achievable. It was hard starting but there is always a way to get through any situation and if you truly believe in your idea and what you are building then you will find the right way through any problem. The most important skill to learn is that of empathy – learn to understand who you are pitching to and what it is about your business that each person (whether it is a client or an investor) is interested in.

What were some of the key things you learnt from the whole Texperts experience?

We made a few mistakes at Texperts but as a result learnt amazing amounts in those 5 years.
Here is a shortlist:

· Make sure your business really needs investment, raising capital is hard work and very time consuming – make sure you have explored all other avenues first
· Make sure you get a good team. At early stages, people invest in the team just as much as they invest in the idea. It’s about the ability to execute in changing circumstances
· Know your business not just the basics; know all stats, figures & what really counts
· Understand that fundamentally investors want a return on their capital – angels tend to have different time horizons than VCs so it is important you have worked out what you want out of your business; are you building it to sell it or run it – what is your ideal exit?
· Learn to listen and watch what aspects of your business excite different investors/clients and adapt your focus accordingly – empathy is key
· Understand who you are pitching to – do as much due diligence on investors as they do on you. At the early stages you need smart investors who add real value. Talk to other companies they have invested, make sure there are no nasty surprises round the corner
· If you can, run a tight competitive process with your investors
· For every NO that you get – make sure you get honest feedback (everyone will have a different reason for the NO) and make sure that point has been addressed before you present again.
· Don’t get disheartened – retain your passion and belief. Don’t give up.
· Network, network, network – you never know where you’ll meet future investors
· Once you have investment, communicate with your investors, whether it is good or bad news, this is key. Existing investors are often the spring board to further investment

So tell me about Dressipi and how the idea came about?

Back in 2009, we were both busy working women who didn’t have the time to shop but definitely wanted to look lovely. And if we bought clothes, it was often from the same brands and not always clothes that were great for us. Everyone was pushing product but no one was genuinely servicing the customer. This led to the idea to create a service where you could find all the clothes and brands in one place, and where every single item you saw was selected personally for you, based on your own style and shopping preferences. A service that was simple and fun to use and where you could always find inspirational and feel good things. Exactly like having your own personal stylist on tap.

What were you doing before you founded Dressipi?

I was working in New York for the company that bought Texperts – they are called kgb and own kgb deals and many of the European 118 services.

What was your biggest challenge during the startup phase?

Working out whether what we wanted to build was technically feasible or not. We ended up speaking to specialists in many areas before we started building the first prototype.

How have you been able to fund the business?

We self-funded the business ourselves to begin with and then raised money from angel investors. But most importantly remember that, especially in the early stages, investors primarily invest in the team. Fundamentally it is about passion, tenacity and drive – with those 3 qualities you can make anything happen!

What are the most crucial things you have done to grow your business?

Most of our growth to-date has been through word-of-mouth and some SEO/PPC but to be honest we are still building quite a bit of the core functionality and would expect to have most of the core functionality built by June at which point we would expect to start to simplify the marketing and customer growth.

Would you say the business has changed from the first initial idea?

Absolutely. When we first started we had a social fashion game! It is still not a bad idea but it did not really appeal to the market that we were really trying to solve problems for.

What would you say has been the highlight of your entrepreneurial journey so far?

All of it! I love what I do and am lucky enough to wake up every day and find that I cannot wait to get into the office… (sad I know!)

What can we be expecting from your company in 2012?

We have so many plans for 2012. The first half of the year is about building the remaining 3 bit of functionality that our customers tell us they really want! And then the last half of the year is about introducing the social elements of the site and amplifying the benefits to increase customer growth.

What three pieces of advice would you offer entrepreneurs starting out today?

1. Make sure you are solving a real problem
2. Make sure you believe in what you are doing
3. Go for it!

After spending the last 15 years in different retail roles – When does a mumpreneur decide enough is enough and it’s time to start her own business?

Today I interview Denise Proctor who after returning from her maternity leave in 2010 was made redundant, a great motivation for her to start The Baby Loft she said.

The Baby Loft is a UK based baby equipment hire service and hires everything that a baby or small child may need, from sleep, travel, and mealtime products to toys readily available from leading brands – An idea, she said came to her whilst on maternity leave after having her daughter Olivia.

Denise shares her journey so far especially on how she copes with being a wife and a mother to Olivia. Below is the full interview.

Hi Denise, How are you doing, great to have you on YHP?

It is great to have been considered and given the opportunity

Could you quickly give us some background information about yourself?

I am Denise Proctor 36 years old, wife to Crispin & mum to Olivia who is almost 3 yrs old. We live in Hertfordshire and my home is also where I currently run my business The Baby Loft from.

So Denise tell me how you got into business? Were you exposed to entrepreneurship as a child?

I have always been interested in business generally and have exposed myself to & worked my way around most retail roles within the last 15 years. I was never content staying in one role, I always wanted to know the bigger picture. I do have members of my family that have literally spent 40 years building up a hugely successful construction company from nothing, so have always admired and been inspired by this.

