Are you thinking about buying time or at least something close to it – Minutesforsale allows companies and individuals to buy time for every minute of the day.
So basically this is how it works – You pay a small one off fee and get your will website displayed on the Minutesforsale homepage for the amount of time purchased.
Meet Jason Ting, the 20 year old founder behind the project, Jason is currently studying at the London School of Economics.
Hi Jason, How are you doing, great to have you on YHP?
I am great thank you, though it’s mainly down to the sun being out right now. It’s great to be on YHP, thanks for having me.
Could you quickly give us some background information about yourself?
Sure thing. My name is Jason Ting, I’m 20 years old and I’ve lived in London all my life. I’m half Chinese hence my awesome surname, and why I look half Chinese. I have numerous interests which include sports (football and gym more specifically, but really its an endless list), reading, cooking (I can make quite the dessert), movies, restaurants… You get the picture. Oh and I’m a massive fan of American Pie.
Tell me how you got into business? Were you exposed to entrepreneurship as a child?
Well both my eldest brother and my father are self-employed, so I’ve always been surrounded by people who work for themselves to fit the lifestyle they like. So really for a long time I’ve felt I could try and do something different with my life, something that I could call my own to push as far as I can. As well as that I am currently studying at the London School of Economics, so I continue to be in an environment that is business orientated.
So tell me about Minutesforsale and how the idea came about?
Well I found myself surrounded by mates who were busy doing part-time jobs to make their way through university, or to help pay off their student loan. And so I thought now was as good a time as any to try and create a unique way of paying mine off. I wanted to create something that had never been done before. Having been flooded with advertising my whole life it made sense to start thinking about possible ideas in that field. In the end I thought of time, and from there I challenged myself to sell something almost unsellable that no one had tried before.
What is Minutesforsale and how does it work? What are you trying to solve?
Minutesforsale is a website that I have created and the basic concept of the website is that I’m trying to sell time. I know, it sounds strange just hearing it. But basically I am allowing companies and individuals to buy every minute of the day. Every minute of every hour.
They pay just a small one off fee and I will display their website on my homepage at that exact time, every single day. I’m not just displaying their advert, but their actual website in full, for one minute a day. They also get a permanent link in the timetable page where people can click on any time of day and see who has purchased it.
How have you been able to fund the business?
Well it didn’t cost too much to start up. Just the web hosting and things like that. I had enough saved up to cover those things. I learnt to code the website for free online. So thankfully my costs have been quite minimal.
What is your business model?
When I started, I had the price at a one off fee of £10 per minute. With every hour sold, I am increasing the price slowly. So after every 60 minutes sold, the price goes up. It will keep going up every hour until all the minutes are gone.
A nice added feature I have is that once all the minutes have sold out, people will then be able to re-sell their advertising spot if they wish to do so. Imagine you purchase a minute now, where the current price is £20, and by the time the last hour sells, the price is £240 we’ll say as an example.
You can then sell your minute for £240 to someone else, and you will get your initial fee of £20 back, plus half of the difference as profit. So for the £20 minute you bought, you will get back £130 if you sold later on.
It’s not my intention to have people selling all their minutes, but it’s a nice added bonus and maintains value in the spot they purchased.
What has been your most memorable moment so far?
Well being the fan of page 3 that I am, it has got to be getting a big article written about me on page 3 of a newspaper!
What can we be expecting from your company in 2012?
Well so far I’ve sold just under two hours in a couple of weeks. With a little more exposure and more people becoming aware of my site, I’m hoping to sell out every minute of time in 2012. That would be a great achievement, but there’s a long way to go yet.
From winning TechCrunch Disrupt to raising a total of $18.3M in funding. I invited Tomer Dvir, the CEO and Co-Founder of Soluto as he talks me through his entrepreneurial journey so far, especially how the idea for Soluto came about.
Tomer Dvir is the CEO and Co-Founder of Soluto, a web service that helps people to make their own PC and other people’s PCs better.
The full interview is below.
Photo by Louiz Green
Hi Tomer, Thanks for doing this interview with me. Can you give you some background information about yourself, were you the entrepreneurial type growing up?
When I was 7 years old, I got two rabbits as a gift. Quickly I found out that rabbits multiply every few weeks. That was my first business. I started programming at the age of 9. As a teenager I worked for various companies as a programmer and helped people with their computers, while also working on my own projects – such as a computerized home and various other projects involving hardware and software working together.
At the age of 18 I joined the army for 3 years, serving the air force in an R&D unit. The day I left the army I started a small software company with a friend from high-school. We loved programming but we were pretty bad at marketing ourselves – so we failed miserably. Then I joined a small start-up that developed a very cool medication dispensing system, where I grew to lead development as the company’s CTO.
After 5 years I decided it was time to move on and start something huge that would affect hundreds of millions of people around the world.
Tell me how the idea for Soluto came about?
The real Soluto story started back when I was a teenager, when I began helping people in my hometown with their computers. At first it was just to help people and make them happier, but quickly I realized that I could make people all over the world happier by helping them enjoy their technology more. A seed was planted and the idea for Soluto grew, to help anyone anywhere get more from their computers. In the beginning of 2008, together with Ishay Green, Soluto was born.
What were you doing before you started the company?
Before co-founding Soluto, I was CTO at MDG Medical, where I led the software and hardware development of medication dispensing products for hospitals. Before that I co-founded InetB, a web applications software provider.
What is Soluto?
Soluto helps you get more out of your PC. It’s a web-based service that lets you manage your PCs and help your friends, family and colleagues make their PCs better too, so that everyone will be a little happier with the technologies they use every day.
What are you trying to solve with Soluto?
We all use technology in our lives every day, in our offices, at home and even in our pockets as we move more and more towards a world of smartphones. Unfortunately many people are not naturally good with technology and this is where Soluto comes in. Our aim is to make everyone happier with the technology they use every day by allowing people to do more with their computer and also providing a simple way for friends, family and colleagues to help each other get more from technology.
