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The Founders Lounge
Matic Jesenovec
89 episodes
6 days ago
Imagine you are friends with some of the UK’s best entrepreneurs. Now imagine you can grab a drink with each of them and casually chat about business ideas, motivations, tactics, strategies and success habits. That’s what The Founders Lounge is all about. It provides real insights into the real day-to-day lives of real founders, CEOs and other business professionals every week. Hosted by Matic Jesenovec.
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Entrepreneurship
Business
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All content for The Founders Lounge is the property of Matic Jesenovec and is served directly from their servers with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.
Imagine you are friends with some of the UK’s best entrepreneurs. Now imagine you can grab a drink with each of them and casually chat about business ideas, motivations, tactics, strategies and success habits. That’s what The Founders Lounge is all about. It provides real insights into the real day-to-day lives of real founders, CEOs and other business professionals every week. Hosted by Matic Jesenovec.
Show more...
Entrepreneurship
Business
Episodes (20/89)
The Founders Lounge
Multi-million pound exit, property investing and building an AI startup - Sam Oliver | E89

Sam Oliver started his entrepreneurial journey when he was just 22, founding Eydin Property, a property investment company. He then pivoted to tech, creating LeadPro, a successful property marketing software that he took from zero to a multi-million pound cash exit. Now, Sam is diving into the world of AI with his new startup, OpenFi, which is revolutionizing sales processes using conversational AI.


We talk about:

- Starting a property investment business at a young age

- Key lessons from his first failed startup

- How Sam leveraged property investments to build wealth

- How to compete against VC-backed startups

- The ups and downs of building and selling LeadPro

- Lessons learned from nearly going bust during COVID

- The power of negotiation in securing a favorable exit

- Post-exit identity crisis: to retire or to start a new business?

- The value of niche markets and the dangers of limited scalability

- The importance of market validation and how to do it

- The potential of AI in transforming industries

- Overcoming fear and assessing risk in business


Links:

- Sam's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam0liver/

- OpenFi: https://www.openfi.tech/

- Advance To Go book by Sam Oliver: https://www.advancetogo.com/

- The Lean Startup by Eric Ries: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lean-Startup-Innovation-Successful-Businesses/dp/0670921602

- The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mom-Test-customers-business-everyone/dp/1492180742

- Oversubscribed by Daniel Priestley: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Oversubscribed-How-People-Lining-Business/dp/0857086197

- On Identity by Amin Maalouf: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Identity-Amin-Maalouf/dp/1860467296


🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP:

The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me.

---

📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

🎙️Hosted by Matic Jesenovec

Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ
Or get in touch via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maticjesenovec

Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 6 minutes 36 seconds

The Founders Lounge
My Success System: How I Sold My Agency for 7 Figures and Started an AI Startup - Jodie Cook | E88

Jodie Cook started a digital agency at age 22, fresh out of university. Over 10 years, she built her agency into a successful lifestyle business before selling it for 7 figures using her proven "success system" blueprint. Then she soon started Coachvox, and startup that helps coaches make an AI clone of themselves. Jodie chronicled her entrepreneurial journey in her book Ten Year Career which received praise from prolific entrepreneur Derek Sivers, who stated "every future millionaire needs this wise perspective."


We talk about:

- Starting an agency at age 22 fresh out of university

- Jodie’s "success system" for achieving any goal in life

- How Jodie developed her incredibly clear thinking

- The 3 phases of building a sellable agency

- How Coachvox is changing the game for coaches and creators

- Behind the scenes of an AI startup

- Extreme people get extreme results

- Go where the money is

- Win the mental game

- Balancing time using a "Profession, Obsession, Decompression" framework

- Eliminating decision fatigue with the "perfect repeatable day"


Links

- Coachvox: https://coachvox.ai/

- Jodie’s book: https://www.jodiecook.com/ten-year-career/

- Jodie’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jodie-cook/
- Jodie’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/jodie_cook


🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP:

The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me.

