How To Start Up by FF&M

How do you know if customers will actually buy your product before you launch? Juliet talks to Froot Pops founder Ana Martins about testing an idea with real customers, spotting genuine demand and knowing when you have enough proof to scale.

Ana first tested Froot Pops through Pantree, her existing self-service retail business. Today, Froot Pops manufactures from its own facility in London, is stocked by major retailers including Ocado, Morrisons and Tesco, and has raised £1.1 million in external investment.

In this episode:
(02:00) How to spot the first signs that your idea has commercial potential
(06:00) How to test a product with real customers before you launch
(07:00) What does genuine customer demand actually look like?
(10:00) Testing your pricing and product before you scale
(12:00) What you only learn once your product is in customers' hands
(20:00) How to stay focused on your business when facing competition
(21:00) When is it time to raise investment to grow your business?

Find out more:
Instagram: @wearefrootpops

FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.
https://www.fallowfieldmason.com

Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.

Email us at [email protected] or DM us on Instagram @fallowfieldmason.

MUSIC CREDIT: Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.

Text us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan Mail

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How do you turn an audience into a loyal, paying community? If you're building a newsletter, working out when to monetise a community, or wondering whether a paywall is the right call, this episode is for you.

Juliet talks to yoga teacher and Substack creator Jo Hutton about rebuilding her business after burnout, growing 47,000 Substack subscribers from zero with no mailing list transfer, and why she ditched a fixed paywall for a pay-what-you-feel model. 

They cover Substack's open rates versus other platforms, the 'say what you do, do what you say' rule for growth and retention, and why Jo treats Substack as one spoke in her business rather than the whole wheel. 

After 16 years as a yoga teacher, Jo hit burnout in 2022 and rebuilt around Yoga For Tired People - now 47,000 Substack subscribers, a 42% open rate, 177,000 Instagram followers, her podcast Before The Work Begins, and a debut book with Bloomsbury.

In this episode:

(04:40) When burnout forces you to rethink your business model
(09:20) Starting again and building an audience from scratch
(17:00) How to grow a Substack without relying on an existing audience
(22:00) When does an audience become a paying business?
(23:30) What turns an audience into a community that stays?
(27:15) How to price a paid community and know what to give away for free
(40:20) Why growing a business means growing as a founder

Find out more:
Jo Hutton Instagram: @johuttonyoga
Yoga For Tired People Substack: https://happyyoga.substack.com/

FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.
https://www.fallowfieldmason.com

Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.

Email us at [email protected] or DM us on Instagram @fallowfieldmason.

MUSIC CREDIT: Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.

Text us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan Mail

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How do you turn viral attention into lasting business growth? Juliet talks to Little Moons co-founder Vivien Wong about what happens when a brand suddenly goes viral, how to scale without compromising your product, and how to turn a moment of visibility into long-term customer loyalty.

Vivien co-founded Little Moons with her brother Howard in 2010, spending years building demand for mochi ice cream through restaurants before taking the brand into retail. Today, Little Moons is sold in 38 countries and valued at more than £100 million.

In this episode:
(02:00) How Little Moons built demand before moving into retail
(05:30) What actually happens when your brand suddenly goes viral
(10:00) How to turn viral attention into lasting customer growth
(12:30) How Little Moons built a social-first marketing strategy
(18:20) What founders should do when their brand goes viral
(22:00) Why building a successful business is often about 1,000 boring things
(27:00) What personality traits to look for when hiring

Find out more:
Vivien Wong: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vivien-wong-07804123/
Little Moons: https://littlemoons.com/

FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.
https://www.fallowfieldmason.com

Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.

Email us at [email protected] or DM us on Instagram @fallowfieldmason.

MUSIC CREDIT: Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.

Text us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan Mail

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Joe talks to Juliet about what founders should really look for when hiring, where traditional recruitment falls short and how to use AI without losing the human judgement that helps you spot exceptional people. If you're making your first hires, struggling to spot real potential or wondering how AI should fit into your recruitment process, this episode is for you.

Joe Woodward is co-founder of Vizzy, a hiring platform reimagining the CV for the next generation of talent. Four years in, Vizzy has raised around £7 million in backing, built a talent pool of 120,000 people and works with major clients including Burberry, Virgin and the LVMH group.

In this episode:
00:00:00 Why the traditional CV could be costing you the best candidates
00:06:00 The hiring signal that can matter more than qualifications or experience
00:09:00 The biggest hiring mistakes founders make
00:10:30 When growing your team could actually be the wrong decision
00:23:00 How to use AI in recruitment without losing what only a human can spot

Find out more:
Vizzy: https://home.vizzy.com/
Joe Woodward: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-woodward13/

FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.
https://www.fallowfieldmason.com

Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.

Email us at [email protected] or DM us on Instagram @fallowfieldmason.

MUSIC CREDIT: Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.

