The Entrepreneurs

Station F is the world’s largest start-up campus. Opened weeks ago in Paris with an appearance by France’s president Emmanuel Macron and the project’s billionaire founder Xavier Niel, it’s located in an abandoned 1920s railway depot the size of the Eiffel Tower and has room for thousands of companies. Is this a turning point for the French technology scene? Its director Roxanne Varza tells us more.

Years ago former advertising copywriter David Hieatt left London with his family for the Welsh town of Cardigan, once home to the largest jeans factory in Britain. Since then, he and his wife Clare sold their popular T-shirt company Howies, built the much-loved brand Hiut Denim and created a three-day rural retreat in their old cow barn called The Do Lectures. This week on The Entrepreneurs David shares the secrets to building long-lasting brands and the big takeaways of his purpose-driven career.

Stocksy United is an artist-owned co-op that specialises in high-end curated stock photography. The Canadian startup was launched by entrepreneur Brianna Wettlaufer, who cut her teeth in the trade after rising through the ranks at the photography giant iStock. This week on Eureka, Brianna shares her story.

Juniqe is a fast-growing Berlin-based start-up selling a curated selection of wall art and home accessories from independent artists; it’s one of a growing number of businesses attempting to disrupt the mass art market. Its co-founder Lea Lange tells us how her company is leading the pack – and why Berlin is a great place to set up shop.

Joan Murphy and Pip Black were working in advertising when they met on a surfing trip in 2007. A friendship soon turned into a business partnership when they launched their groundbreaking London-based fitness studio Frame, which has since developed a cult following. This week Joan shares the story of Frame.

From the rise of Mr Porter and Farfetch to the demise of Style.com, the e-commerce industry has experienced an eventful few years. This week we tell the tale of a new entry, an online marketplace called Bombinate. Founded by two friends following a road trip around the world, Bombinate sells only the highest-quality products from lesser-known brands from Europe. The mission is to cultivate a lively community of likeminded brands but how will it fare in a saturated market? Bombinate’s co-founder Massimiliano Gritti shares the company’s story.

Simon Karlstetter and Claudio Ricci share the story of their Munich-based magazine ‘Der Greif’ and their new project Picter, a sharing tool for photographers.

There are 2.5 billion people with uncorrected vision problems. James Chen is a Hong Kong-based venture philanthropist and entrepreneur who’s on a mission to help the world see better – and he’s marshalling start-ups, government and non-profits to make it happen. This week Chen explains how he’s doing it and what he’s learnt along the way.

Unbound is a London-based start-up that’s revolutionising the publishing world, giving authors the tools to pitch, crowdfund and launch their own books. This week, Unbound’s co-founder and chief executive Dan Kieran shares the company’s story.

For frustrated singles searching for soulmates the old-fashioned way, technology start-ups have provided a more efficient method of finding love: dating apps. One fast-growing addition to the field is the Austin, Texas-based company Bumble, founded in 2014 by Whitney Wolfe, a co-founder of the dating app Tinder. Unlike its competitors, Bumble empowers women to make the first move. This week Wolfe shares the company’s story, discusses the role of feminism in the technology industry and explores the future of networking.