The Midlife Entrepreneur

This week Jo sits down with Kate Waterfall Hill, a leadership coach, author, podcaster and creator of 'Linda the Bad Manager', to share three ways to attract more clients using TikTok. First, Kate advises making TikToks and shifting mindset by recognising that business owners and decision-makers are on the platform, then creating content that educates, entertains and engages without feeling high-handed. Second, she recommends finding a repeatable format that fits your brand, testing different styles, and sticking with what works rather than constantly switching when early posts get little engagement. Third, she stresses that consistency beats perfection: record and edit on your phone, repurpose across platforms, batch record, and keep showing up, noting that in her first year 97% of revenue came from TikTok and that visibility matters more than going viral.

00:00 Welcome to Masterclass

00:34 Tip One Mindset Shift

01:41 Facing TikTok Fears

03:35 Linda Origin Story

05:05 Building Linda Universe

06:18 Tip Two Find Format

07:11 What Is Linda

08:40 Sticking With It

10:03 Tip Three Consistency

10:23 Repurpose and Batch

11:25 Results and Revenue

14:38 Final Recap and Close

Support the show

Edited and produced by Jo Glynn-Smith 2025.
Recorded at Eight Works Podcast Studios, 1 Dysart Street, London, EC2A 2BX
For bookings: [email protected]

Jo Glynn-Smith is an entrepreneur, professional coach, writer, and speaker from London, she is an expert in career transformation and change.

Instagram @jojoglynnsmith and @themidlifeentrepreneur

Contact: [email protected]
www.joglynnsmith.com

MUSIC CREDIT Easy Money by REX BANNER licensed by Artlist.io
PHOTOGRAPHY by JONATHAN GLYNN-SMITH www.jonathanglynnsmith.com

This week Jo sits down with Anna Richards, founder and CEO of FrolicMe, to discuss building a female-led ethical erotica platform in midlife and redefining how adult content can centre female pleasure, consent, and authentic connection. Anna shares how a lack of erotic content reflecting women’s desires led her to start a blog in 2013–14, then launch FrolicMe in 2015 with 20 self-produced films alongside stories and galleries, funded with limited resources and without investors. She explains how she learned production by finding mentors and industry contacts, kept teams small and collaborative, and built growth largely through SEO because advertising options were limited, reaching 1.6 million monthly visitors and breaking even around year three. Anna describes expanding into audio in 2019, banking a year of content post-COVID, navigating age verification requirements, and the challenges of social media bans. 

00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro

02:08 Why FrolicMe Began

04:50 Fear and Going Taboo

06:00 Testing the Idea With a Blog

07:23 What Women Want From Erotica

10:20 From Stories to Films

13:34 Breaking Into Production

18:00 First Shoots and Self Funding

22:23 Ethical Erotica and Consent

24:54 Growing With SEO

29:21 Competition and Cultural Pushback

30:50 Early Website Panic

32:04 Organic Growth Milestones

33:24 Breaking Even Without Investors

35:04 Production Costs Evolve

36:45 Location Shoots Aesthetic

37:46 COVID Audio Pivot

39:30 Fantasy Storytelling Details

41:38 Age Verification Challenges

46:13 Marketing and Social Media

48:15 Family Reactions and Normalizing

50:07 Founder 321 Takeaways

55:48 Final Thanks and Wrap

Visit at www.frolicme.com 

Follow @frolicme_anna or @frolicme_offical

Support the show

Edited and produced by Jo Glynn-Smith 2025.
Recorded at Eight Works Podcast Studios, 1 Dysart Street, London, EC2A 2BX
For bookings: [email protected]

Jo Glynn-Smith is an entrepreneur, professional coach, writer, and speaker from London, she is an expert in career transformation and change.

Instagram @jojoglynnsmith and @themidlifeentrepreneur

Contact: [email protected]
www.joglynnsmith.com

MUSIC CREDIT Easy Money by REX BANNER licensed by Artlist.io
PHOTOGRAPHY by JONATHAN GLYNN-SMITH www.jonathanglynnsmith.com

This week Jo sits down with Thea Green MBE, founder of Nails INC. and Holler & Glow, to share three ways British brands can succeed in America. First, Thea says distribution is your best advert: focus on one key retail partner where you’ll get strong visibility, prove performance with clean data, and consider short-term exclusivity rather than spreading thinly across multiple retailers with poor shelf placement. Second, because it’s hard to outspend US corporates on advertising, she advises leaning into your USP and founder storytelling and using partnerships, collaborations, and retailer exclusives so bigger brands and retailers amplify your launch. Third, she recommends celebrating European heritage and quality—standards, ingredients, and manufacturing stories—to appeal to Americans’ perception of European-made products as premium and safer, while noting US retail buying cycles can be slower and require long lead times.