Soluto currently works for PCs and we’re planning to support tablets, Macs and smartphones in the near future.
Talk me through the first few months of running the business? What would you say was the hardest part of starting the business?
When people think of fun-to-use, easy technology – PCs aren’t the first things that come to mind. We knew that people use PCs every day and that they are an amazing technology that can make people’s lives better and easier. We also knew that most people don’t know what to do with them or how they can get more out of their PC. We knew this, but the challenge was to convince investors and the market that there was a need for Soluto and that we could change the way people think about, feel towards, and use their PCs.
The hardest part of starting the business was taking an idea (that sounded great) and turning it into a real product (that proved itself) so others could actually see that we were really onto something. It was a lot of hard work, conviction, and not a lot of sleep or money. But our dedication and belief in what we were doing got us to where we are now.
How has your market changed in the past few years? How has your business changed to keep pace?
Over the last year it’s become clear that many of our users are supporting other people, either at work or as ‘family CTOs,’ helping parents, neighbors, even grandma with their computers. We realized that finding a way to efficiently help multiple people with their PCs was the real challenge for our power users. We decided that we could make it easier if power users could remotely help PCs from a web dashboard. That’s how the Soluto web-based service came to be.
Soluto, which was once a software application that helped people with their own PCs, has always been focused on helping people get more from technology. Now, our business has taken the next step in making technology better for everyone, by creating the web-based service that can help people not only get more out of their own PC but also help others make their PCs better too.
Would you say the initial idea for the company, or that your business model has changed since starting the company?
Soluto has always been focused on helping people get more from technology so the initial idea has remained the same throughout, how we can best do this is adapting as we learn from our users.
What would you say has been some of the most crucial that you’ve done to build the company to this level now?
We believe that technology should be easy, clear but also Fun. One of the most crucial things we’ve done is focus on our user experience and design. Soluto has reached the level it’s at now due to our team’s focused dedication to creating an easy-to-use, beautiful, and enjoyable product.
For us it’s crucial that we always find a way to make our service as intuitive and user-friendly as possible. We strive to give people only the information they need, and not overload users with tons of unnecessary technical data.
But in addition to that – we try to make any experience with Soluto as fun as possible. Our ultimate goal with every design and feature is to get the person who’s using the feature to smile.
Is the business profitable? What is your business model?
Soluto is not profitable yet. Soluto is free for use with up to 5 PCs. Users pay a monthly fee to use Soluto to manage more than 5 PCs.
What’s been your most memorable moment so far on your entrepreneurial journey?
Our most memorable moment was releasing our first public version and winning TechCrunch Disrupt in 2010. It was amazing to have our hard work and vision recognized.
What pieces of advices could you give to aspiring entrepreneurs out there?
Be ready to work hard, and really believe in what you are doing. Be prepared for some disappointments, challenges and unexpected hiccups along the way, but don’t lose sight of your vision and goals. The start-up and entrepreneurial road is fast-paced and full of unexpected highs and lows, so be ready for anything.
Most importantly – Trust yourself wholly, and believe in your idea. Many people will be non-believers and will tell you that you have no chance. Always listen, but don’t assume someone else knows better than you.
What can we be expecting from you and Soluto in 2012?
You can expect Soluto to continue improving and embarking on new ways to help make technology better for everyone. Moving forward we are working on our PC Genome project. Soluto’s PC Genome project aims to make data about technology freely and publicly available.
Also, Soluto will become available on additional platforms and provide more and more value to everyone’s digital life.
After becoming increasingly frustrated at the lack of decent facilities for people working out and about, James decided to start Central Working. I spoke to James as he explains how it all came about.
The full interview is below.
Hi James, Thanks for doing this interview with me. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your entrepreneurial journey?
Well I started out on my entrepreneurial journey as a kid growing up in Hull. My first venture was an egg delivery business, JayLay eggs, see what I did there! Yes it was an egg round, delivering double yokers to all an sundry in the local area. That got me hooked on the power of being your own boss. However I did not leap straight into my own venture on leaving university. I in fact started life working on Wonderbra, it was hell I went on to work on Absolut Vodka, Sony Playstation and then Virgin, where I was head hunted to become a marketing director.
It wasn’t until after Virgin that I once again had my own business, first with a marketing agency The Lounge Group, then Escape airports, Inside consultants and most recently Central Working. I’m really proud that all of my businesses are growing, and now employ quite a few people.
Tell me how the idea for Central Working came about?
I was frustrated at the lack of decent facilities for people working out and about. The age old adage, ‘it’s not what you know, it’s who you know’ is more pertinent today than ever. This issue cannot be solved virtually on LinkedIn, it’s about face to face connections. That is the magic of Central Working, we’re creating a network of passionate business people who come together to help you grow your business
Tell me more about Central Working?
At its heart Central Working is a members based coworking club. In the current economic climate, conditions are more challenging for SMEs than ever, who’s stepping up to help? I believe that there are endless opportunities to build the business you dream of – the problem is not just a lack of space, but a lack of resource and inspiration.
Central Working is addressing these issues head on by creating a contemporary co-working space with a membership of smart, passionate business people and a range of tools to help members fast track their businesses. We plan to help SMEs prosper by encouraging small businesses to be more than they can be on their own and, ultimately, fuel job creation.
How did you fund the business?
A combination of mortgaging the house, personal investment and angels
What are you trying to achieve with central working?
To boost the UK economy, by helping 10,000 SMEs grow over the next 10 years. We believe that the ideal working environment isn’t just about a co-working space, it’s about the people in the space and how you interact with them. At Central Working, we give our members the opportunity to connect and inspire
How many people are involved in the business?
All in about 10
What is your business model?
We offer membership to the club from as little as £25, meeting spaces from just £35, events space as well as learning programmes to help people grow their businesses.
What has been the hardest part of starting the business?
Finding the angel investors with the vision to see the potential.
