Entrepreneur Country Forum SMALL IS THE NEW BIG
By Kelly Dolan O
n 26th September 2012 we held our bi-annual ‘Small is the New Big’ Forum as sponsored by Santander
UK’s Breakthrough Programme at the Royal Institution of Great Britain. The Entrepreneur Country Forum welcomed hundreds of entrepreneurs and investors for a rare opportunity to network, share big visions and engage with high profile speakers.
The topic of discussion in keynote speeches from the likes of Jo Malone MBE, Bruce Dickinson and Sir Peter Bazalgette was why small businesses are the champions of global economic growth. In fact, it became clear that the ‘Small is the New Big’ philosophy has seen entrepreneurs such as Jo Malone go from selling bath oils from her flat to creating a world famous brand by maintaining that small business mindset, whilst still having the ambition to make a global impact.
Delegates on the day included a broad mix of CEOs and Directors to start-up business owners and investors. After an introduction from Entrepreneur Country’s Julie Meyer, Chris Bowden of Utilyx took to the stage to discuss his experience of growing and selling companies. Chris also addressed the fact that fast growth, large companies often hit a plateau and the answer as CEO is to work on the business, rather than in it, to keep in touch with that entrepreneurial zeal and creativity. Bowden also highlighted the need to acknowledge mistakes, as well as implement change within your company to ensure success for the future.
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Clare Rayner then took to the stage with an informative look at how the high street needs to evolve to keep up with what she called ‘a consumer revolution’. Known as ‘The Retail Champion’, Clare looked at how customers are now fuelled by technology advancements and the global economic downturn, which has caught much of the UK retail sector by surprise. Rayner also looked at how the internet has changed how we shop and how this was dictating a shift in consumer expectations. A closing remark from Clare was that ‘small is beautiful – and independent retailers are now driving town centre growth’ which spoke volumes to a collection of start up SMEs in the audience who were making a difference locally with the aim to expand.
Following on from an epic speech from Jo Malone MBE was David Willbe of Crowell and Moring’s Law Firm,
who very successfully kept the crowd alive with what one delegate called ‘the most interesting take on a legal speech they had ever come across’. David created a case study for the importance of contracts in business and how easily they are formed in the digital age, spanning from everything to writing an email to ticking the terms and conditions button on a web page. During the informative session positive feedback came from Christina Richardson, Founder of the Nurture Network, who tweeted ‘David Willbe is doing a great job of making legal advice coherent and even amusing!’ What’s more, David Gilroy, MD of Conscious Solutions compiled a report of key lessons from Willbe’s speech, broadcasting the information from his seat to his social media following.
Up next was Richard Watney,
CEO of Bin Weevils who began with commitment, drive, engaging
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