Who was your inspiration growing and why?

My parents, they have always taught me to believe that if you try hard enough you can achieve your dreams. My mums favourite saying is “ In life you only get out as much as you put in”

So tell me about The Baby Loft and how the idea came about?

The Baby Loft is a UK based baby equipment hire service and hires everything that a baby or small child may need, from sleep, travel, and mealtime products to toys readily available from leading brands. The site also provides a unique ‘Try before you buy’ service, an invaluable facility that allows parents to hire a desired piece of equipment of their choice, giving them the opportunity to check its suitability before committing to buy it.

The idea came to me whilst I was on maternity leave after having my daughter Olivia. I was astounded daily as to the amount of “stuff” that such a little person needs. In addition, family members also stock up their lofts with baby equipment ready to call upon when little ones come to visit. The idea to start The Baby Loft began as a few scribbles on a sheet of paper, something that I would maybe do at some point in the future.

What were you doing before you founded The Baby Loft?

Before The Baby Loft, I was working as a Software sales executive selling Merchandise management & Epos systems to Retailers. After returning to work from maternity leave in 2010 I was made redundant, which was perfect timing and the motivation I needed to forge ahead with my plans for The Baby Loft

Are you currently doing this full-time?

Yes this is a full time job for me.

What is your business model?

We are a baby equipment hire service, delivering high quality baby equipment and working with – Tourists visiting the UK, Hotels & accommodation providers, Event hire companies, Nannies & nurseries, Relocation companies, new mums wanting to try out the latest models, Grandparents with visiting relatives. For added convenience we will deliver to Airports / hotels / Family / friends/ holiday homes etc etc

What makes The baby Loft different from any service out there?

We are different in that we completely empathise with mums and the stresses that come with meeting & satisfying babies needs, so we offer equipment that we know is tried & tested, will happily give informed advice and opinions on the most suitable products, as well as offering a personal delivery & collection service, where we get the opportunity to meet the families and demonstrate the equipment

How do you cope with being a Mum and running a start-up?

In the beginning I did struggle as I had expected the business to begin at a slow pace, but not long after launching the orders began to come in thick & fast. I was working completely on my own then, as well as looking after my daughter Olivia who was a 1 year at the time. I was then given a piece of advice and that was that the best business investment you can make is good childcare. In the beginning Olivia would come with me on deliveries, I quickly realised it was unfair on her and she wasn’t getting much from it or from me during these long stressful hours in London traffic, she now goes to Nursery three days a week which allows me to focus on the business and she has a great time and has come on in leaps & bounds.

What are the most crucial things you have done to grow your business?

After about 6 months, I realised that I would need someone to help me with deliveries as I was beginning to turn away business as I couldn’t physically be in so many places at once, so I took on Jane, who has been a godsend and has allowed me to double what we can deliver in a day. Also I have contacted the airports and I am some way to achieving a visible Baby Loft presence in the airports, so watch this space…

Would you say the business has changed from the first initial idea?

Absolutely, it has changed direction in that I thought that my “Try before you buy” concept would be the most popular thus keeping me local, however the reality quickly became apparent in that 85% of my customers are tourists from overseas visiting the UK, so I had to quickly adjust my marketing & advertising from Local to International.

How have you been able to fund the business?

I have been lucky in that I was able to fund the business myself with the help of my redundancy.

What can we be expecting from your company in 2012?

To build the Baby Loft brand, much like one of the large car hire companies with a presence in multiple locations using different formats, thus helping me to educate people to the fact that you can hire baby equipment as it is currently not a well-known concept in the UK.

What three pieces of advice would you offer to other female entrepreneurs especially mothers starting out today?

Be prepared for a lot of hard work, guilt and being pulled in all directions, but remember you are not Superwoman and that you are a Mum first & foremost.

Be flexible and go with what your business is demanding, if you are too rigid with how you expect it to work you will go off course

Be prepared to become “Jack of all trades”, running your own business means you need to learn & throw yourself into many new skills & worlds i.e accounting,advertsing, marketing, PR the list is endless.

Sending gifts to friends, family members can be a pain sometimes, sometimes we mess up the gifts, other times its the presentation that lets us down.

I quickly had a chat with someone who knows all about gifts and presentation. Today, I interview the founder of Biscuiteers – a company that bakes beautiful, hand iced biscuits and have recently introduced hand-iced chocolates and cakes to the mix.

This is our conversation below.

Can you give you some background information about yourself, were you the entrepreneurial type growing up?

Well I started my career in publishing and then subsequently spent ten years running the consumer brands division at a top 20 PR consultancy. I worked with a number of internet start ups during the dot com boom years and I think that the excitement of that period inspired me to want to launch my own online retail shop. I was interested to see if I could and I thought my background in PR and marketing was a good starting point.

Tell me how the idea for Biscuiteers came about?

My husband runs a London based catering and events company so food was obvious starting point and I thought there was an opportunity in the food gift sector

What is Biscuiteers?