What has been the most crucial things that you’ve done to grow the business?
We started the way we mean to go on. So we collaborated with over 500 potential members to develop the concept. They literally got hands on involved even down to picking the furniture. We are always listening to our membership and know that they are the key to growing our business
How do you keep the right balance within all your businesses?
Employ great management teams and great partners. They give you the freedom to be able to make a difference
What has been your most memorable moment so far on your entrepreneurial journey?
I think getting to open Central Working after an 18 month slog to raise the money in the middle of the recession
What plans do you have now to expand your business further?
We have just partnered up with a little know company, Google, to launch our second site in the heart of Tech City. We’re really excited about our partnership and know that we will both benefit.
What advices can you give to young entrepreneurs starting up?
Stop talking about it and get on with it. Evolve quickly, know that your original plan is not how its going to end up, don’t be afraid of this change. Join Central Working, we’re here to help!
Imagine watching an episode of your favourite TV shows with friends online, chatting at the same time whilst doing some shopping or watching a live football match – nothing beats seeing your mate’s real-time expression after losing to your team. This is all what lutebox offers and more.
So what is Lutebox? As described in our full interview below with the founder, Ali Ahmed ” It’s a social entertainment hub, Lutebox lets people group videochat for free, while enjoying content with friends at the same time. They can watch movies, videos and play games, shop for their favorite stuff, and even broadcast themselves live, all while socializing with friends at the same time.”
This is my full interview below with Lutebox’s founder, Ali Ahmed
Hi Ali, How are you doing, great to have you on YHP? Could you quickly give us some background information about yourself?
Thanks so much for having me Joseph, it’s a great honor.
I’m the founder of a startup called Lutebox, which is a social entertainment hub. Lutebox lets people group videochat for free, while enjoying content with friends at the same time. They can watch movies, videos and play games, shop for their favorite stuff, and even broadcast themselves live, all while socializing with friends at the same time.
Before starting Lutebox, I was an entrepreneur in residence at Groupon, and prior to that I’ve worked in consulting, brand management and product development. I also have two Masters degrees, an MSc from Lancaster University, and an MBA from the Institute of Business Management.
How did you get involved in entrepreneurship? Were you exposed to entrepreneurship as a child?
I’ve always known that I wanted to start my own business, well since I was in high school at least. Two of my role models, my father and an uncle of mine were and still are great businessmen, and I aspired to be like them. However, they both worked in the corporate world, and never took the plunge to start their own businesses. So I knew from an early age, that rising in the corporate world wasn’t the end all goal. I wanted to be an entrepreneur.
Lancaster University gave me an incredible amount of support when starting up, and I was extremely lucky to have been able to become an external member of Oxford University’s entrepreneurship society and join a great network of young entrepreneurs. I tried to leverage these connections and embed myself into the UK entrepreneurial community, an example of which is where I participated in a Launch48 weekend, where I was part of a team that launched a twitter based business in 48 hours. Experiences like this cemented my desire and resolve to be an entrepreneur.
So tell me about Lutebox and how the idea came about?
Lutebox is real life, online. We’re trying to recreate real life experiences, like socializing with friends by going to the cinema, concerts, and parties, but online. Currently there isn’t any way that people can socialize in real time around entertainment online, and we’re giving them a way to do this, by focusing on group videochats, and shared co-viewing experiences. Imagine watching a film or a football match with five other friends at the same time, while each of you are in different places. This is part of the Lutebox experience. On Lutebox people can also shop for goods, broadcast live events and play games with friends at the same time.
I had the idea for Lutebox while doing my MBA in 2005. The idea was to create an instant streaming video/music app within a social network. Mind you, that this was before Youtube, Spotify etc., so you could say that the idea was a little before its time. However, I didn’t pursue the concept until I got to Lancaster, where I did my entire dissertation on Lutebox and proving out that it would work. After which I convinced one of my best friends Owais Shaikh, a genius computer programmer to join me in the venture, and together we founded Lutebox.
What is Lutebox and how does it work?
On Lutebox users sign up, just like they would to a social network. You’ve got your activity feed and profile pages just like a social network. But then you also have the various entertainment pages, where you can purchase premium films, music videos and games. You can also shop in the Lutestores, and broadcast yourself in a livestream. All while kicking back and socializing with friends through group videochats.
What is your business model?
We take a fixed commission on premium transactions. Users purchase Lutes, our online credits, and then allocate Lutes towards content they want to buy. We take a small cut while returning the rest to the content owner and publisher.
What makes Lutebox different from any service out there?
Although there are several competitors in the new Alive Web space, Lutebox is the only website where you can watch premium content, shop for goods, and broadcast yourself in a live shared co-viewing experience with friends at the same time while videochatting with them.
We’re in the process of patenting our technology behind Lutecasting.
What are the most crucial things you have done to grow your business?
Three of the most important things that we’ve been lucky to get done that have helped grow our business tremendously, have been getting the initial seed capital which created a domino effect with raising investment, winning the IC Tomorrow competition last year which helped get us on the map, and signing a deal with Sony Music and getting 5,000 of their videos on Lutebox which has given us tremendous credibility and traction.
Would you say the business has changed from the first initial idea?
We’ve pivoted our strategy several times, however, the core themes around our concept have stayed relatively the same. Some of the improvements and pivots that we made include adding group videochats, and extending activities on the site to shopping and broadcasts and not just movies and music.
Looking at our prototype then alpha and now to our beta, we’ve made huge changes to the design, UI and functionality, which is something I think is part and parcel of any internet startup.
Who are your competitors?
Being a social network in the new Alive Web space, Lutebox competes against Google+, Facebook, Skype, Yowie, Chill, and Rounds.
The Alive Web space is the convergence of social networking, entertainment, and communications and is the next generation in real-time shared experiences online. We believe that this is the future of social entertainment and communication, and as a result we are trying to position ourselves as one of the leaders in this extremely new and upcoming space.
How have you been able to fund the business?
