Behind the growth from S&W

From Romford to one of the biggest names in global sport

Barry Hearn OBE built Matchroom from a snooker hall in Romford into one of the biggest names in global sport. Behind the showmanship is a chartered accountant who still gets excited by a set of accounts.

Barry tells the story of starting Matchroom as a £100 company alongside a young Steve Davis, then coming close to going bust at the end of the 1980s. He talks about the Christmas Eve pitch that saved the business, how Sky changed what was possible, and why he would rather build a long relationship than take short-term money.

He also explains how he grows senior managers instead of hiring them, why he says people come first, and what he wants from the equity partners now investing in Matchroom.

S&W’s Claire Burden joins the conversation to pull out what founders and leaders can take from it, including how luck is often engineered and why succession needs planning long before it’s needed.

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From leaving a secure role and launching his own label, to navigating financial pressure, scaling internationally and ultimately stepping away from the business, Stuart shares an unfiltered account of the decisions, risks and turning points that defined his journey.

This episode explores how conviction, creativity and commercial discipline come together to drive growth, and why resilience is often built through the most challenging moments.

Absolute Collagen began as a personal health experiment rather than a commercial venture. While studying food science at university, Darcy began developing formulations alongside her mother, Maxine, who was making bone broth at home to support her health and wellbeing. What they discovered was a product that genuinely worked; high‑quality ingredients, effective doses and no unnecessary fillers.

The early focus wasn’t on building a brand or scaling a business, but on creating something authentic and effective that they wanted to use themselves. Only later did the commercial shape begin to form. Choosing to sell direct‑to‑consumer and build a subscription model allowed the business to stay founder‑led, generate cash early and grow at pace – without external funding in the early stages.

That accidental start, grounded in scientific development and experience, became the foundation for one of the UK’s fastest‑growing wellness brands.

Episode one: Conrad Ford, Chief Product and Strategy Officer at Allica Bank, talks to host Lara Lewington about building a brand from scratch, the friction points of scaling and when it’s time to step away from the business. The conversation touches on how the UK’s newest fintech unicorn has scaled by focusing on a segment long underserved by traditional lenders: mid-market SMEs.