roundtable: entrepreneurship
“I had a gap year travelling because I wanted to get some life experience, but always knew that I would run my own business. I guess I don’t want someone telling me I can’t buy something, or go somewhere or do something particular.“
Williams’ initial plan was to get a solid well- paid job in finance as a stockbroker, but after sending off his CV countless times without success, alternatives began to feature. When he got to the final two in a job interview and lost it to a masters-degree graduate, his entrepreneurial flair kicked in.
“I had no money but had a lot of time and knew two guys like me with marketing skills, so I set up a team selling marketing branding and networking to local businesses on websites.“
Griffiths: “I think it’s brilliant that the younger generation see no barriers to starting up your own business like that. It’s an exciting time for the younger entrepreneurs coming through to realise that they don’t have to follow the traditional career routes of their parents.“
James Hawkeswood agreed: “Being young and having the freedom to take risks, before they had the responsibilities of home and family, was an obvious bonus for prospective entrepreneurs.“
There was also the confidence of youth factor, added David Murray, with younger generations feeling able to take the risks.
Williams accepted that he had no mortgage or family responsibilities to consider, but he was still living at home and working at Asda as he tried to set up his business. He spent Sundays online; learning about business operations and opportunities.
Frustrated entrepreneurs simply lack the ’bottle’
Corporate lawyer Hawkeswood admitted that he knew people who had found interesting but safe careers, but were “effectively frustrated entrepreneurs who never had the bottle to borrow the money against the mortgage, take the risk, and do it.
“The difference is that when I help entrepreneurial guys sign the big contract, they all have similar back-stories. They’ve started in their garage or bedroom, put their house or mortgage on the line, and they have that drive – the sheer selfishness of wanting to be your own boss, not wanting to take orders from people, and being willing to back yourself to the point of failure.“
And some get their rewards for taking those risks, he added.
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – OCTOBER 2014 David Griffiths
What are the rewards that entrepreneurs seek?
Money was one obvious incentive, said Murray, but is it the only true driver? In his mind there was a misconception among the public that all entrepreneurs just wanted to get rich
Griffiths: “I got completely burnt out in one of my businesses in 2001. My reward was actually the knowledge, industry insight and experience I gained, obviously not the money.“
Martyn Begbour felt money was simply one of a number of drivers, such as the desire not to be responsible to others, or to follow an individual passion, or to prove a point. Some people definitely do see entrepreneurship as a means to make a lot of money, Begbour agreed, but not necessarily with an end-goal in mind. It is more the successful journey over many years that they focus on, as a personal achievement, to leave a legacy, he suggested.
Perhaps another common entrepreneurial theme was “not working to line someone else’s pockets,“ Hawkeswood suggested.
Begbour: “Very few people set out to make a fortune. They set out for the freedom, they’ve got an idea, and they want the challenge. They don’t set out saying I will exit with £x million pounds in 20 years time. As they go on their journey, money can be a by-product. Then, somewhere along the line they may see the opportunity to make sure that their family and future generations are provided for.“
Griffiths admitted that money motivated him in his early business years, during the dot- com boom. “But I learned that this attitude does not build a great business. I believe the more successful entrepreneurs become, the less they focus on money. It becomes more about growing a great business, building the brand and looking after the 30-40 families that
49
Martyn Begbour
depend on the business, going in to work with contented people and enjoying working with them. You learn that over time.“
... and the routes to entrepreneurial growth?
Chapman said his company growth had been beyond expectations. “The only problem was one year when our largest client went bust, and we lost a lot of money at very short notice.“
Interestingly, Portmore Insurance has recently opened two offices with other like-minded entrepreneurs. “We’ve almost franchised our business out to them, with a joint 50% ownership, but trading under our name. We share banking arrangements and for a split of commissions undertake their accountancy and regulatory work for them. It’s working really well and business is expanding, but I can see we may have a problem with these shared companies, if we ever do come to sell.“
Griffiths said several people thought he was crazy trying to break Fiscal Technologies into the US market with a small company of at the time, only 30-staff. “But, the UK business was building nicely, and I needed another project. Knowing the US intimately, our growth over there became my project. Actually it’s been a lot easier than I thought. Sometimes you have to ignore other people and go with your gut-feel.“
Success had made the company cash-rich and since interest rates on investments were so
Continued overleaf ...
www.businessmag.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60