---

📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

🎙️Hosted by Matic Jesenovec


Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ
Or get in touch via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maticjesenovec


Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 8 minutes 17 seconds

The Founders Lounge
Being Bipolar and Building Tech Companies - James Roycroft-Davis | E87

James Roycroft-Davis is a serial tech entrepreneur, mental health advocate, and investor. He has founded multiple companies, including his latest startup Baseline which aims to support people with bipolar disorder through an app-based platform.


We talk about:

- Losing a job and starting a business

- First startup: Productizing his mom

- Running a business with spouse or family member

- Challenges of building a tech startup

- Why 72% of entrepreneurs suffer from some mental health condition

- Bipolar disorder and its impact on building companies

- Vision behind his mental health startup Baseline

- Building an MVP for a tech startup

- Insights on the current fundraising landscape

- Investing experience, getting in on Discord pre-IPO

- Fitting wellness routines into a busy schedule

- Microdosing psychedelics among founders


Links

- James on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesrd2024/

- Baseline: https://www.joinbaseline.co/


🌟 APPLY FOR A COO ROLE AT JUDGE.ME

This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). They’re looking for a COO to lead the entire day-to-day and drive commercial planning towards their goal of $50M ARR and a FTSE250 listing by 2030. Could this be you? Full role profile here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/13AotWhuLfCyXn4l0pzZLwaCe2AuAnsjG/view?usp=drive_link

---

📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

🎙️Hosted by Matic Jesenovec

Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ
Or get in touch via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maticjesenovec

Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 11 minutes 40 seconds

The Founders Lounge
I Bought a Side-hustle and Grew It to a 7 Figure Business With Remote Employees - Noel Andrews | E86

Noel Andrews is the CEO of JobRack, a company that helps businesses hire remote employees in Eastern Europe and South Africa. He bought the business when it was very small and has grown it to a 7-figure company. Noel is also exceptionally good at building relationships, surrounding himself with interesting people and organizing all sorts of fun activities with other entrepreneurs.


We talk about:

- Buying vs starting a business

- Transition from a corporate job to entrepreneurship

- Challenges in scaling a job board

- Building a remote team

- Hiring freelancers vs full-time remote employees

- Strategies to build a strong remote company culture

- Networking and building relationships

- Tips and techniques for having meaningful conversations

- How to ask thought-provoking questions

- How to create memorable moments for clients and team members

Links

  • Noel on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noelandrews/ 

  • JobRack: https://jobrack.eu/


The Power of Moments: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Power-Moments-Certain-Experiences-Extraordinary/dp/0593079264

🌟 APPLY FOR A COO ROLE AT JUDGE.ME

This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). They’re looking for a COO to lead the entire day-to-day and drive commercial planning towards their goal of $50M ARR and a FTSE250 listing by 2030. Could this be you? Full role profile here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/13AotWhuLfCyXn4l0pzZLwaCe2AuAnsjG/view?usp=drive_link

---

📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

🎙️Hosted by Matic Jesenovec

Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

Or get in touch via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maticjesenovec 


Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 9 minutes 9 seconds

The Founders Lounge
How I Built a $6M ARR SaaS with 80+ Employees in Just 4 Years - Roei Samuel | E85

Roei Samuel is a serial entrepreneur who started one of the world's most successful eSports platforms at just 22 years old, growing it to over 8 million monthly users before selling the business for millions. He then founded Connectd, a platform connecting startups with investors and advisors, which he scaled to $6 million in annual recurring revenue and 80+ employees in just a few years.

We talk about:

- Starting one of the world's most successful eSports platforms at 22

- Growing to 8+ million monthly unique users

- On breaking the rules to achieve success

- Selling the first business for millions

- Starting Connectd, a platform to connect startups with investors and advisors

- How to build your first product quickly with a low budget

- Growing to $6m ARR and 80+ team members

- The most important thing when hiring

- Lessons from an immigrant mom

- Benefits of ADHD for entrepreneurs

- Best productivity tactics


Links

- https://www.linkedin.com/in/roei-samuel/

- https://www.connectd.com/

- https://course.breadcrumb.vc/

🌟 APPLY FOR A COO ROLE AT JUDGE.ME

This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). They’re looking for a COO to lead the entire day-to-day and drive commercial planning towards their goal of $50M ARR and a FTSE250 listing by 2030. Could this be you? Full role profile here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/13AotWhuLfCyXn4l0pzZLwaCe2AuAnsjG/view?usp=drive_link