00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro

00:39 Advice One Distribution First

02:37 Win One Retailer

04:34 Advice Two Outsmart Ad Budgets

05:39 Partnerships and Collaborations

06:53 Advice Three Sell Europe

09:35 US Market Watch Outs

11:56 Retail Timelines and Seasonality

13:51 Recap and Closing

Support the show

Edited and produced by Jo Glynn-Smith 2025.
Recorded at Eight Works Podcast Studios, 1 Dysart Street, London, EC2A 2BX
For bookings: [email protected]

Jo Glynn-Smith is an entrepreneur, professional coach, writer, and speaker from London, she is an expert in career transformation and change.

Instagram @jojoglynnsmith and @themidlifeentrepreneur

Contact: [email protected]
www.joglynnsmith.com

MUSIC CREDIT Easy Money by REX BANNER licensed by Artlist.io
PHOTOGRAPHY by JONATHAN GLYNN-SMITH www.jonathanglynnsmith.com

Building Aspiga: Sustainable Fashion, Slow Growth, and ADHD in Entrepreneurship

This week Jo speaks with Lucy Macnamara, founder of Aspiga, an award-winning sustainable fashion brand built on ethical production and positive impact. Lucy shares how she started with 250 hand-beaded sandals from Kenya sold through friends while working full time, then left her charity role after gaining early wholesale traction. She explains Aspiga’s steady, long-term growth through wholesale, online and pop-ups, later moving operations to London and building teams, and how retail stores began unexpectedly during lockdown through low-risk landlord offers, eventually expanding to around 10 shops. Lucy discusses the realities of managing staff, cashflow, supplier problems, and crises, her ADHD diagnosis in her 50s and how openness helped the team adapt, and her focus now on creating a sustainable business that can rely less on her while maintaining long-standing investments in artisans and community projects in Kenya.

00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro

01:42 Slow Growth Mindset

02:49 First Product and Early Sales

03:32 Leaving Charity to Go Full Time

05:10 Wholesale Growth and Cash Flow

05:56 Early Money Struggles

06:46 Midlife Advantage and Self Belief

08:53 Hiring and Building a Team

11:33 Managing Staff Expectations

14:27 Going Above and Beyond

15:47 From Pop Ups to Stores

18:29 Retail Expansion Challenges

20:11 ADHD Energy and Routines

21:52 Sleep and Night Worries

23:34 Entrepreneurship Ups and Downs

24:25 ADHD and Crisis Mode

25:18 Late Diagnosis Realizations

26:34 School Struggles and Self Doubt

28:38 Leading Teams with ADHD

32:13 Future Plans and Ownership

34:12 Funding and Industry Know How

36:40 Three Two One Advice

37:01 Sustainability Roots in Kenya

41:15 Money Mistakes and AI Checks

44:40 Mentors and Asking for Help

46:26 Final Thanks and Wrap Up

Support the show

Edited and produced by Jo Glynn-Smith 2025.
Recorded at Eight Works Podcast Studios, 1 Dysart Street, London, EC2A 2BX
For bookings: [email protected]

Jo Glynn-Smith is an entrepreneur, professional coach, writer, and speaker from London, she is an expert in career transformation and change.

