The Entrepreneurs
A weekly deep dive into global business. Inspiring stories from startups to legacy brands in hospitality, design, fashion, and retail.
Latest Episodes
Thread
London-based online start-up Thread is one of a growing number of companies entering the burgeoning fashion-technology space. It combines the know-how of a stylist with the computing power of an algorithm; the aim is to help men find the perfect piece of clothing and deliver it straight to their door.…
Planning for the long term
Founded in 1860, Sunspel was a supplier of high-quality underwear to the British Empire; come the 21st century, Nicholas Brooke explains how he and his business partner reinvented the brand. Meanwhile, the oldest traditional family business in London’s Spitalfields is Gardners, now run by fourth-generation Paul Gardner, who is also…
Small and slow
In our adrenaline-fuelled world of billion-dollar unicorns and big exits, it’s easy to forget about the little guy. This week’s episode is all about the small and the slow – the advantages of David over Goliath; the tortoise over the hare. ‘Small is Beautiful’, a conference held in Edinburgh last…
Corporate connections
What’s the purpose of a business? What are its responsibilities to customers, employees and communities? We examine outdoor-clothing brand Patagonia as Rick Ridgeway climbs down a mountain to explain why sustainability is at the forefront of its massive growth. Meanwhile, innovation think-tank Nesta and the Startup Europe Partnership have ranked…
Making a mark
Tucked in a narrow alleyway in Jerusalem is the city’s oldest tattoo shop, a family-run firm that’s been inking everyone from bikers to priests and pilgrims for hundreds of years. We meet the latest in a long line of family members to take on the business. Plus: we talk social…
Natural growth
We meet an ex-London banker who’s launched shoe company Sons of London to test out the direct-to-consumer business model. In San Francisco, Azhar Hashem, an ex-marketing executive at Google is creating a restaurant focused on Eastern Mediterranean cuisine – we discuss the transition in the run-up to the opening of…
True design
How do you successfully reinvent a popular brand? Tony Conrad and Jeff Veen of Silicon Valley-based venture-capital firm True Ventures sit down with Daniel Giacopelli to discuss tips learned from growing, selling and then re-launching About.me. Plus: they explain why design is key and share tips for building a business…
Going the distance
Pippa Murray is a London-based marathoner who made delicious nut butter to fuel her runs. She tells us why she quit her day job to turn her passion into booming business Pip & Nut – and why it involved living in a shed for three months. Meanwhile in Tunisia, two…
Fresh delivery
Along with oxygen, water and shelter, healthy food is one of the bare necessities of life. So why is the modern food supply chain so broken – and how can we fix it? London start-up FarmDrop has a solution. Meanwhile, the owners of Earl of East London explain the nuts…
On the rise
From the maker of a wildfire-fighting drone to the inventor of a robotic roadie, we meet Beirut’s entrepreneurs to discover why they’re staying put and innovating in the face of the country’s business hurdles. Meanwhile, we ask about the future of photography and go in the search for the perfect…