---

📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip
📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 5 minutes 41 seconds

The Founders Lounge
7-Figure Agency Founder: Starting and Scaling an Agency in The Age of AI - Loukas Hambi | E84

Loukas Hambi is the founder of two multi 7-figure agencies. The first one, Hambi Media, was recently sold to Soar With Us. And his second agency, For You Advertising, became the fastest-growing TikTok agency. He’s helped 150+ DTC brands scale to 7 and 8 figures and spent over £150M on creative. He also started a few of his own DTC brands.


We talk about:

- Lessons learned from the legendary Felix Dennis

- Starting, growing and selling an agency

- Is agency a good or a bad business

- Loukas’ strategy for growing an agency to 7 figures fast

- How AI is changing the agency and DTC landscape

- How Loukas is implementing AI across his businesses

- Best AI tools to use in advertising

- How to build trust with customers in the age of AI

- The importance of balance for personal performance

- How to hire A-players

- The #1 book that transformed Loukas’ business

- One skill that's been the most beneficial for business success

- What separates OK founders from GREAT founders


Links

- Loukas on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/loukas-hambi-388067152/

- Loukas on Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/LoukasHambi 

- Hambi Media: https://www.hambimedia.com/

- For You Advertising: https://www.foryouadvertising.com/

- How To Get Rich by Felix Dennis: https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Get-Rich-Felix-Dennis/dp/009192166X/


- Chartr trends newsletter: https://www.chartr.co/

🌟 APPLY FOR A COO ROLE AT JUDGE.ME

This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). They’re looking for a COO to lead the entire day-to-day and drive commercial planning towards their goal of $50M ARR and a FTSE250 listing by 2030. Could this be you? Full role profile here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/13AotWhuLfCyXn4l0pzZLwaCe2AuAnsjG/view?usp=drive_link

---

📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip


📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 10 minutes 51 seconds

The Founders Lounge
Discussing AI Business Opportunities with a YCombinator Founder - Peter Nixey | E83

Peter Nixey is a serial entrepreneur who started working with AI way before it was cool. His first startup, Clickpass, was in one of the first 5 YCombinator cohorts (together with Dropbox and Disqus). He’s currently running Intentional, a task/time management software company. He’s also starting an AI focused venture studio.


We talk about:

- The experience of being among the first Y Combinator startups

- Working with Paul Graham, the “godfather” of startups

- Some of the best founders are very clear thinkers

- Lessons on innovation from starting multiple startups

- Current state of AI and its potential

- AI opportunities and ideas to pursue

- The importance of managing your time, not your tasks


Links

- Follow Peter on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peternixey/

- Peter’s website: https://nixey.ai

- Manage your time, not your tasks: https://intentional.io/ 


🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP:

The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me


---


📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

Show more...
1 year ago
49 minutes 2 seconds

The Founders Lounge
Exited 2 Companies by 29, Now He Invests in Startups and Charters Superyachts - Richard Hadler | E82

Richard Hadler is a 2x exited founder. He sold a B2B marketing agency and a D2C ready-to-drink cocktail brand. He’s a director at Odin and a Co-Founder of Founders Capital where he’s now focused on investing in startups. 


We talk about:

- Turning around a struggling publishing business at a young age

- Scaling an agency business to 80+ employees

- How to build a highly profitable agency

- Starting a cocktail business during the pandemic

- Founders Capital and investing in startups

- Traits of successful founders

- Why charter a superyacht in Croatia

- Modelling Alex Hormozi

- Insights into Rich's approach to investing

- What separates great founders from ok founders


Links

- Richard on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-hadler-677abab9/

- Founders Capital: https://www.founders-capital.com/

- Tough Calls by Allan Leighton: https://www.amazon.com/Tough-Calls-Making-Decisions-Challenging/dp/1847940544 


🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP:

The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me.