Instagram @jojoglynnsmith and @themidlifeentrepreneur

Contact: [email protected]
www.joglynnsmith.com

MUSIC CREDIT Easy Money by REX BANNER licensed by Artlist.io
PHOTOGRAPHY by JONATHAN GLYNN-SMITH www.jonathanglynnsmith.com

15 Minute Masterclass: 3 Ways to Increase Engagement on Instagram with Milla Richardson

This week Jo sits down with Milla Richardson, Instagram expert and founder of Pink Storm Social, to share three ways to increase engagement on Instagram, explaining that engagement now includes comments, saves, shares and DMs and directly impacts reach via the algorithm. First, Milla advises grabbing attention in the feed with strong visuals, curiosity-driving hooks/headlines, and faces or behind-the-scenes people content, noting Instagram is increasingly personality-driven. Second, she recommends starting more conversations by asking questions in captions, replying to Stories, using Story engagement stickers (polls, sliders, question boxes) with simple prompts, and using DMs to build relationships, even setting short daily engagement windows. Third, she encourages being more personable and relatable through storytelling, sharing experiences and business journeys without oversharing; Jo recaps and asks about planning, and Milla describes loosely rotating selling, connecting, relationship-building and useful content.

00:00 Welcome to Masterclass

00:39 Why Engagement Matters

01:58 Tip One Grab Attention

02:27 Hooks Visuals and Faces

05:51 Tip Two Start Conversations

07:27 Stories Stickers and DMs

09:30 Tip Three Be Personable

12:13 Storytelling Without Oversharing

12:55 Recap and Content Planning

15:19 Wrap Up and Subscribe

Follow Milla @pinkstormsocial

Support the show

Edited and produced by Jo Glynn-Smith 2025.
Recorded at Eight Works Podcast Studios, 1 Dysart Street, London, EC2A 2BX
For bookings: [email protected]

Jo Glynn-Smith is an entrepreneur, professional coach, writer, and speaker from London, she is an expert in career transformation and change.

Instagram @jojoglynnsmith and @themidlifeentrepreneur

Contact: [email protected]
www.joglynnsmith.com

MUSIC CREDIT Easy Money by REX BANNER licensed by Artlist.io
PHOTOGRAPHY by JONATHAN GLYNN-SMITH www.jonathanglynnsmith.com

Maxine Laceby: Starting Absolute Collagen at 50 and building a £30m DTC Brand

This week Jo sits down with Maxine Laceby, co-founder of Absolute Collagen, to discuss how she built a pioneering liquid collagen, direct-to-consumer brand in midlife. After 25 years as a stay-at-home mum, turning 50 and studying fine art led Maxine to a self-identity project, “Dare to Go Bare,” and a wellbeing journey that began with homemade bone broth and evolved into discovering collagen. In 2017 she launched Absolute Collagen with her daughter Darcy, growing it from a kitchen-table idea into a £30m business, raising £15m investment, and earning major rankings and awards. Maxine credits transferable “mum skills” like emotional intelligence, intuition, and reading people, alongside a consumer-first mindset, strong team culture, hiring to offset weaknesses, and choosing aligned partners over money. She emphasizes authenticity, integrity, and scientifically proven claims in a “Wild West” supplement market.

00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro

02:23 Motherhood Skills to Boardroom

03:06 Emotional Intelligence as Superpower

05:11 Designing for the Absoluter

08:01 Dare to Go Bare Origins

10:51 Finding Maxine Under the Masks

13:47 Kids Reactions and Leading by Example

15:39 Always a Problem Solver

17:51 Collagen Discovery with Darcy

19:13 Early Results and Hair Science

21:55 Mother Daughter Business Dynamic

23:28 Empowered Family Collaboration

26:08 Respect and Boundaries

27:07 Scaling With Great Hires

29:29 Authenticity Versus Celebrity

32:09 Brand Integrity and Science

33:58 Culture Fit and Team Freedom

34:53 Investment and Valuation Lessons

38:39 New CEO and Absoluter Mindset

40:44 Three Two One Advice

43:33 Thanking Brad and Closing

Support the show

Edited and produced by Jo Glynn-Smith 2025.
Recorded at Eight Works Podcast Studios, 1 Dysart Street, London, EC2A 2BX
For bookings: [email protected]

Jo Glynn-Smith is an entrepreneur, professional coach, writer, and speaker from London, she is an expert in career transformation and change.

Instagram @jojoglynnsmith and @themidlifeentrepreneur

Contact: [email protected]
www.joglynnsmith.com

MUSIC CREDIT Easy Money by REX BANNER licensed by Artlist.io
PHOTOGRAPHY by JONATHAN GLYNN-SMITH www.jonathanglynnsmith.com

This week Jo sits down with AI expert, broadcaster, and AI Method founder Georgie Barrat to share three ways to scale productivity with AI. 

