The Founders

Joe Gradwell and Alex Brown founded social first marketing agency Campfire after meeting and fostering a healthy rivalry at Social Chain.

In the final episode of the podcast, Alex and Joe are now telling their founding story.

They explain what led them to starting their own competing agency; how they landed on their company values, which includes the ‘no d*ck head’ rule; how they romanticised their business and how that manifested into probation passing fireworks.

To keep up with Alex and Joe’s plans for the future, follow  the team behind The Founders.

Jens Knoop’s passion for hot chocolate led him to found Knoops in 2013 with only one store. Now, with more than 10 stores nationwide and an online range, you can now consider Jens Knoops, as the modern day Willy Wonka. 

Jens explains how while researching as part of his previous job, he stumbled across the ‘little luxuries’ market - which when paired with his nostalgic love of chocolate, led him to starting Knoops.

Knoops battled with the covid pandemic and so Jens shares exactly what he thinks startups should be focusing on in their early days to ensure they have a diverse revenue stream.

He also shares valuable insights into how he diversified their revenue streams when faced with the adversity of the pandemic, and why startups should consider this from day 1. 

Ahead of opening Knoops’ in Manchester, he shares what he’s doing to ensure the Knoops experience is the same in every store.

Follow Knoops and the team behind The Founders.

What started out as a holiday became the foundation for a million pound business. Josh White was horrified by the number of plastic bottles covering beaches on a trip abroad and, with his co-founders, began the mission to reduce single use plastic with a fresh and forward-thinking approach. 

Josh describes how they convinced investors that canned water wasn’t too radical, and the turning point with a little help from Sir David Attenborough himself; he also shares the sad impact that founding a company had on his mental health and how it links to their slogan ‘Don’t Bottle It’.

Plus he discusses the exclusive details of their recent rebrand and how integral his personal brand has been to growing the company to new successes.

Follow Josh White, Cano Water and the team behind The Founders.

Ever needed a service that didn’t exist?

Back in 2000, Graham Hobson had just bought a digital camera and was bored of trekking back and forth to Boots with the copious pictures he took of his children… so he founded Photobox: A photo printing service that was the first of its kind and became a category leader in the UK market. 

In this episode, Graham shares with Alex and Joe how he founded a multi-million pound company despite having zero aspirations to run his own business. He also divulges the low points of the first few years and how that affected his home life, and the unexpected reason why they bought MoonPig for £120 million. 

He also shares why he wants to pay more tax, why it’s difficult to pitch ideas in today's economy, and how he is supporting startups in this phase of his career.

Follow Graham, Photobox and the team behind The Founders.

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When you’re starting a business, a question you might try and be answering for years is who you are as a business. So, how do you go about discovering the answer? 

In this episode, Alex and Joe are joined by Trouva’s co-founder and former CEO Alex Loizou. Alex explains how he went from coder to C-Suite; and how Trouva has come to solve a huge problem for small businesses and customers alike.

He also shares his biggest lessons to pass onto entrepreneurs and business owners; and he also shares how he forgets about work by “fighting for his life”. 

Connect with Alex, and the team behind The Founders.

Ade Hassan had a lightbulb moment so good she couldn’t believe it hadn’t been done before: she had never been able to find a nude bra that matched her skin tone. So, she made it for herself and all the other women of colour who never had it before either. 

In this conversation, Ade tells Alex and Joe about her business idea that consumed her, the incredible yet terrifying moment when Nubian Skin went viral before they had a single product to sell, and how they almost missed an iconic opportunity with Beyoncé. 

Follow Ade, Nubian Skin and the team behind The Founders.

Simon Martin, the founder and head chef of mana, Manchester's first michelin star restaurant in four decades, is disrupting the restaunter landscape and pioneering a new way of eating out. 

A man of great discipline, Simon discusses with Alex and Joe the stresses of setting up a restaurant with minimal business knowledge, the exclusive and mysterious process of receiving a Michelin star (and why no chef ever admits they want one), and an ultimatum from his long-term long-distance girlfriend which led him to creating his new legacy in Manchester.

Simon is dedicated to carving out a unique identity and fighting against the expectations of the restaurant industry, something all business owners can learn from.  

Follow Simon, mana and the team behind The Founders. 

Chapter 1: The Founding Story (01:24)

Chapter 2: New directions and being anti resturant (24:17)

Chapter 3: Michelin start and defining moments (33:01)

After a successful career in finance and fintech, in 2016 Morten Toft Bech decided to pursue new passions not for money, but for the millions of people to be born after him.

Alex and Joe explore the fascinating world of plant-based meat – including the decision Morten made behind which product to make first. He also delves into the challenges of keeping up with competition in a rapidly growing industry and discusses the negativity surrounding plant-based meat.

Morten also provides valuable insights into securing investment and offers practical advice for startups, drawing from his experience as both a founder and investor. 

Follow Morten, Meatless Farm and the team behind The Founders. 

Chapter 1: The Founding Story (01:19)

Chapter 2: The secret to securing investment (25:30)

Chapter 3: Defining moments (43:29)

Despite not knowing much about wine initially, Heini Zacharissen has created the world’s largest wine community with over 60 million users on the Vivino app. 

Alex and Joe ask Heini about how he built his enormous user base, how to sell yourself to investors without traditional expertise, and why creating FOMO can be your strongest tool. 

Heini also shares how disruptive Vivino was to the wine industry, plus valuable insights on the mistakes to avoid when creating an app and where to find reliable feedback.

Follow @heinizach, @Vivino and the team behind The Founders.

Chapter 1: The Founding Story (01:15)

Chapter 2: Advice on building apps, pitch decks and more (16:06)

Chapter 3: Defining Moments (30:15)

Robin Hutson is one of the UK’s most successful and powerful hoteliers, but his story still comes with a lot of luck, sleepless nights and selling their own wine collections when they didn’t stock enough on opening night. 

Robin recounts the terrifying prospect of putting up his own house in order to secure a bank loan, why despite having over 1,000 employees they still work like a small business, and what made him return to hotels after selling his first chain for £66 million. 

Follow The Pig Hotels and the team behind The Founders.