This week I’m speaking with Nihad from Vibbl. I managed to sit down with Nihad after the big first launch of his app Vibbl which helps teachers give better and more efficient feedback to their pupils. It’s a great conversation and thanks to Nihad for being a top notch guest on the show.

We touch on the specific challenged of being a non-technical founder in a techie’s world of product as well as investigating the personal origins of Vibbl.

As always, Thanks to Hamish from Floe Workspace, and Northstar Ventures as always for their ongoing support.

https://vibbl.co.uk/

https://www.linkedin.com/company/80961518/admin/

This week I’m speaking with Jeni Smith from Netkno, I’ve been really looking forward to this interview for a while, Jeni has an infectious enthusiasm which you can’t help but get on board with, and her business’s focus on community takes all the traditional sleaziness out of the idea of networking.

In this episode we discuss some of Jeni’s career path and the ongoing journey within Netkno, as well as how Jeni balances her life as a PhD candidate and a mother with the running of her business.

She’s got a lot on her plate and so many interesting stories to tell, so sit back, relax, and enjoy this week’s episode of Founder Sessions.

Netkno: https://www.netkno.co.uk/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/80961518/admin/

This week is the second of our two parter on peek home, last week was Jaemi Glancy and this week is Roland Glancy! The journeys of both Jaemi and Roland or Roly as everyone calls him are slightly different and it’s fascinating to hear the other side of the story for Peek home this week. There’s a great horror story in here about bad investors and how it can ultimately doom your business, and I have to thank Roland for his generosity with his time and interesting stories! Thanks to the Peek home team and enjoy this episode of Founder Sessions.

🏡 PeekHome: https://peekhome.co.uk/

🎧 FS Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundersessions/

This week I’m speaking with Jaemi Glancy, in the first of a special two parter about Peek Home, an online home designer that gives you plans, prices and planning advice without all the hassle.

I’m a huge fan of the Peek Home team and they’ve just raised a round of investment, so what better a time to check in with both co-founders who just so happen to be Husband and wife. This week we’re speaking with Jaemi about her journey from leaving school early and finding her entrepreneurial feet, next week we’ll hear from Roland about his somewhat different path leading to Peek Home as well.

Peek Home: https://peekhome.co.uk/

If you're interested in AI and creativity, you won't want to miss this episode featuring Daniel Foster-Smith. He is a research associate at CultureLab Newcastle University, where he is doing his PhD on AI for ideation and creativity. He is also a consultant designer and developer, co-founder of Yossarian (a metaphorical search engine), and a former design consultant at BBC.

In this episode, Daniel shares his journey from graphic design to AI research, his insights on how AI can assist the creative process, and his vision for the future of human-AI collaboration. He also talks about some of his projects that use AI to generate metaphors, visualizations, and narratives.

Thanks to Floe workspaces and Northstar Ventures for their ongoing support.

This week we’re speaking with Jo York, current CEO of the Tech Accelerator Ignite.

I went through Ignite’s pre-accelerator and accelerator last year and it was a life changing experience. Not least because of the incredible cohorts of other founders and mentors, but also because of the incredible Jo York. She’ll give you the tough advice you need to hear and ask the right questions at the right time, because a lot of the time she’s been there and done it. This episode is near and dear to my heart as Jo takes us through some of the life events which had an impact on her journey and talks about the realities of mentoring in a huge accelerator program like Ignite.

This week we’re speaking with Jeff Breen form Fundify, a grant funding search engine that helps organisations find and apply for grants in the UK.

Jeff has a wealth of experience and insights on how to navigate the grant funding landscape and we also hear some personal challenges and pitfalls along the way. This episode is packed with valuable insights and practical advice for anyone who wants to understand funding better. You don't want to miss it!

Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review our show if you enjoy it. We appreciate your support!

And thanks to Floe Workspaces and North Star Ventures for their ongoing support.

This week I'm speaking to Paula Harrison, founder of Biblio and director at Layers Studios about her journey from university to where she is now! It's a great way to kick of the Founder Sessions 2023 season and I think you'll love hearing some of Paula's stories from door to door sales in the North East and how it's helped her career over the years.

I’m speaking with Beth Carr, she’s a senior sales consultant by day and a fantastic health coach based in Newcastle upon Tyne by night. I really enjoyed listening to Beth open up about her struggles and it really serves as a great reminder that none of us are immune, and we all need support, even the impressive cheerful Beths of the world!

Check out Fig and Wolf here: https://www.figandwolf.com/

I’ve been excited to record this podcast for a while, and I must say, it doesn’t disappoint!