First, Georgie advises “onboarding” your AI like a new employee by creating an AI blueprint: a North Star vision document, ideal audience details, and “voice DNA” samples for emails, newsletters, and social posts, stored via tools like memory, projects, or custom GPTs to improve outputs and avoid confusion from overly long threads. 

Second, she recommends using voice input to reduce friction, brainstorm more naturally, and let AI consolidate ideas into well-formatted drafts you can refine. 

Third, she suggests building a simple toolkit by choosing one main AI tool and targeting repeat weekly workflows for small, high-impact time savings, while factchecking and ensuring the final work still sounds like you. 

00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro

00:59 Tip 1 AI Blueprint Onboarding

03:16 Where to Store Context

04:34 Avoid Long Threads

06:06 Tip 2 Talk to AI

07:57 Tip 3 Workflow Toolkit

10:36 Small Wins Over Hype

11:37 Recap and AI Sandwich

15:32 Closing and Subscribe

Support the show

Edited and produced by Jo Glynn-Smith 2025.
Recorded at Eight Works Podcast Studios, 1 Dysart Street, London, EC2A 2BX
For bookings: [email protected]

Jo Glynn-Smith is an entrepreneur, professional coach, writer, and speaker from London, she is an expert in career transformation and change.

Instagram @jojoglynnsmith and @themidlifeentrepreneur

Contact: [email protected]
www.joglynnsmith.com

MUSIC CREDIT Easy Money by REX BANNER licensed by Artlist.io
PHOTOGRAPHY by JONATHAN GLYNN-SMITH www.jonathanglynnsmith.com

From City Marketer to Heirloom Seed Disruptor: Kate Cotterill on Building She Grows Veg in Midlife

Jo kicks off a new season by speaking with Kate Cotterill, CEO and co-founder of She Grows Veg, an heirloom seed company launched in November 2023 with Instagram grower Lucy Hutchings. Kate shares how a garden design course led to their partnership, how Lucy’s 120,000-strong following revealed pent-up UK demand for heirloom seeds, and how Kate left a 25-year marketing career to start the business at 46. They discuss what heirloom seeds are versus hybrids, She Grows Veg’s rapid growth from a £17,000 crowdfund to £1.4m turnover and a 30+ person team, two Chelsea Flower Show gold medals, and the challenges of funding, scaling operations, website crashes, and seed production lead times. Kate also describes their women-focused hiring model, AI-driven content and customer support, new veg-growing app, charity work, and advice to research then act.

00:00 Welcome and guest intro

01:55 Why seeds

04:58 Market shift to growing

07:51 Heirloom seeds explained

10:46 Funding and crowdfunding

13:22 Product build and packaging

15:49 Chelsea spotlight and website crash

19:07 Scaling team and operations

22:13 Energy routines and tech

24:59 Co-founder roles and balance

25:28 Finding Your Yin Yang

25:59 Seed Hunting Secret Sauce

26:26 Funding the Fast Growth

28:44 Angel Investing Explained

30:17 Scaling Teams and Roles

31:14 Production and Stock Fears

32:54 Customer Support with AI

34:00 Family Support and Midlife Drive

36:33 Pinch Me Chelsea Moments

37:45 Digital Marketing Disruption

39:39 Next Phase and Veg App

41:04 Joy of Growing and Reviews

42:41 Advice to Just Go

44:23 321s People AI Premises

47:22 Do Differently and Thank You

50:35 Final Wrap and Goodbye

Support the show

Edited and produced by Jo Glynn-Smith 2025.
Recorded at Eight Works Podcast Studios, 1 Dysart Street, London, EC2A 2BX
For bookings: [email protected]

Jo Glynn-Smith is an entrepreneur, professional coach, writer, and speaker from London, she is an expert in career transformation and change.