We’ve been extremely fortunate to raise capital in three rounds, one seed round, an angel round and very recently a bridge round to our Series A. We’ve raised £250,000 of investment in total, and also were awarded two grants.
As someone that has received investment, what do investors look for when investing in startups?
Raising investment is a long and hard process. The main things that I’ve learned are that angel investors tend to look more closely at the entrepreneur’s experience, passion and ability, than the business’ traction or viability. Being risk takers, if they’re convinced that the entrepreneur is a winner, this justifies their investment. Whereas institutional investors like VCs tend to be much more risk averse, they wait for traction, and tend to quantify their upside through financial planning. Angels usually come in so early in the game that they know they can make huge returns in any potential upside scenario. Since VCs tend to come in slightly later, and they often have competing investment interests and startup opportunities, they tend to look more towards generating optimal returns.
What can we be expecting from your company in 2012?
We’re currently sitting at the edge of a new wave of activity in the Alive Web space. If we can take a leading position we hope to really scale up our business.
We’ve just gone live with our global beta, and 2012 will see our mobile apps come out. We’re also going to focus on our social commerce offering, by giving our users the best experience to shop with friends for the best products and services out there.
What three pieces of advice would you offer entrepreneurs starting out today?
1. Keep on shuffling. (There will be countless times where you’ll feel like your idea is worthless, or like there’s no way you’ll succeed, but you just have to keep positive and keep on pushing ahead. Small wins build up into big successes.)
2. Believe in yourself and aim big. (Taking others’ advice is important, but always believe in yourself. Aim for the sky and you’ll land in the clouds.)
3. No excuses, find a way. (True entrepreneurs will always find a way. When you have no money, no social life, no support, no resources, no motivation, you’ll feel like you need others’ support to succeed, but just know that entrepreneurs always find a way. That’s the definition of an entrepreneur.)
Like many entrepreneurs, I have always known I was going to start my own business – the main challenge for me was waiting for inspiration to strike! Fortunately for me it did, and in the most unlikely of places. I was searching online for some Calvin Klein underwear for my brother, and after searching for hours and not finding what I was looking for, I had my ‘eureka’ moment and realised that I could create a better online website than those currently offered.
Soon after, my vision had evolved into an entirely new way to run an online clothing store, and I set about making my preparations for launching the business. Fortunately I was already enrolled on a Foundation Degree in Business Management, so I used that time to prepare my business and marketing plans, and do the majority of my research – which involved a lot of reading about ecommerce and studying competitors’ websites to assess their strengths and weaknesses. I also was working a full time job, so I saved up as much as I could to put towards my launch capital.
One of the key moments in my start-up journey was deciding to reach out to other business owners to seek advice and generally pick their brains about everything ecommerce. Understandably, not all of them got back to me, but those who did have proven to be a great resource over the history of my start-up, and provide an ever constant stream of useful advice and guidance.
I’m a firm believer that you learn the most about business through being in business, as although preparation does go a long way towards building a solid base from which to work – how you react and respond to events that occur once you’re trading will be the true test of your businesses success.
This was true of the launch of Urban Alpha. A lot of people think that you can simply build a great website and people will find their way to it on their own, and I think this ‘build it and they will come’ mentality has been the downfall of many online businesses. To succeed you need to have website traffic (people visiting your website), so we spent a lot of time before the launch researching all the different methods of driving traffic, and working them into our launch strategy.
Initially, we had planned to roll out the different marketing channels in a phased approach so that it was easier for us to manage and would’ve been easier on the budget. The launch went well, but I realised pretty quickly that we wouldn’t be able to trade on the ‘new business’ angle forever and that in turn would result in our traffic dropping off. As a small business, time management is really one of the key aspects you have to keep on top of, but I took the decision to roll out all of our marketing phases in one push and just work through the night if necessary to get on top of the workload.
It was a risk that took us pretty close to the wire in terms of our cash flow, and resulted in me working through the night on more than one occasion, but ultimately it paid off. I learnt a very important lesson during that time, namely that for your business to succeed, you are going to have to make some tough decisions and put in a lot of hard work to make it a success. I was put in a difficult situation and forced to come up with a solution, and fortunately our hard work and preparation combined with our entrepreneurial spirit saw us through.
I can’t believe it’s already March, but 2012 looks set to be a great year for us. It will be our first full year of trading, and we have a lot of different things lined up to keep us on track to achieve our goals and ultimately our vision!
Oliver Morgan is the founder of Universal Fuels, a company he started in 2009, Universal Fuels is a supplier of heating oil, Kerosene and red diesel in the UK.
I talk to him about Universal Fuels, how the idea came about and his plans for the future.
Check out the full interview below
Hi Oliver, thanks for doing this interview with me, how are you doing?
I’m very well, thank you for having me.
Can you give us some background information so the YHP readers can get to know you better?
I’m 20 years old and live in London, I had number of business ventures as a teenager and in 2009 at 17 I founded Universal Fuels which is now a UK wide oil supplier, Universal was selected as one of the top future 50 UK companies by real business magazine 2011 and has just raised £200,000 of investment to help continue its fantastic growth rate. I’m also involved in an exciting new recruitment platform which is currently seeking investment and will hopefully be launching towards the end of 2012. I’ve just been selected this week as one of the top 10 young entrepreneur 2012 by startups.co.uk.
So how did you get into business?
I’ve always been in business in some form or another since about 12, from selling food and drinks at school to a small import export business, to solar panels to now Universal Fuels, recruitment and real estate.
How did the idea for Universal Fuels came about?
I was trying to think of an industry in which I build a global company in, the presenter on Bloomberg starting talking about ‘black gold’.
What has been your biggest challenge in setting up Universal Fuels? Any pitfalls/setbacks?
The biggest challenge from day one has been cash flow and credit, the company was set up with very limited funds and of course couldn’t get any credit limits as a new company in 2009. Since 2009 we have taken on bank funding, earned trust with suppliers and now this recent investment has put us in a great cash flow positive position going forward.