---

📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge


Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 3 minutes 55 seconds

The Founders Lounge
How I Sold a Browser Plugin For 7 Figures in 2 Years (Dragons' Den's Best Pitch) - Jonny Plein | E81

Jonny Plein sold his first company, Pouch, for 7 figures after just 2 years. But he’s gone through all the worst entrepreneurial ups and downs throughout this journey. They got 5 out of 5 offers on Dragons’ Den, grew 10x overnight, then had to fire the whole team. Now he raised £2M for his next startup, YASO, helping brands enter the $1.7tn Chinese ecommerce market using social commerce.


We talk about:

- Where the idea for Pouch came from

- Innovative ideas are over-rated

- How to build the first product

- Having the best pitch on Dragons’ Den

- From the highest highs to the lowest lows

- Negotiating a 7 figure exit

- Raising £2m funding with no revenue and no product

- Entering China - the largest market in the world

- How to pre-sell your product


🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP:

The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me

---

📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip


📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

Show more...
1 year ago
52 minutes 40 seconds

The Founders Lounge
How This $300M Founder Sold His Luxury Lifestyle Startup to a Bank - Alex Macdonald | E80

Alex Macdonald is a  Co-Founder of Velocity Black, which was acquired by Capital One for a reported $297M. Now he’s a Co-Founder and CEO of Sequel - an investment platform for the world’s best athletes. He’s also an angel investor in 40+ companies.

We talk about: - One of Alex’s first jobs: buying distressed companies for $0 - How Alex got the idea for Velocity Black - What it takes to build a company worth $100s of millions - Growth strategy of one of the fastest-growing startups in Europe - How to achieve a successful exit - Is it easier to start a hard company? - Dinner with the Pope, meeting Taylor Swift, missions to the space station - Building an investment platform for the world’s best athletes - Acquiring ultra-successful individuals as customers - Alex’s comprehensive methodology for hiring A-players - How to foster high performance in the company - Working hard vs work-life balance - The importance of focus - The #1 book that changed Alex’s life - A powerful (selfish) principle Alex lives by


Links:

- Alex on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexfmac/ 

- Alex on X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/alexfmac 

- Alex’s newsletter: https://alexfmac.substack.com/ 

- Velocity Black: https://velocity.black/ 

- Sequel: https://www.joinsequel.co/ 

- Alchemy: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Alchemy-Science-Conceiving-Effective-Logical/dp/006238841X


🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP:

The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me


---


📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge


Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 24 minutes 5 seconds

The Founders Lounge
Life of a Serial Entrepreneur: From Lemonade Stands to Multi-Million Tech Startups - Lex Deak | E79
Lex Deak is a serial entrepreneur, Dragon's Den winner and founder of a venture capital firm. With his latest tech startup, Basket, he raised millions in funding to revolutionize the online shopping experience. In this episode of The Founders Lounge, we talk about: - The one thing that fuels Lex’s drive and business success - Building and selling his first company - Building a social network and appearance on Dragon’s Den - The mistake of partnering with a dishonest investor - Building a venture capital firm - The value of private membership clubs - Testing 15-20 business ideas that didn’t work - How Basket is revolutionizing ecommerce - Chrome plugin that's sold for $4bn - Raising funding from the founders of BrewDog, Groupon, ClearScore, Miniclip - Building and maintaining relationships - Key lessons learned through years of entrepreneurship Links: - Lex on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexdeak/ - Basket: https://www.trybasket.com/ 🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP: The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me --- 📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤ 🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ 🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com 💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip 📺 Watch on YouYube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge
Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 26 minutes 22 seconds

The Founders Lounge
How to Build a Business Empire Off the Back of a Personal Brand - Sam G. Winsbury | E78

Sam G. Winsbury is the founder of Kurogo, the UK’s leading personal branding agency. He works closely with some of the best founders in the UK to build massive audiences with millions of views.

