Start Your Own Business

James Eder co-founded Student Beans with his brother Mike in Birmingham in 2005. It started as a digital student loyalty platform offering exclusive discounts and has since grown into a global network generating revenue of £30m.

Almost 20 years later James and Mike started Pion, which now has 250 employees and operates in more than 100 countries. Pion is a leader in youth marketing insights, “supporting marketers with full funnel youth marketing campaigns”.

Like many successful entrepreneurs before him, James has experienced failure, too. A tech business that he launched in 2016 didn’t survive, but the experience taught him a lot of valuable lessons. More seriously, James was later diagnosed with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy, where part of the heart becomes abnormally thickened and stiff, which creates serious health issues. It’s fair to say that James has had his shares of ups and downs.

James has just launched his new book – The Collision Code — which explores how human connection can drive life-changing opportunities in an increasingly digital world. In this fascinating episode, he talks about his successes and failures in business, as well as the serious health challenges he has faced.

For more great tips on how to start and run a business, sign up to the Ping newsletter.

Creating and maintaining strong supplier relationships is the lifeblood of a successful business. But whereas once it would have been difficult, time-consuming and expensive to find and build a strong relationship with suppliers – especially those in other countries – B2B e-marketplaces are making it much simpler, quicker and cost effective to build a truly global network of suppliers. You can also potentially source a greater range of products far more efficiently and perhaps make a far better margin on your sales.

In this special episode, Michelle Lau of Alibaba.com, the global business-to-business e-marketplace, explains how Alibaba.com is enabling small businesses to source new and trending products at greater margins more efficiently, while building trust with new suppliers.

For more great tips on how to start and run a business, sign up to the Ping newsletter.

Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax is one of the biggest changes to the UK tax system in recent years – and it’s coming soon. Wondering how this impacts your normal self-assessment obligations? In this final episode of a four-part mini-series on MTD for Income Tax, Helen Wood from TaxAssist Accountants dispels some of the common misconceptions surrounding the MTD requirements for those sole traders and landlords who are impacted.

Helen will clarify that quarterly updates aren’t four mini-tax returns, payments still land on 31st January, and private landlords are included. You’ll need compatible software (HMRC won’t provide a free option), but spreadsheets plus bridging software can still work. Helen also shares practical prep steps – get set up early, lean on training and use webinars. Finally, discover how TaxAssist can smooth your transition with tiered support and recommended software like Xero, QuickBooks, Dext and Hammock.

For more great tips on how to start and run a business, sign up to the Ping newsletter.

Getting your self-assessment right is about staying on top of the basics – and for many sole traders and landlords, Making Tax Digital for Income Tax is now the big one to understand.

Instead of a single annual rush, Making Tax Digital means keeping digital records, using compliant software and sending simple quarterly summaries – so you’ve got a clearer picture of tax due as you go.

In this third episode in a special four-part mini-series on Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, Andy Gibbs from TaxAssist Accountants explains who’s in scope, how “qualifying income” is worked out, what quarterly updates include and the end-of-year steps you’ll still need to complete. He also discusses exemptions for digital exclusion, how agents can help, common myths (no, it’s not a full return every three months), and what the new points-based penalties mean if you miss deadlines.

For more great tips on how to start and run a business, sign up to the Ping newsletter.

From April 2026, any sole traders or landlords earning a combined income of over £50,000 will need to comply with Making Tax Digital, with phased deadlines for lower income thresholds following in 2027 and 2028.

In this second episode in a special four-part mini-series on Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, Samantha Skyring from TaxAssist Accountants breaks down how to prepare for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. She explains what the new system means for sole traders and landlords and why moving away from paper records sooner rather than later, will save stress.

Samantha highlights how the right HMRC-approved software can make quarterly updates a simple, automated process, while accountants can provide valuable support for those less digitally confident. She also shares how TaxAssist is helping clients transition through training, webinars and flexible service packages. With early preparation, Making Tax Digital doesn’t have to be daunting – it can even make record-keeping easier and more efficient.

For more great tips on how to start and run a business, sign up to the Ping newsletter.