What would you say has been key in growing your business to the stage its at, at the moment?
Persistence, low cost marketing and backing from the bank in our second year gave us a big boost. Now the recent investments we have taken on will help continue our fantastic growth rate into 2012 and beyond.
What would you say has been some of the key things that you’ve learnt on your journey as an entrepreneur so far?
A lot, most notably how key relationships are with both suppliers and customer. That lending money (ie giving credit) is extremely dangerous and a lot of caution must be taken.
What in your experience is the best thing about setting a company at a young age?
You’ve usually got nothing to lose, and can take the big risks.
What key advice would you like to give to aspiring entrepreneurs?
Be sure that’s what you really want to do. If you’ve got the drive and some common sense then your make it in the end.
What can we be expecting from you and Universal Fuels in 2012?
Universal is on target to grow 300% this year and hopefully we’ll hit the £1 million revenue mark by December, we’re also planning to enter the gas and electricity markets at the end of 2012. I myself have just starting to get involved in property so hopefully 2012 will see me build a small property portfolio. I’m also involved in a very exciting new recruitment platform which is also due to launch towards the end of the year.
Where do you hope Universal Fuels/you will be in five years?
Universal Fuels will be recognised as the market leader in customer service across the downstream oil, gas and electricity industries. And hopefully Universal will have passed the £100 million turnover mile stone. I’d hope that I have a few million myself and will be ready to risk it all in a new venture.
I’m always happy to talk business so I’d like to encourage readers to feel free to get in touch if you think you have something I’d be interested in, my email is oliver@universalfuels.co.uk
Richard Baister is the MD of SUMO Drinks, a company which launched in October 2011. Sumo is a revolutionary new calorie burning soft drink which raises the body’s metabolic rate, and, following a hugely successful pilot scheme in Ireland which has seen major for group Musgraves commit to stocking the drink in over 400 of its stores, Richard is now looking for the right UK distributor to maximise the potential of the brand.
Hi Richard, Thanks for doing this interview with me. Can you give you some background information about yourself; were you the entrepreneurial type growing up?
Yes, I’ve always been selling one thing or another. Through secondary school I ran an unofficial tuck shop, which seems to be a common one for entrepreneurs. I managed to do enough business that the headmaster closed it down because takings were dropping at the shop the school ran – although the headmaster did say it was a good achievement. Through college it was estate agency software (at a very basic level!) and at university I was involved in supplying denim to high street retail groups and supermarkets, before moving into the drinks industry.
Tell me how the idea for Sumo Drinks came about?
Despite managing to pack in experience within a number of sectors, the drinks industry has been my staple since leaving university in 2004. I noticed the emergence of functional food and drinks and felt that within this sector a solid function was a great leveller in a market traditionally dominated by multinationals. There is massive growth in light or diet soft drinks, so it makes sense to take that to the next level and provide a drink that can burn calories.
The idea began to take shape and my gut instinct told me that this was something to pursue.
What were you doing before you started the company?
Prior to beginning development on SUMO I launched the world’s first range of flavoured energy drinks back in 2005, which taught me a lot about running a brand within the sector. I managed to progress with distribution and went on to sell this brand, leaving me to focus on the development of SUMO.
Going back even further, before I developed any of my own brands, I have been involved in the import and export of soft drinks, playing on the currency fluctuations and trading them as a commodity. The drinks were coming in from Europe and undercutting the UK market prices, because of the strength of the Pound against the Euro.
However, this never appealed to me as a long term option because it was only ever transactional, by which I mean that the only money to be made was the slim margin on each unit and no value could be attached to the business itself. To make any real money, it was necessary to trade very large volumes, but there was always more demand for product than there was supply. At this point I realised that I needed to control the supply chain and the natural answer was to develop my own brands. This was the best thing I’ve done in business and I’ve never looked back.
What is Sumo Drinks?
To put it simply, SUMO is the refreshing way to burn calories. It is a still, naturally fruit flavoured soft drink that contains functional ingredients which increase the metabolic rate and help the body to burn calories more quickly. It is available in two flavours – Tropical and Summer Fruits.
Why soft drinks?
It’s just a sector that I really like – and that probably comes from a personal interest. As far back as I can remember I’ve always been interested in new drinks, so it’s great to create them. I suppose in some ways I stumbled into it, but I do think it suits me. Up until I went to university I had always planned on a career in corporate law and it was whilst studying that I became involved in denim and first started importing soft drinks. I realized at the end of my second year that a career in law wasn’t for me, but decided to finish my degree whilst I worked out what I would do next. I did finish the degree and graduate, but spent precious little time at university. I did explain to my tutor why I was never there and he said that I was probably better suited to what I was doing anyway and wished me well.
Talk me through the first few months of running the business? What would you say was the hardest part of starting the business?
Because of its unique calorie burning functionality the development process for SUMO was much longer than for a normal soft drink and took three years, having begun in 2008. I suppose the sheer length of the process was the hardest thing about it.
How were you able to fund the business?
Initial funding came from amongst the directors. Following this we were given two rounds of development funding by Northstar Ventures, who manage funds on behalf of the European Investment Bank. The fact that SUMO burns calories is well received by the EU, who are keen to help to reduce obesity and promote better nutritional awareness and I’ve been asked to prepare a report to the European Commission to let them know more about what SUMO is doing and how we can perhaps help to answer these issues.
Would you say the initial idea for the company, or that your business model has changed since last year?
I am pleased to say that it hasn’t and that we’re proceeding on the course we planned. Of course, things can change at a moment’s notice but as of today we’re following Plan A and we’re delighted with the results so far.
What would you say has been some of the most crucial that you’ve done to build the company to this level now?
There have been a couple of crucial achievements. Obviously securing the funding during the development process was obviously crucial to us, so that we could go ahead and create SUMO. From there securing our first distributor, which was for Ireland, was a very important step in the process as it took SUMO from a concept to a live, trading business. I also feel that building a solid team around me has been massively important and puts SUMO in a great position to grow healthily as a business and capitalise on the opportunities open to us.