Text us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan Mail

Support the show

One of the biggest pieces of advice you'll hear as a founder is to find a gap in the market. But what if the real opportunity isn't finding a gap at all, it's solving a problem you've experienced yourself?

After more than a decade in the wine industry, Bethan Higson became frustrated by the alcohol-free options available during her first pregnancy. Rather than trying to recreate wine or spirits, she wanted to create something entirely different: a drink that delivered the same complexity, ritual and sense of occasion. Two years of experimenting at her kitchen table led to Mother Root, a fiery non-alcoholic aperitif made using ginger and apple cider vinegar. 

Today, Mother Root is the UK's fastest-growing drinks brand and has rapidly expanded from a direct-to-consumer start-up into major retailers, while scaling even faster in the US than in its home market. 

In this episode, Bethan shares what it was really like appearing on Dragons' Den, how she secured investment offers from three Dragons, why she ultimately chose Steven Bartlett, and why the deal never completed. We also explore category creation, hiring exceptional people, building momentum with retailers, preparing for explosive growth, and why saying no is one of the most important skills any founder can develop.

Bethan's Advice:

• Build your business around solving a genuine customer problem, rather than chasing a growing market.
• Adopt a test-and-learn mindset to make faster decisions and reduce the pressure of getting everything right first time.
• Prepare for success as much as failure by building the systems and team you'll need to handle growth.
• Hire people whose strengths complement your own, and don't hesitate when you find exceptional talent.
• Prioritisation is fundamental, stay focused on the opportunities that genuinely move the needle.
• Learn to say no to those opportunities which won’t further your business in the long term - but do it respectfully.

Chapters

(00:00) Why finding a gap isn't enough
(01:10) Meet Bethan Higson & Mother Root
(02:00) Building a business around a real customer problem
(05:00) Convincing retailers to back a new category
(07:15) Turning a kitchen-table idea into a business
(10:00) Founder fears, boundaries & obsession
(14:00) Behind the scenes of Dragons' Den
(19:15) Choosing Steven Bartlett as an investor
(22:00) Preparing your business for explosive growth
(26:00) Scaling Mother Root in the UK & US
(28:00) Why every founder should "test and learn"
(29:30) Hiring exceptional people
(30:30) Why saying no is a founder's superpower
(32:00) Finding the right COO & business partner
(34:00) Bethan's question for the next guest

FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.
https://www.fallowfieldmason.com

Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.

Email us at [email protected] or DM us on Instagram @fallowfieldmason.

MUSIC CREDIT: Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.

Text us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan Mail

Support the show

Before Kate Halfpenny designed wedding dresses, she dressed Kate Moss, Rihanna and Cate Blanchett for a living.

That client list didn't just shape her design eye, it built her a reputation before she'd designed a single dress for the public. When a commission for actress Emilia Fox in 2005 became the foundation of Halfpenny London, Kate already understood something most founders take years to learn: proximity to the right person, at the right moment, is one of the most powerful and least controllable forms of PR there is.

Kate's Advice: 

• Build a reputation through consistently exceptional work, not just advertising
• Paid marketing creates visibility, but trust has to be earned
• Word of mouth can't be controlled. Focus on creating work people genuinely want to recommend
• Choose collaborators because they're the right fit, not because they're famous
• Audiences can feel the difference between genuine love for a brand and being paid to wear it
• Be crystal clear about who your brand is for. It protects you from the wrong partnerships
• One great PR moment opens the door, but consistency is what keeps people coming back
• Never compromise the integrity of your product simply to gain attention
• Bring experienced external leadership into your business sooner than you think
• Treat mistakes as part of building a business. They're lessons, not failures
• Protect time for your personal life before your business takes all of it
• Don't compare your journey to everyone else's, especially on social media

Chapters

(00:00) Why reputation beats advertising
(01:25) Meet Kate Halfpenny
(02:00) Building a brand through reputation
(05:00) How Emilia Fox launched Halfpenny London
(08:15) Why authentic celebrity PR is priceless
(10:05) Choosing the right influencers
(13:00) Celebrity marketing mistakes founders make
(15:00) Turning one PR moment into a 20-year brand
(18:00) PR, social media and luxury branding
(20:30) Founder storytelling and personal brands
(23:00) Growing Halfpenny internationally
(24:30) The leadership mistake Kate would change
(28:00) Work-life balance as a founder
(29:30) Kate's question for the next guest

FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.
https://www.fallowfieldmason.com

Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.

Email us at [email protected] or DM us on Instagram @fallowfieldmason.

MUSIC CREDIT: Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.

Text us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan Mail

Support the show

Every guest on this podcast talks about looking after yourself and your sleep when starting a business so I was keen to speak to someone who has first hand experience in losing it, how to get it back & making a business from it too. 