In this episode of The Founders Lounge, we talk about:

- What helped Sam start a successful business straight out of uni

- The biggest lesson from working with 7, 8 and 9-figure founders

- Building your network in a new city

- Why the sudden personal brand phenomenon (and why you should care)

- What you can do today to start building your personal brand

- How to not feel awkward about posting online

- How busy founders produce a week's worth of content in 1 hour

- Building an empire of companies off the back of a personal brand

- Two most powerful principles that Sam lives by


Links:

- Sam’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-g-winsbury/ 

- Sam’s agency - Kurogo: https://www.kurogo.co.uk/

🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP:

The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me.

---

📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip


🎥 Watch on YouYube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

Show more...
1 year ago
59 minutes 15 seconds

The Founders Lounge
These 10 Questions Will Make You a Better Founder - Matthew Stafford | E77

Matthew Stafford is an angel investor with several successful exits. He is a co-founder of 9others, a monthly problem-solving dinner event for entrepreneurs, which has been attended by thousands of founders. He’s also a co-author of the book Find Your 9 Others - The Questions To Ask Yourself As You Start Up And Scale Up.


In this episode of The Founders Lounge, we talk about:

- Matthew’s recent 3 startup exits

- The 10 questions you need to ask yourself as a founder

- The importance of your “why” behind starting a startup

- How to gain visibility as a founder

- The importance of trusting your gut

- How to improve your intuition

- What does it take to succeed

- How to train yourself to be more disciplined

- The ‘65% rule’

- What you learn in school is not a good parallel for life

- The importance of surrounding yourself with ambitious people


Links:

- Matthew on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mstafford

- Matthew on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/staffordvc

- “Find Your 9others” book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1788604466

- Matthew’s investment portfolio: https://www.stafford.vc

- 9others events: https://9others.com


🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP:

The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me


---


📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

🎥 Watch on YouYube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 19 minutes 24 seconds

The Founders Lounge
£220M Raised: Fundraising Secrets & Stories from the UK's Top Pitch Expert - James Church | E76

James Church is the co-founder and COO of Robot Mascot, the UKs leading pitch agency. He's a #1 Amazon best selling author with his book, “Investable Entrepreneur”, where he shares his unique methodology for creating a pitch that convinces investors. James has been featured in Entrepreneur Magazine, on numerous industry blogs and podcasts, run mentoring sessions at Tech Hub, Google Campus and Runway East, and deliver mastermind sessions for The Chartered Institute of Marketing, University College London and the University of East Anglia. 

Show notes:

- From a branding agency to the UK's leading pitch agency and startup consultancy

- Three key traits of an Investable Entrepreneur

- Why only 1% of startups manage to raise funding

- How anyone can become more resourceful

- The craziest fundraising strategy that James has ever witnessed

- What happens when you give £900k to an unprepared 18-year-old

- Strategies to build trust with investors

- Building a personal brand while building a business

- Best London networking tips

- One person that changed James’ life

- Where are the biggest business opportunities today

Links:

- Get the Investable Entrepreneur book for free: https://pitchready.co.uk/

- Follow James on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamescchurch/

- James’ business, Robot Mascot: https://www.robotmascot.co.uk/

- Silicon Roundabout: https://www.meetup.com/SiliconRoundabout/ 
- Daniel Priestley: https://danielpriestley.com/

🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP:

The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me.


---


📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

🎥 VIDEO version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

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1 year ago
1 hour 18 minutes 43 seconds

The Founders Lounge
This Investment Banker "Accidentally" Built a 7-Figure Agency in 2 Years - Alexej Pikovsky | E75

Alexej Pikovsky is the CEO and founder of Alphawell Brands, a holding company under which he currently operates a 7-figure growth agency and a fast-growing wellness ecommerce brand. Early in his career he spent two years at a $3 billion private equity fund, gained board-level experience and led a EUR 226 million sale of a portfolio business. Then he went on to start the UK’s largest CBD marketplace, which he then led through an award-winnign pivot (yes, apparently that’s a thing!) into what’s now a profitable agency and a growing ecommerce brand. Alexej was previously featured in Fortune, Financial Times, Bloomberg, Business Insider, and now finally also The Founders Lounge!