Is the business profitable?
We’ve spent a lot of money on developing SUMO during those three years and we only launched in our first market in the second half of 2011. So, as yet we obviously haven’t recouped those development costs but we’re starting to make good head way in that direction and fully expect to do so within the next year.
What pieces of advice could you give to aspiring entrepreneurs out there?
For those starting or about to start a business I would say ‘keep the faith’ – there will be plenty of people who doubt the validity of your plans or your ability to execute them. If you’re sure that you’re onto something, get on with it and don’t waste time or energy on the naysayers.
What can we be expecting from you and Sumo Drinks in 2012?
Obviously we’re hoping that 2012 will be a big year for SUMO. We are working on several distribution deals and should be making some big announcements soon.
For more information regarding Sumo Drinks visit www.sumodrinks.com or call 0191 4909117
A Bentley University graduate who joined IBM, post working as an allocation analyst (intern) at TJX Inc. Departing from IBM, she created her company Adirée.
Adirée ™ is an International full service boutique (public relations firm) based in New York, New York with a focus on fashion, art and home decor .
In less than one year, under Adiat’s leadership Adirée secured a proclamation from Michael Bloomberg, the Mayor of New York, declaring the week of July 12-18 as the official date for Africa Fashion Week -a production founded and managed by Adirée – in the state of New York. The success of the show since its conception has increased awareness of African fashion by 8.5 million views, generated financing for designers and artisans marketing initiative, and created 100 jobs. Adirée continues to liaise between African designers and press, buyers, and investors from the United States.
Our full interview is below
Adiat, tell us about yourself?
An African woman, a believer, a passionate individual – one who goes against the grain (as if it was my middle name).
Can you give us some background information about yourself and how fashion influenced you growing up?
I was raised in Lagos Nigeria.
Fashion inspired, motivated, and allowed me to be okay with being different. It also taught me discipline. I realized early on, because of my mother, that there was a “time and a dress” for everything.
This meant, if you wanted to be respected in some form or fashion, in a particular arena, you had to dress the part. Commanding the right attention with your garments could catapult you to the next level. My mother also taught me to identify one part of my body to be the focal point of the day. Through the selection of colors, patterns or cut of the garment I could emphasize only one part of my body alone. My mother and my father were all about demanding the right type and amount of attention.
Who were your fashion inspirations both internationally as well as African designers?
I’m inspired by all of my designers, however the Kosibahs of the world, the Max Azarias, the Kiko Romeos and all of the Funlayo Deris , and of course Yves Saint Laurents, create fashion that is fresh, fun and innovative.
After graduating you pursued a career at IBM as an operations and communications specialist for IT analyst relations. What inspired you to leave a promising career and start Adirée and how certain were you that there was a market for African culture i.e. fashion, art/home décor and beauty?
I’ve always inspired and planned to have my own company, in New York. I knew it would be related to fashion, but from the perspective of a business professional, rather than a creative.
I began my business plan freshmen year of college: constantly speaking and consulting with my professors, utilizing the schools resources and databases for data, and utilizing my peers for feedback as well. The taste for African culture, fashion, art/home décor came from my undeniable innate feeling of wanting to give back to the continent- to give back to Africa, what it had given to me- Life.
Tell me about Adirée. I understand your company is international recognised in places like Milan, Tokyo, London, Paris, and New York and is not solely based on high end African fashion. In addition to fashion, you cater to a clientele that has a demand for art/home décor and beauty.
We (Adirée) were the first to create and coin the concept of Africa Fashion Week in fashion capitals: New York, London, Paris, Milan, Berlin, Tokyo, Los Angeles. Our goal is to re-brand Africa and position it as a continent that also produces luxury products and services, much like its European counterparts. We believe with this licensing model we can create a consistent platform which will be the African Fashion Guide for each fashion capital.
Adirée™ is an international full service boutique based in New York, NY with a focus on fashion, beauty, art and home decor. The main objective of Adirée is to bring awareness to international luxury and mass brands (our clients) that are socially conscious and culturally driven.
Adirée clients are in two folds: international clients (i.e. those from Africa) who would like to establish a presence in New York. Also, clients based in New York or neighboring states that want a global presence or focus in Africa:
Adirée has multiple departments which offer clients with the following services:
· Social Media: Adirée™ connects clients directly to their target audience by using social media tools in consistent and appropriate ways.
· Public Relations and Special Events: Adirée™ offers a wide range of services from strategic planning, to editorial placement and media relations. We customize comprehensive programs that align with your branding efforts and overall company goals.
· Showroom: Adirée™ carefully selects luxury brands with a global appeal and fashion forward edge. Adirée™ Showroom is a one stop shop that allows clients to promote their products, raise their brand awareness, establish long lasting relationship with customers and increase profits in one of the world’s fashion capital. Editors, stylists, and high profile individuals will have the opportunity to pull your items for photoshoots and events.
· Consulting: Adirée™ provides advice and expertise in helping organizations improve their performance looking at existing business problems and developing plans for improvement.
· Studio: Adirée™ provides clients with a variety of graphic and website design services to enable them to reach and connect with their target audience.
· Talent Management: Adirée™ manages fashion models (male and female) by ensuring proper booking in their interested areas
New York, New York, is one of the epicenters for business, specifically fashion, art, and entertainment, making it attractive to many entrepreneurs.
There are multiple public relation firms within New York. But none that truly address the concerns of international (luxury and mass market) brands from emerging markets- specifically from Africa.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg declared a proclamation announcing that Adirée undertake the enormous task of securing the production of the first and only Africa Fashion Week. How proud were you as a new, emerging company to be given a prestigious honor from Mayor Bloomberg? And how has this changed your company and what does it mean for African designers, artists, sculptors, and other artistic, creative Africans?