We hand-make a number of different collections of beautiful themed iced biscuits to send to friends, colleagues and family as gifts. We have also recently launched hand-iced chocolates and cakes.

What are you trying to solve with Biscuiteers?

The gifting problem! How to send the most original, thoughtful and lovely present to people you care about.

Talk me through the first few months of running the business? What would you say was the hardest part of starting the business?

The business took off really quickly so our early problems were mainly logistical – breakages in the post, meeting demand and managing customer expectations.

How were you able to fund the business?

We put in the initial investment ourselves and have grown the business organically since then.

How has your market changed in the past few years? How has your business changed to keep pace?

We are evolving our business all the time – introducing new product ranges and new services and delivery options for our customers. I think as customers have got more used to online shopping, their expectations have grown. They don’t make any distinction between shopping on huge retail sites like Amazon and a small boutique site like ours so there is constant challenge to deliver comparable levels of service, website and delivery excellence.

Would you say the initial idea for the company, or that your business model has changed since starting the company?

No although different areas of the business have become more important as the business has grown like our growing corporate business and wholesale outlets.

What would you say has been some of the most crucial that you’ve done to build the company to this level now?

Very concentrated focus on PR and marketing. PR in particular is the most fantastic and relatively inexpensive way for a new company to make an impact.

What’s been your most memorable moment so far on your entrepreneurial journey?

There have been lots of good moments – the publication of our first book, our nomination as one of Britain’s most innovative, creative and disruptive brands in the Real Business top 50 and we are quite pleased to have a whole page in Glamour magazine this month!

What pieces of advices could you give to aspiring entrepreneurs out there?

Have a clear idea of your market and your USP’s and be prepared to take a risk. Starting your own business is a challenge but it is also can be a really great experience.

What can we be expecting from you and Biscuiteers in 2012?

Expansion – increased product range and offer online and we are also exploring some new retail opportunities. The second edition of our book will be out in October.

Fresh from her trip to New York, I had the opportunity of speaking with Lakhiva Blann, Founder and CEO of LcB Nail Lacquer, an enterprise that has created a marquee concept consisting of a line of nail lacquer shades.

I spoke to Lakhiva about her new company and some of the difficulties she has faced since its launch.

Below is our full conversation.

Hi Lakhiva, thanks for doing this interview with me, how are you doing?

Great. Just returned form New York presenting LcB Nail Lacquer to the Beauty Industry.

Can you tell me a little about yourself? What’s your background?

Born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas. Background is in Sales with a flair for creative interpretation.

Take us back a little, how did you get the idea for LcB Nail Lacquer collection?

I am a product junkie with a love for color and fashion. Through creative interpretation I’ve developed the ability to express myself through beauty products and fashion.

When did you decide to start taking it seriously?

When I launched LcB Nail Lacquer February 12, 2011 and I’ve never looked back.

What were you doing before you started LcB Nail Lacquer collection?

A Medical/Pharmaceutical Sales Representative.

What is LcB Nail Lacquer?

LcB Nail Lacquer™ is an enterprise that has created a marquee concept consisting of a line of nail lacquer shades. I grew up being called different names in reference to my dark skin tone. Whether the comments tended to be flattering or insulting, I was motivated and persuaded to create a line for women to inspre, motivate and empower women.

Talking about early days, what difficulties did you encounter in your early days of the company and tell us how you got out of it?

As any small businessperson or entrepreneur will attest, starting from scratch is not for the faint of heart. Initially, being viewed as a serious entrant into the beauty/fashion world was a huge hurdle. Competition is staggering and entrants are numerous. In such a competitive field a new line must set itself apart from the field. Secondly, finances. Operating on a shoestring budget and filling the roles in all facets of a fledgling business takes commitment. My goal remains, operate with the company’s financial means. Lastly, remembering I’m also the CEO of a family. Having a successful business is rewarding however; having a loving and successful family to share it with is heavenly.

Who is your inspiration and why?

I’m inspired both by the drive to better myself and by the people I encounter on a daily basis. I think inspiration can be found everywhere that’s why I love to travel and meet people.

What would you say has been the key to your success so far?

Continue to evolve, staying on trend and being creative. Keep things fresh and new, like it’s your first adventure.

What would you say has been your most memorable moment so far?

Working with Designer Korto Momolu during New York Fashion Week. LcB outfitted the models in LcB Nail Lacquer.

What would you say has been some of the key things that you’ve learnt on your journey so far?

Be patient, my time will come!

What achievement are you most proud of?

When individuals tell me that LcB is the best nail polish. It can last up to 2 weeks and has an ultimate shine without the harmful chemicals, such as DBP (Dibutyl Phthalate), Toluene and Formaldehyde.

What advices would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs looking to get in to business?

Research the industry, be patience and persistence, find mentors, join organizations that relate to your business. Research, research, and more research!

What can we be expecting from you in 2012?

LcB will launch 3 new colors and names, more New York Fashion Week visits and to work with more charities and organizations.