Show notes:

- Investment banking and 100-hour workweeks

- How to do an award-winning pivot

- Scaling an agency to 7 figures

- Buying businesses

- Tech business vs agency vs e-commerce

- Gameplan for successfully selling candles on Amazon

- Networking for 7-figure entrepreneurs

- Building a personal brand

- Performance habits for successful entrepreneurs

- The book that changed Alexej’s perspective on life

Links:

- Follow Alexej on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@alexejpikovsky

- Follow Alexej on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/alexej-pikovsky-9743701

- Follow Alexej on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AlexejPikovsky/

🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP:

The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me.

---

📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip


🎥 VIDEO version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 3 minutes 8 seconds

The Founders Lounge
How I Make 7 Figures Profit Working 6 Days a Month - Olly Richards (StoryLearning) | E74

Olly Richards is an entrepreneur, investor and author of 50+ books. He runs his £10M online education business, StoryLearning, working only 6 days a month. He started his career as a jazz musician and a teacher, and then step by step started building what’s now a massive audience and an 8-figure business.

Show notes:

- From a jazz musician to an online entrepreneur

- The secret to 50% profit margins

- Find competent and motivated team members

- The best way to solve any problem in your business

- Why you should never go for longer than 12 months without a coach or mentor

- How to optimize and automate your personal fiannces

- There are no business problems, only mindset problems

- The power of personal brand

- #1 book that most impacted Olly’s career

Links:

- Case Study: Blueprint Of A $10M Online Education Business: https://ollyrichards.co/

- Follow Olly on X: https://twitter.com/mrollyrichards 

- Follow onlly on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ollyrichards/ 

- The Great CEO Within: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Great-CEO-Within-Tactical-Building-ebook/dp/B07ZLGQZYC 


- The $100 Startup: https://www.amazon.co.uk/100-Startup-Reinvent-Living-Create/dp/0307951529


🌟 WORK FOR AN INSPIRING UK STARTUP:

The best way to learn about business is by working for a successful company with an ambitious founder. This episode is brought to you by Judge.me - the #1 e-commerce product reviews solution, founded by PJ Cellis (Episode 54). If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me.

---

📣 Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

🚀 Follow me for business ideas & insights: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

🦄 Join my UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

💰 Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

🎥 VIDEO version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

Show more...
1 year ago
1 hour 21 minutes 31 seconds

The Founders Lounge
Warzones, Mindset, Exponential Growth and Relationships - End Of Year Special 2022 | E73

End of year special episode is a mix of the best moments from our podcast in 2022. I thank all of you for taking the time and watching, and I hope you are getting massive value out of it. In this episode, we talk about warrior mentality, relationships, building businesses to be sold, and scaling an e-commerce store from 0 to 1.

Brought to you by Judge.me - the ultimate e-commerce product reviews solution. If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me.

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➤ Please leave a comment if you liked the episode ❤

➤ Follow for business ideas & stories: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

➤ Matic’s UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

➤ Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

—

VIDEO (Youtube): http://foundrs.vi

—

Marketing and postproduction: Matevž Semprimožnik (https://www.linkedin.com/in/matevz-semprimoznik/)

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2 years ago
1 hour 58 minutes 16 seconds

The Founders Lounge
From War Zone in Afghanistan to Starting Multiple Businesses - Paul Blair (ArcX) | E72

Paul Blair is a military veteran turned entrepreneur. Over 20 years of experience in leadership and high-pressure situations in the military served as a great and unique background to start a business. As an entrepreneur, he has launched, grown, and sold businesses in the property, financial services, and pet product sectors. Today he’s still involved in several businesses, but his main focus is on ArcX, a SportTech and Digital Health startup that's developing a game-changing smart ring for sports enthusiasts.

In this episode, we talk about:

- Lessons learned from 20 years in the military

- Military vs entrepreneurship

- The most difficult moments in Afghanistan

- Starting a pet product brand

- Paul’s funny experience with Dragon’s Den

- The challenges of building a hardware startup

- Hardware startup financing

- How to effectively handle being involved in multiple businesses

- The #1 course that most impacted Paul’s career

- Paul’s strategies for constantly improving himself

Brought to you by Judge.me - the ultimate e-commerce product reviews solution. If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me.