Mayor Michael Bloomberg is heavily involved in the development of New York City (increasing tourism, jobs, and opportunities for the youth). I believe that Africa Fashion Week (New York) has many similarities to his overall ideology. Also, consider that he is a heavy supporter of New York Fashion Week. I believe this fashion week only contributes to the vision.
Your motto is “Where Fashion Began”… What does that mean to you?
“Luxury Brands Focused Globally” is the motto for Adirée.
The tag line, “Where Fashion Began” is the evocation of something new, large, and innately luxurious, however contained- as we all know it- in one of the world’s fashion capitols- New York. But there is a spin: the origins of where things began―art, culture, fashion― is essentially Africa. I think the tag line really embodies a merger between the two. A love child that is undeniably perfect in all of its being.
How has fashion, art/home décor, and the global culture been influenced by Africa?
Africa fashion has rich, vibrant, and effervescent colors. The colors and textures are unique to the tradition and culture of Africa that even some of the most esteemed fashion designers Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Jacobs, and Diane Von Furstenberg are inspired by it.
African Art & Home Décor is just as vibrant, geometrically innovative, and influential in the interior design industry. Model Iman created a home line mainly using prints, and aesthetics that were African Inspired.
Also, in a 15th-century, second-floor walk-up apartment in Florence, Italy― a couple: Adam Gaon, a New York-born architect and Loredana Tarini, born in Zambia, to Italian parents created a home where “New York meets Africa.” Does that concept sound familiar?
What are some of your personal goals and passions?
Personal goal- to stay graceful and humble regardless of circumstances. Passion- First; to deeply interact with everyone I meet and second; to trigger a stampede of women entrepreneurs from the continent.
Great leadership is fundamental in any execution of work. How do you describe your leadership style?
Avant Garde.
What is on the horizon for Adiat and Adirée? What can we expect to see from you and your African influence in relations to fashion, art/home décor and beauty?
Expect to see Adirée begin to establish a presence in Africa. Also, expect to see new clients in the areas of beauty and home décor from countries like Kenya, Botswana, Nigeria, Egypt and South Africa. Personally, I have a few more brands that I would love to develop and contribute to the world. And I truly aspire to do so.
Nevertheless a majority of my focus will be speaking engagements and getting to the root of some fundamental issues, concerning barriers that designers from emerging markets face. I want our company to focus on creating tactical solutions for these designers, beginning with assisting them in acquire funding and support from organizations. However you’ll simply have to keep up (www.twitter.com/adiatdisu) to find out more.
Lastly what makes you an empowered woman and how do you ensure that your beacon of light shines bright enough for other women to emulate?
What makes me empowered is my faith. Faith has the audacity to go beyond peoples’ thoughts, opinions, vision, and expectations- an audacity that I’ve come to respect, love and simply allow to “do its thing.” In addition to this, I’ve realized that taking and applying all of your experiences is great. But more importantly is the act of not allowing your lack of experience to stop you from achieving your purpose.
I don’t believe I have to ensure that my light is bright. I believe a light simply does what it does naturally (illuminates). It isn’t concerned with itself, so much as its surrounds. It’s not concerned with its capabilities; its main concern is to providing a resource, to its surrounding area.
Your platform adds its own light, to other individual’s platforms. I don’t believe you are so much concerned with how bright your light shines. You are simply doing what you are capable and passionate about (executing your capabilities). You are providing a resource to me (telling my story), and the illumination contributes to all of our lights.
Interview with CNN International : Africa Fashion Week (AFWNY) Director speaks to the media : http://bit.ly/rMenRE
I caught up with Ole Fjelberg, founder of OnePiece UK – OnePiece is the ultimate comfort, leisure and lifestyle wear.
In the full interview below, Ole talks me through his journey so far running the company, studying at Queens Mary University and how he has managed to get the UK excited about OnePiece and some of the difficulties he faced starting the business.
Hi Ole, how are you doing?
I’m going great
Can you give us some background information about yourself?
I was born and raised in my fathers delicatessen shop in Oslo, Norway. Moved to UK to study at Queen Mary in 2008 and started OnePiece in the UK in my second year, which I still run. I love to ski, tennis, see the growth at my own company and help friends with their ideas.
So Ole, how did you get into entrepreneurship, what was your first business?
As the son of a great shop-keeper I always wanted to do something for myself. First business was KleinService, an innovative cleaning service, cleaning up after pre-parties in Oslo. Due to the innovative concept we got amazing press in the largest newspapers-, TV- and radio stations.
After that, what else did you get involved in after that?
Did some military service in the Norwegian Royal Navy and went studying. In uni I founded the Queen Mary Trading & Investment Society, and then the OnePiece came up and took all my time.
Tell me about your experience studying at Queens Mary University?
Queen Mary was great, but I was more hooked up in things around uni than the actual course. I played on the tennis team and met a lot of great people. At the end of the first year I founded the Queen Mary Trading & Investment Society, which was a great experience. We got great backing from the department and great feedback from speakers, students and sponsors. At the end of second year I had to give up my position as President for the OnePiece venture, which was a good decision. The society still lives and grows.
I guess with the whole issue about the value of going to university being questioned, what’s your thoughts on the whole issue?
After three years in uni I did wonder: ‘what did I actually learn?’. As I did a major in economics I didn’t really learn any specific job, however knowing how the world works around you is very valuable, and I definitely knew that better after three years in Queen Mary. However the most valuable thing I believe you get out of university is the people you meet. You get to meet like-minded people from all over the world, and make friendships lasting a lifetime you would never have made otherwise.
Tell us about One Piece? How the idea come about?
In 2007, three friends of mine lying hung-over on a Sunday afternoon, discussing how they could make themselves more comfortable than they were there and then. The waistband on their sweatpants really bothered them, so they decided to try sewing together a hooded sweatshirt and a pair of sweatpants, connecting the two with a giant zipper to create the first OnePiece.
What is One Piece?