Instagram @jojoglynnsmith and @themidlifeentrepreneur

Contact: [email protected]
www.joglynnsmith.com

MUSIC CREDIT Easy Money by REX BANNER licensed by Artlist.io
PHOTOGRAPHY by JONATHAN GLYNN-SMITH www.jonathanglynnsmith.com

Jo hosts the 15 Minute Masterclass and interviews Mirry Christie, CEO and founder of Be.Able, about three ways to lead with more purpose and positive impact. Mirry advises starting with the business by identifying priority social and environmental focus areas, engaging teams beyond the boardroom, and making practical improvements that add brand value, reduce waste, improve staff wellbeing and retention, and prepare for investors and future regulation. Second, she encourages action closer to home through conscious consumption, reusing, recycling, repairing, community support, and projects like selling clothes on Vinted and local initiatives such as Remnant Revolution. Third, she stresses talking honestly and transparently about impact to counter greenhushing/greenwashing, build communities of brands, and inspire others, noting resource use is at 1.8 Earths today and heading toward two by 2030.

00:00 Welcome to Masterclass

00:35 Purposeful Leadership Question

00:54 Start With Business Impact

02:11 Social and Environmental Priorities

03:43 Making Change Practical

06:20 Advice Two Home Habits

07:51 Community Projects and Brands

09:53 Advice Three Talk About It

11:08 Building Communities for Impact

12:51 Recap and Final Thoughts

15:30 Subscribe and Contact

Connect with B.Able here: https://www.bable.world/

Follow on Instagram @bable.world

Support the show

Edited and produced by Jo Glynn-Smith 2025.
Recorded at Eight Works Podcast Studios, 1 Dysart Street, London, EC2A 2BX
For bookings: [email protected]

Jo Glynn-Smith is an entrepreneur, professional coach, writer, and speaker from London, she is an expert in career transformation and change.

Instagram @jojoglynnsmith and @themidlifeentrepreneur

Contact: [email protected]
www.joglynnsmith.com

MUSIC CREDIT Easy Money by REX BANNER licensed by Artlist.io
PHOTOGRAPHY by JONATHAN GLYNN-SMITH www.jonathanglynnsmith.com

This week’s guest is Zoe Levey, founder of Wildflower Press and editor of Wildflower Magazine. With over two decades in senior commercial roles across major magazine titles, Zoe left Conde Nast in 2017 after her son’s SEN diagnosis to create more flexibility, moved to the Cotswolds, and launched an independent publishing business designed to feel special, seasonal, and collectible. Eight years on, Wildflower is distributed nationally in the UK and stocked by Waitrose, M&S and WH Smith, and has expanded into Wildflower Live events, the Little Green Book for independent businesses, and a Wine Club. Zoe explains her brand-led approach, self-funding and lean resourcing model, the skills she had to rebuild outside a large company (distribution, subscriptions, finance, digital), where AI may help efficiency, and the importance of boundaries, patience, and trusted people.

00:00 Welcome and Mission

00:55 Meet Zoe Levey

02:02 Why Start a Magazine

02:51 Designing Wildflower

04:57 Naming the Brand

06:45 Building the First Issues

08:48 Lean Team and Finances

09:52 Growth Pains and Skills

12:03 AI for Efficiency

14:36 Live Events Return

16:28 Seasonal Editorial Process

18:43 Weekly Rhythm and Balance

22:18 The Turning Point Story

23:31 Chasing Work Life Balance

24:07 Lists And Starting Projects

25:07 Eat The Frog First

25:47 Rest And Self Care Boundaries

27:04 Protecting Mornings And Breaks

28:46 Phones And Blurred Work Lines

30:33 Three Two One Framework

31:00 Worthwhile Investments

34:49 Career Skills And Confidence

36:29 Mistakes Hiring And Structure

39:35 Distribution Lessons And COVID

42:39 Thanking A Key Mentor

44:08 Final Wrap And Call To Action

Find out more about Wildflower here: https://wildflowermagazine.co.uk/

Follow them on Instagram @wildflowermagazine

Support the show

Edited and produced by Jo Glynn-Smith 2025.
Recorded at Eight Works Podcast Studios, 1 Dysart Street, London, EC2A 2BX
For bookings: [email protected]

Jo Glynn-Smith is an entrepreneur, professional coach, writer, and speaker from London, she is an expert in career transformation and change.

Instagram @jojoglynnsmith and @themidlifeentrepreneur

Contact: [email protected]
www.joglynnsmith.com

MUSIC CREDIT Easy Money by REX BANNER licensed by Artlist.io
PHOTOGRAPHY by JONATHAN GLYNN-SMITH www.jonathanglynnsmith.com