This week Piers Linney is joined by Ade Hassan – a founder whose business has set out to make fashion a more inclusive place. Born from the frustration of not being able to find lingerie and hosiery that matched her own skin tone, Ade Hassan started Nubian Skin in 2014, offering ‘nude’ colour options to cater for women of all shades. Ade shares the story of how the company launched with viral acclaim, winning fans including as Beyoncé ­– but as the company grows she also explains the challenges she faces on that journey.

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Piers Linney meets Jonny Plein the co-founder of Pouch, a company helping people to cash in on discount codes through an automatic browser extension. He shares the highs and lows of building a digital business and describes the company’s financial journey through multiple funding rounds, failed investments, and even an appearance on Dragon’s Den. 

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This week, Piers meets Alex Loizou, founder of Trouva, one of the UK’s top-five fastest growing tech companies. Trouva is an e-commerce platform for brick-and-mortar homeware and fashion boutiques and enables independent shops to sell their carefully curated products online, worldwide. Alex shares his journey from graduating as a software engineer to founding a tech company committed to protecting the future of the independent high street.

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Piers meets Daniel Price, co-founder of My First Years, a company with a unique take on product personalisation that offers everything from personalised bathrobes to rocking chairs. My 1st Years became a household name when Prince George was photographed wearing one of the company’s bathrobes when the Windsors met The Obamas at Kensington Palace in 2016. Dan describes how his unique approach to gifting celebrities thrust the company into the limelight and shares his journey of seizing the opportunity to scale the business to achieving over a million online orders. Piers and Dan discuss the realities of scaling, using investment wisely and hiring the right people at the right time.

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In this episode Piers Linney meets Louise Leolin, the cofounder of games development studio DinoByte labs. Louise shares her story of being a young woman in a male dominated industry – and why she’s taken it upon herself to design video games that are representative of the diverse fans playing them. She also explains how she’s harnessed the power of her followers, through crowdfunding and user-feedback, to help shape the direction of their projects.

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Piers Linney meets Alex Lovén, a businessman at the helm of one of the most successful sports equipment retailers in the UK. Alex shares how his ‘keep it simple’ approach has helped Net World Sports grow to a multi-million pound online business without the need of external investment. Plus they discuss how Net World Sports have developed their own product brands and innovations, to offer customers solutions they can’t find anywhere else. 

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Piers Linney is joined by Susie Ma, the founder of Tropic Skincare, who shares the story of how her business grew from a market stall to a multi-million partnership with investor Lord Sugar. Susie explains some of the hurdles she’s faced as a young woman in business, from staffing to fraud – plus the reasons why Tropic decided to avoid wholesale selling to shops in favour of recruiting a team of direct-selling ambassadors – empowering others to become entrepreneurial along the way. 

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Piers Linney meets Mark Selby, the cofounder of Mexican-inspired restaurant chain Wahaca. They discuss the company’s growth from a Soho basement to a thriving chain of over 25 locations – innovating with authentic flavours, clever marketing and a clear focus on people. Plus, Mark shares wisdom from harder times, explaining how Wahaca dealt with the backlash of a norovirus outbreak in 2016, that forced the restaurant to temporarily close its doors.

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CanO Water co-founder, Josh White, joins Piers Linney to explain how his company is tackling the plastic epidemic, by looking at the drinks industry from a new angle. They discuss balancing profits with purpose, and overcoming challenges with manufacturing and stockists. Josh also shares some of the tricks he’s used to publicise the brand in a crowed market.

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