---

➤ Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤

➤ Follow for business ideas & stories: https://twitter.com/MaticJ

➤ Matic’s UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com

➤ Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip

---


RESOURCES

- ArcX: https://arcx.fit/

- Paul on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-blair-dso-6446a315/


VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge

---

Marketing and postproduction: Tom Zorman (https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-zorman/)

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2 years ago
1 hour 12 minutes

The Founders Lounge
From Selling Fake IDs to Building a €10.000.000 Business - Ryan McDaid | E71
Ryan McDaid is the co-founder of Fonez, an Irish electronics store which he took from 0 to €10M in revenue. He recently took a back seat and decided to instead focus on his property business and life coaching.    Brought to you by Judge.me - the ultimate e-commerce product reviews solution. If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable, and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me.   --- ➤ Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤ ➤ Follow for business ideas & stories: https://twitter.com/MaticJ ➤ Matic’s UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com ➤ Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip   ---   In this episode, we talk about: - Ryan’s first (illegal!) business - When is it ok to break the rules - How Ryan discovered the opportunity that led him to found a €10M brand - Opening physical shops - How to compete with large corporations - How to build a strong brand - Working in the business vs working on the business - Startup Home and how Ryan and I met - Why Ryan is now focusing on his property business - Personal growth through business - Does money matter in life?   VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheFoundersLounge    --- Marketing and postproduction: Tom Zorman (https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-zorman/)
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2 years ago
1 hour 5 minutes 2 seconds

The Founders Lounge
Growing From 0 to 200 Staff Within 6 Weeks - Joseph Battle (Ecovibe) | E70
Joseph (Jos) Battle is a UK-based serial entrepreneur who experienced the highest heights and the lowest lows of the entrepreneurial journey. His entrepreneurial skills and mindset were obvious already in his childhood when he started making money with various “lemonade stand” types of businesses. He thrives on seeking new opportunities and bringing them to life. Throughout his several business ventures, he went from 0 to having hundreds of employees within weeks. He started a marketing agency that was at its peak making £4M in profit. One of his businesses was worth £100M before it, unfortunately, all came crashing down… He shares all these stories, lessons and much more in the episode.   In this episode, we talk about: - Jos’ first businesses - How Jos identifies business opportunities - How to make things happen early on in a business - The most complained about TV advert in the UK - Why Jos didn't have to pay for speeding - Growing from 0 to 200 employees in 6 weeks - Leveraging the early Facebook Ads opportunity - Growing a marketing agency to £4M profit - From a £100M business to bankruptcy - Hiring a CEO for your business - What Jos is doing differently in his current business - How Jos identified the latest trend which he’s now pursuing - Challenges and opportunities of the “eco” industry RESOURCES Joseph on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joseph-battle-71283068/ Ecovibe: https://ecovibewholesale.co.uk/ OLIO app: https://olioex.com/   Brought to you by Judge.me - the ultimate e-commerce product reviews solution. If you’re looking for a job in an inspiring, profitable and fast-growing UK-based startup, check out https://careers.judge.me.   --- ➤ Please subscribe & share if you liked the episode ❤ ➤ Follow for business ideas & stories: https://twitter.com/MaticJ ➤ Matic’s UK product founders community: http://joinpmf.com ➤ Looking for funding? Get a VC intro: http://vc.foundrs.vip --- VIDEO: https://youtu.be/6ADUZ80zt5c --- Marketing and postproduction: Tom Zorman (https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-zorman/)
Show more...
2 years ago
1 hour 23 minutes 58 seconds

The Founders Lounge
Imagine you are friends with some of the UK’s best entrepreneurs. Now imagine you can grab a drink with each of them and casually chat about business ideas, motivations, tactics, strategies and success habits. That’s what The Founders Lounge is all about. It provides real insights into the real day-to-day lives of real founders, CEOs and other business professionals every week. Hosted by Matic Jesenovec.