Gary Lubner, the former CEO of Belron, discusses his journey scaling the vehicle glass giant from a value of €200 million to €24 billion over 23 years. Lubner explains to Richard Harpin how the company achieved global dominance through strategic acquisitions, a standardised operational model known as 'The Belron Way', and the iconic "Autoglass repair, Autoglass replace" jingle – which Richard sings along with him! Lubner reflects on his upbringing in apartheid-era South Africa, which instilled a deep sense of social responsibility and influenced his people-centric leadership style. 

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After just over 12 years as CEO of global pest firm Rentokil Initial, Andy Ransom shares what he has learned as he prepares to step down. In that time the share price has quadrupled and profits breached $1bn. Ransom discusses how he progressed from a working-class background to a legal career at ICI, where he took charge of a legal case in the US that cemented his reputation. When he joined Rentokil, it was involved in many business areas, from parcel delivery to laundry. One of his first decisive actions, he explains to Sir Richard Harpin, was to focus the business on pest control. Ransom explains how he prides himself in being a deal-maker and has used a strategy of M&A to grow the global business and make it more efficient through operational “density”. He also discusses the challenges of cracking North America, which is responsible for half the global pest-control market. 

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Dash Water is a UK-based, challenger drinks brand that was founded in 2017 by Alex Wright and Jack Scott. With a team of just 35 people, it sells more than 60 million cans of fruit-flavoured, sparkling water drinks a year. It focuses on a new category of mass market drinks which promise to be healthy and sustainable. In this Business Leader episode, Wright explains his growth strategy with Richard Harpin. He explains how Dash tackles food waste by using “wonky fruit”, which would otherwise go to waste – like 40% of the food globally that is made but never consumed. Wright also shares how they found investors to help them grow (with three rules for choosing them), how he’s built a healthy workplace culture while scaling and how to use a combination of coaching and mentoring to improve as a leader.

Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here.

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The Beauty Tech Group is a British business success story. Laurence Newman founded the home-use beauty tech firm in Manchester in 2009. It’s probably best-known for its LED face masks for skincare treatments. In late 2025 it went public on the London Stock Exchange, valued at more than £300m. Newman explains to Dougal Shaw how he scaled the business, in an emerging category that not everyone had faith in. He set out by focusing on four key pillars of aesthetic technology, including LED and radio frequency, to offer clinical results at home – treatments usually associated with expensive aesthetic clinics. He shares insights on the challenges of securing investment in a niche market and the complexities of managing international regulation and manufacturing and supply chains for a global e-commerce brand.

Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here.

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Ben Askins is the co-founder of Gaia, a green technology company that builds online tools for companies within the environmental space. But he cut his teeth as an entrepreneur by creating a digital marketing business for luxury brands, which he scaled and successfully exited. He shares with Richard Harpin practical advice on interview techniques to hire the best candidates, building an engaged and happy workforce and how to scale a start-up with a future exit in mind.

Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here.

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Sam Stoffel is the entrepreneur who founded the matched betting platform Outplayed, taking a punt on the online betting space. He explains to Richard Harpin how he bootstrapped a simple idea into a multi-million pound enterprise by copying and refining existing business models and mastering digital marketing. He shares the leadership lessons he picked up along the way, including the dangers of "shiny object syndrome". The interview explores the technicalities of subscription-based revenue, the risks of rebranding while you scale, and the importance of well-planned delegation. Stoffel also discusses his exit and transition to his latest venture, Subspot, sharing his ambition to scale a globally successful software platform.

Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here.

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Hub van Bockel shares his story with Richard Harpin about founding Tenzing, a natural energy drink brand inspired by Himalayan sherpas. Drawing on his marketing background at Unilever, MTV, and Red Bull, van Bockel explains how he identified a gap in the market for low-sugar, plant-based alternatives to artificial energy drinks. But how do you take on incumbents in such a competitive space? He explains his bootstrapping strategy, which to begin with focused on niche communities like climbing and running. He also explains how he slowly wooed major retailers like Tesco and Sainsbury's. But it all really began with a pitch deck he presented to convince his wife of the risks.

Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here.

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In this episode of The Business Leader podcast, Richard Harpin interviews Caspar Lee, the YouTube pioneer who successfully transitioned from influencer to powerhouse entrepreneur. Lee reveals the strategies behind co-founding Influencer.com, a marketing agency with multi-million pound revenues and his subsequent move into venture capital with Creator Ventures. The conversation explores vital insights for scaling businesses. Lee explains why hiring 'big company' veterans can backfire in mid-sized firms. He also outlines how partnerships can be used to drive organic growth when building communities. He also shares his tips for personal branding, reflecting on the strategies he used to build his own following.

Join the Business Leader community for coaching, peer to peer forums and exclusive learning events. Sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters.

Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here.

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Is cost cutting really a strategy or is it quietly holding businesses back? In this episode of the Business Leader podcast, Sir Richard Harpin sits down with advertising and marketing legend Rory Sutherland. Sutherland challenges some of the most deeply held assumptions in modern business, from efficiency and procurement to marketing, pricing, and customer experience – all through the lens of a marketer. Drawing on decades of experience at the advertising group Ogilvy and in behavioural science, Rory explains why an obsession with cost reduction and short-term efficiency can destroy long-term value, and why businesses need to think in terms of opportunity, not just spreadsheets. This episode is essential listening for founders, CEOs and senior leaders who want to grow sustainably without sacrificing innovation, trust, or long-term opportunity. Subscribe for weekly conversations with the thinkers and leaders shaping the future of business.

Subscribe to the Business Leader Podcast for weekly entrepreneur stories from founders and CEOs who’ve built and scaled great businesses. Join the Business Leader community for coaching, peer to peer forums and exclusive learning events. Sign up to our free weekly newsletter at businessleader.co.uk/newsletters.

Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here.

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Rohan Blacker is a serial entrepreneur and co-founder of Sofa.com. Blacker shares his journey with host Dougal Shaw, from an unfulfilling legal career to becoming a pioneer in UK e-commerce. He left Sofa.com in 2015 when a private equity firm took over. Today he’s still very much in furniture retail, running Pooky.com and Schplendid sofas. Blacker tells the story behind acquiring the Sofa.com domain name, explaining why he and his co-founder felt a "nuts name" was essential for success, in the brave new world of online branding. Blacker also explains why he thinks Sofa.com declined after his exit, citing "death by a thousand cuts", including excessive discounting and high rent overheads. He explains how he is now using the lessons learned from his Sofa.com days to power his latest venture, Schplendid, which aims to champion sustainable sofas in a world of "fast furniture".

Business Leader is a membership community for ambitious CEOs and founders of mid-sized UK companies, designed to help them grow with purpose through strategic support, peer-to-peer learning, expert coaching, and high-impact events. Sign up for our Business Leader newsletter here.

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