OnePiece is the ultimate comfort, leisure and lifestyle wear. Made by the highest quality cotton with a brushed inside it’s developed to be ridiculously comfortable at the same time as we offer colours and designs to suit every taste. So you can stay comfortable and look great;)
Tell me about how you got involved in the company?
The OnePiece literally exploded in Scandinavia, fuelled my social media, PR and blogs and became massively popular. I was watching this from my student flat in the UK and thought we needed to show this to the brits, and we certainly did.
So does that mean you have shares in the business?
Yes, I own a share of the UK company OnePiece Jump in Ltd, where the Norwegian mother company is also shareholder.
How difficult has it been introducing the brand in the UK? What would you say was the hardest part?
It was certainly a totally different market than Norway. As the Scandinavian countries has a very unison market, the UK is very fractioned and it’s like you need to take one part at the time. There’s also so many things happening in a city like London that you have to scream very loud in order for anyone to hear you. We got a lot of very good press and celebrity endorsements which have helped us a lot on the way. The hardest part was when our previous shipping supplier UKMail totally failed on us previous to Christmas sales 2010, and we needed to stay up around the clock to solve all the mess they’ve made. We quickly got DHL on the team, and that helped us a lot.
What would you say has been some of the most valuable things you’ve learnt so far as an entrepreneur?
Everything that can go wrong will go wrong and a little bit more, but even though something goes wrong – take it by the horns and solve it as fast as possible and get on with the good parts.
What would you say has been some of the toughest part of running a startup?
Learning and doing everything is very stimulating but can also be very frustrating. Maybe the toughest part is getting into the whole HMRC tax system. It’s the thing you have to do, but since it’s not affecting your sales it’s easy to wait too long with.
What has been your most memorable moment so far?
When the Daily Mail article ‘OnePiece – The new fashion wave’ became the most commented article on the Daily Mail Online – more than the US governor elections and the war in Iraq.
What advices would you give to any aspiring entrepreneur out there looking to enter the fashion industry?
- Find the right suppliers and make sure the sample is 100% right before ordering. – Don’t compromise quality for quantity – Make sure you’re 100% square with HMRC, if you can’t take it get an accountant. – Don’t be afraid of changes as you go – Listen well to tips from people from the industry, although it doesn’t mean you have to follow them all.
What can we be expecting from you guys in 2012?
Lot’s of exciting stuff! We’ll introduce a whole new clothing line with anything comfortable like sweatpants, hoodies, t-shirts and so on. We’ll also come with loads of new designs, washed colours, maybe even different fabrics…
I caught up with Dan Barker, founder of Yearbook Machine – Yearbook Machine is a London-based startup that creates beautifully designed yearbooks, using a social network.
In the full interview below, Dan talks me through his journey so far running the company and how the idea for Yearbook Machine came about.
Hi Dan, Thanks for doing this interview with me.
No problem Joseph, any time.
Can you give you some background information about yourself, were you the entrepreneurial type growing up?
It depends what you mean by ‘entrepreneurial’. I’ve always liked tinkering with computers, designing and building things and thinking about how things can be done better. I’d say it’s the desire to make cool products and have the resources to do interesting stuff that led me into starting a company, rather than just the desire for money. Money is important though of course
You left the University of Cambridge to concentrate on running your business full-time. Was that an easy decision?
I felt that I could either stay at uni and do both my degree and my business reasonably well, but not excellently, or pick one to do very well. I felt that I would learn more about more things that interested me by doing the business. So when it came down to it, the decision was quite easy.
Is there anything you miss about being at university?
It’s nice being carefree and being surrounded by great friends who also have nothing to do!
Tell me how the idea for Yearbook Machine came about?
When I left high school, we wanted a yearbook. None of the companies around seemed to offer very good products – they all looked pretty amateurish and could get really expensive. I made a very simple program to make a yearbook automatically and everyone loved it. The school asked me to do it again the next year and I made a bit of cash from it. All the people from other schools I spoke to said that their school yearbooks were a bit rubbish and expensive, so I got to work designing the system that would make yearbooks like we had for more schools.
What is Yearbook Machine? Tell me how it works?
Yearbook Machine is your own private online social network, where the content you write about yourself and your friends is turned into beautiful printed books. We provide a smooth interface to collect memories and photos online, then allow you to fit them to professional designs which are turned into real books.
What would you say was the hardest part of starting/running the business?
The hardest part is keeping focus on what really matters, and having to accept ‘good enough’. We’re selling a premium product and the whole point is that what we offer is ‘better’, so I have real difficulty trying to not be such a perfectionist about things! It’s pretty upsetting sometimes when you realise that a lot of people just don’t care about quality…
Are you profitable?
We’re breaking even as we re-invest everything we make back into the business.
How many users do you have? Paying customers?
We’ll be serving our 10,000th paying customer in the next month or two.
What makes your business different from other companies/competitors out there?
We really care about making great-quality products that people will want to keep forever. We’ve grown our business relatively slowly compared to some competitors, because we want to make sure that we can always keep our quality high and keep all of our customers happy.
What could you say has been some of the key things you’ve learnt so far as an entrepreneur?
I’ve learned not to waste time doing stuff that ‘might’ lead to some possible situation, or to go chasing after people who are going to magically make stuff happen for me. If you want something done the most reliable way is to do it yourself.
What pieces of advices could you give to aspiring entrepreneurs out there looking to start their business?
If it’s anything at all to do with the internet, then learn how to program and/or design. We outsourced the programming abroad for ages and it almost ruined our business as everything would just break all the time. Then I learned how to program (and hired Jazeps, our CTO) and things started going well. Learn how to program.
What can we be expecting from you and Yearbook Machine in 2012?
More, better yearbooks, and other exciting stuff!
Where do you want the company to be in five years?
We need to have a fountain in our reception, made of granite or maybe marble.
I went on to work on Absolut Vodka, Sony Playstation and then Virgin, where I was head hunted to become a marketing director.