Hayley Dawes spent years designing beautiful, calming homes for other people. She couldn't find a moment of that calm for herself.  A mother of four and a long-time entrepreneur, Hayley battled chronic insomnia that began to affect every part of her life. The thing that finally shifted it was broad-spectrum CBD and plant actives, used properly and consistently. That personal discovery became Dreem Distillery, a science-led luxury sleep brand now known for its award-winning Night Drops Sleep Oil and, this year, a new magnesium body butter, Dreem Melt.

This is a story about building a business out of a problem you genuinely couldn't solve any other way, and what happens when your professional skill and your personal life are pulling in completely opposite directions. 

Hayley's advice:

• Protect your sleep as fiercely as you protect your business
• Working harder works... until suddenly it doesn't
• Small daily habits ("micro moments") can have a huge impact on your nervous system
• Don't underestimate the power of a daily walk, movement and natural daylight to regulate your nervous system
• Build a business around solving a genuine problem
• Work with experts when you're entering an unfamiliar industry
• Never compromise on quality – from your product to your branding and packaging
• Building a business teaches resilience
• Prioritising yourself allows you to perform better in every area of your life

FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.

Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.

Email us at [email protected] or DM us on Instagram @fallowfieldmason.

MUSIC CREDIT: Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.

Text us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan Mail

Support the show

Laura Butler-Madden is an award-winning interior designer with 14 years of expertise restoring and transforming period properties. Laura hasn't left her design career. She's simply added a second one.  

For anyone starting a business, this may feel like a lot given how many hats you’re already wearing, so I was keen to chat to her about why and how she decided to do this.

Keep listening to hear a practical guide on how to build a second career alongside your first.

Laura's advice:

• Just because you can do something well doesn’t mean you should be doing it
• Go for what makes you happy and contented
• And simultaneously look for a gap in the market
• When you are in control of a business, you can shed the extra processes
• As long as you have the basics - like understanding spreadsheets - you can manage
• You don’t need a big team - but it also means you have no support group
• So you do need to be resilient to do everything yourself
• Patience and resilience are vital - just keep going!
• At first, there may be more lows than highs
• The big plus is the freedom
• Make sure you relax sometimes
• And acknowledge how far you’ve come

FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.
Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, 2024 MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.  Email us at [email protected] or DM us on instagram @fallowfieldmason. 

MUSIC CREDIT Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod. Link &  Licence

Text us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan Mail

Support the show

Most founders start with an idea & go looking for an ingredient. The Taylor sisters started with the ingredient and had to build everything else around it.

Their family has farmed plums in Northern California for four generations. For most of that time, the plum pits were just waste. Le Prunier turned them into the hero ingredient of an organic, luxury skincare line that now sits in goop, Anthropologie, Neiman Marcus & Bloomingdales.

Allison came in from fashion and brand development, having worked at Giorgio Armani and MOTHER Denim. Jacqueline is a UCLA grad with a science background and culinary training. And rounding out the trio is their sister Elaine, who brings experience from two previous CPG brands and heads up finance and operations.

This is a story about vertical integration before it was a trend, about patience in product development, and about what farming actually teaches you that business school doesn't. 

Jackie's advice: 

FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.
Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, 2024 MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.  Email us at [email protected] or DM us on instagram @fallowfieldmason. 

MUSIC CREDIT Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod. Link &  Licence

Text us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan Mail

Support the show

Jo Glynn-Smith is a coach & specialises in leadership growth, career transition and personal transformation, working with people to navigate change. Alongside her coaching practice she hosts The Midlife Entrepreneur podcast, which explores the shift from corporate life into entrepreneurship, so is perfectly placed to guide us through how to pivot in mid-life & address how listeners might honestly assess whether they are ready to do the same. 

Keep listening to hear a practical guide on ‘how to pivot’ 

Jo's advice: 

• When considering a career change or starting a business in mid-life, be wary of a dramatic move which can be risky
• Consider your reasons for wanting change
• Make a list of the pros and cons of your current job
• Identify the aspects of your work you love the most/dislike the most
• Consider taking a sabbatical
• Consider whether it’s the pace of your current work/the way you currently work that is making you unhappy - not the work itself
• Coaching can help you identify the problems
• You will need to plan ahead financially and work out how long you can manage without an income
• Once you know this you can make a plan - Retrain? Have coaching? Undertake research?
• Be self-aware: will you be happier with a co-founder or a partner?
• Find people doing what you’re interested in, and talk to them at length
• Many skills are transferable - you will be competent in various fields
• Growth and learning are constant in everybody’s lives
• Self-belief can be the hardest attribute to find; use a coach to help you examine your successes
• Think about: what you love/what the world needs/what you can get paid for/what you are good at
• Finding your new identity and building a reputation takes time - expect this
• Create your own brand story
• Enjoy your autonomy

FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.
Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, 2024 MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.  Email us at [email protected] or DM us on instagram @fallowfieldmason. 

MUSIC CREDIT Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod. Link &  Licence

Text us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan Mail

Support the show