From April 2026, if you are a sole trader or landlord and earn over £50,000 from self-employment or property, you’ll need to keep digital records and send quarterly updates to HMRC, with the entry point dropping to £30,000 in 2027 and £20,000 in 2028. So, how will things change once Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax has been introduced? How will sole traders and landlords be required to keep financial records, and – crucially – report information so that HMRC can work out how much tax is owed? Will they still need to file self assessment tax returns?

In this first episode in a four-part mini-series on MTD for Income Tax, we speak to chartered certified accountant Jo Nockels FCCA, FMAAT of TaxAssist Accountants, a network of accountants across the UK that delivers accounting and tax services to small-business owners. Here Jo explains how sole traders and landlords will be affected by MTD for income tax changes.

For more great tips on how to start and run a business, sign up to the Ping newsletter.

Higher living costs, record price increases across the board and wages that haven’t kept pace has led many millions of people in the UK to have their own “side-hustle” in recent years, as a way to supplement their main income.

Side-hustles have become hugely popular. Research carried out by leading accounting software provider Sage in 2024 found that almost half (47%) of UK adults had a side-hustle and among the under-34s, 90% planned to turn their side-hustle into a full-time business. More than two-thirds of 16-34 years olds were running multiple side-hustles, earning an extra £546 per month on average.

Coping with the demands of a full-time (or even part-time job) and family commitments can be challenging enough, without running a side-hustle, when there can be many additional tasks to take care of. So, how is it done?

In this episode, we speak to Sam Feller of Popcorn Shed, a highly successful popcorn brand he founded with his cousin Laura Jackson in 2015. For 18 months, while developing their brand and business idea, Sam and Laura held down demanding full-time jobs in London, running Popcorn Shed as a home-based side-hustle. So, what was their recipe for success?

For more great tips on how to start and run a business, sign up to the Ping newsletter.

AI – artificial intelligence – is increasingly becoming part of everyday life. Its rise to prominence has become much more rapid in recent years, with resistance to its progress seemingly futile. Although some concerns have been raised over the implications of AI, it’s already being used widely, providing significant benefits to users, many small-business owners among them. Potentially, AI can provide significant effort, time and cost savings to new and established small businesses, enabling you to be more efficient, successful and profitable.

In this episode, we speak to AI expert Phil Hobden of Sage. Phil shares his considerable insight into the fascinating world of AI and offers tips on how AI can be used to save effort, time and money when you’re starting or running your own small business.

In a hurry? Here's some highlights:

• 02:13 Understanding artificial intelligence (AI)
• 03:37 AI vs automation
• 11:13 The importance of quality data when using AI
• 13:14 Practical benefits of AI for small businesses
• 31:45 How to use AI to start your business
• 51:11 Top tips for using AI in your business

For more great tips on how to start and run a business, sign up to the Ping newsletter.

It’s the stuff of entrepreneurial dreams. To come up with a pioneering product idea, develop a prototype, create a hugely appealing brand and start a highly successful business that you grow and sell for a huge amount of money. That’s exactly what Rob Law MBE did. Coming from a product design background, he founded Trunki in 2006. Trunki is the much-loved ride-on suitcase for children, which come in various designs.

Rob built up his Bristol-based business over 17 years, selling millions of Trunki suitcases, exporting to more than 100 countries, while providing jobs for 80 people. Rob exited Trunki in 2023, selling the business for a reported £12m. In this fascinating episode, Rob talks about how he started, scaled and sold his phenomenally successful business, proving the Dragons very wrong in the process.

For more great tips on how to start and run a business, sign up to the Ping newsletter.

If you really want to grow your business at a faster pace or achieve significant growth, more than likely, unless you’re rich or your business is super profitable, you’ll need to attract external funding or finance. There are many options, but one of the most common is attracting investment from a wealthy investor or group of them. Find the right investor, and not only do you gain from their wealth by getting the funding you need, but you may also be able to benefit from their experience, knowledge and contacts. But, how do you and your business get ready for investment, where do you find suitable investors, what would attract them to your business and how can you ensure that the relationship works well?

In this episode, Martin Sokk, CEO and founder of low-fee investing app Lightyear, offers tips on how to attract and work with suitable investors. He also provides tips on how you can avoid common mistakes when it comes to attracting an investor.

For more great tips on how to start and run a business, sign up to the Ping newsletter.