13 February 2013
Episode 70
53 minutes
We visit Louis XIV’s favourite candle maker to see how they’re plying the wax trade in the 21st century, meet a radiologist-turned-designer who explains the medical influences on her work, and ask how a little email newsletter in Paris became big business.
13 February 2013
Share episode
DownloadWant more radio episodes like these in your inbox?
Sign up to Monocle's email newsletters to stay on top of news and opinion, plus the latest from the magazine, radio, film and shop.
The Entrepreneurs - latest episodes
Eureka 115: Octopus Energy
Greg Jackson has worn many hats over the course of his career. He co-founded marketing-technology business C360 in the early 2000s and then sold it to the Tangent Group in 2006; after that he went on to work for several…
Allbirds
Tim Brown was a professional footballer in his native New Zealand before deciding to create environmentally friendly footwear. He is the co-founder of Allbirds, a booming shoe brand with sustainability at its heart; earlier…
Eureka 114: Adorno
Adorno is a digital platform for design-lovers that enables people to discover and buy one-of-a-kind and limited-edition pieces direct from designers around the world. Part marketplace, part online gallery, the site was…
Seedlip
Ben Branson spent a decade working for creative agencies, helping other people to build their brands. But in 2014 he decided to put his skills to the test on his own project. That project was Seedlip, a non-alcoholic spirit…
Eureka 113: Yatay
When Umberto De Marco went looking for a pair of sustainable trainers and returned empty-handed, he made a decision: he would create the world’s first luxury sustainable sneaker brand. Little more than 50 years ago his…
Mentors
We assess the importance of business mentors. As anyone who has founded a company will know, having an experienced adviser who can lend advice and an ear during the tough times can be key. But it’s a two-way street: as an…
Eureka 112: Stella & Dot
Jessica Herrin is the founder and CEO of Stella & Dot, a San Francisco-based jewellery-and-accessories retailer built on what it calls a “social-selling” model. The company has reimagined direct sales for the digital age…
Special episode: Finding investors
We’re in Paris talking to a group of experts and entrepreneurs about funding – how start-ups should go about securing it and what investors are really looking for.
Bremont watches
Bremont watches Giles and Nick English are the brothers behind UK watch brand Bremont. Both aviation enthusiasts, the co-founders launched the firm in 2002 and named it after a French farmer whose fields they once accide…
Eureka 111: Tend
Marco Abele is the founder and CEO of Tend, a Zürich-based digital platform focused on “life-enriching investment”. Driven by blockchain, Tend allows investment in luxury assets through co-ownership, such as shares in high…
Jo Malone CBE
Jo Malone CBE made her name – quite literally – as the eponymous entrepreneur behind her iconic perfume brand. A sensation in the 1990s, Malone later sold the brand to cosmetics giant Estée Lauder Companies. While she…
Eureka 110: Poilâne
Apollonia Poilâne is a third-generation baker and CEO of the Poilâne bakery brand. While she was encouraged by her father to explore the world and pursue her passions, it’s in the bakehouse where she has always felt most…
Trakke
While on a summer break from university in Glasgow, keen cyclist Alec Farmer taught himself to sew. Setting out to craft the perfect bag, Farmer used discarded materials that he found around the city: and soon Trakke was…
Eureka 109: Ashley Watson
The son of an engineer and an artist, Ashley Watson has always had an understanding of both form and function. He spent years working as a designer before deciding to combine two of his great passions: clothing and motor…
The Trampery
In 2009 Charles Armstrong launched The Trampery, the first co-working space to take root in Shoreditch, a district of east London that has since become crowded with shared workspaces catering to the area’s creative and…
