Claim OwnershipSuccess Is In The Mind - With Oliver Bruce
Subscribed: 12Played: 205
Subscribe
© PinPoint Media
Description
Success Is in the Mind – Hosted by Oliver Bruce now in its 6th season, we speak to founders and entrepreneurs from the businesses you’ve always wanted to know more about.
We delve into the formative years of their business journeys—what made them and what broke them? With an inside track on startup and scale-up life, we answer the questions we wish we had known the answers to when starting out!
Winners of Campaign Publishing's 'Best Business Podcast' and available on Virgin Atlantic's in-flight entertainment globally, we pride ourselves on bringing real, unfiltered value to our listeners. We truly couldn't do this without you!
To find out more visit successisinthemind.com
We delve into the formative years of their business journeys—what made them and what broke them? With an inside track on startup and scale-up life, we answer the questions we wish we had known the answers to when starting out!
Winners of Campaign Publishing's 'Best Business Podcast' and available on Virgin Atlantic's in-flight entertainment globally, we pride ourselves on bringing real, unfiltered value to our listeners. We truly couldn't do this without you!
To find out more visit successisinthemind.com
77 Episodes
Reverse
Louise Hill is the co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of GoHenry, a groundbreaking financial education app and prepaid debit card designed to empower kids and teens with essential money skills. Launched in 2012 after Louise spotted a gap in children’s understanding of digital spending, GoHenry now supports over 2 million users across the UK, US, and Europe.
With a background in e-commerce and operations at major retailers like John Lewis and Debenhams, Louise brought a wealth of experience to the fintech space. Under her leadership, GoHenry has pioneered youth financial literacy, raised millions through record-breaking crowdfunding, and recently merged with U.S. fintech Acorns to expand its global footprint.
Louise is a vocal advocate for practical, early-stage financial education and continues to shape the conversation around money management for the next generation.
In this episode, we sit down with Lucas London, the dynamic founder and CEO of Lick, the brand that’s shaking up the outdated world of home decor and paint. From launching during a pandemic to building a purpose-driven business that champions sustainability and customer empowerment, Lucas shares the bold vision behind Lick’s rise—and what it takes to disrupt a centuries-old industry.
We dive into his entrepreneurial journey, the challenges of scaling a DTC brand in a traditional market, and how Lick is using community, content, and color to inspire a new generation of decorators. Whether you’re a startup founder, a design lover, or just curious about the business of brand-building, this episode is packed with insights, lessons, and a splash of creativity.
🎧 Tune in to hear:
How Lucas turned frustration into innovation
Why sustainability isn’t just a buzzword at Lick
The power of branding in transforming a boring category
What’s next for one of the UK’s fastest-growing home brands
Tugce Bulut is a distinguished entrepreneur and data expert, renowned for her contributions to the fields of artificial intelligence and consumer intelligence. She is the co-founder and CEO of Eloquent AI, a company dedicated to advancing AI technologies to revolutionise human-computer interactions.
Prior to her role at Eloquent AI, Bulut founded Streetbees in 2015, serving as its CEO. Streetbees is a global intelligence platform that analyzes real-life moments from users worldwide to provide deep insights into human behavior, surpassing traditional survey methodologies.
Bulut's academic background includes a Master's degree from the University of Cambridge, where she specialised in poverty alleviation and global living standards. Before venturing into entrepreneurship, she spent six years as a strategy consultant, advising technology and consumer companies on accelerating growth in international markets.
Under her leadership, Streetbees expanded its user base to over 3.5 million individuals across 189 countries, enabling brands to access rich, real-time consumer insights. The platform's innovative approach attracted significant investment, including a £30 million Series B round led by Lakestar in October 2020.
In this episode, we sit down with Sokratis Papafloratos, a seasoned entrepreneur and angel investor renowned for his significant contributions to the tech and digital health sectors.
Sokratis's journey began with an academic foundation in electronic engineering from the University of York, followed by a master's in information processing from King's College London. He commenced his career at Vodafone Group, focusing on strategy and business integration.
His entrepreneurial ventures include:
TrustedPlaces: Co-founded in 2006, this local reviews platform achieved profitability and was later acquired by Yell Group, where Sokratis served as Head of Social Products, steering post-acquisition strategy and product innovation.
Togethera: Launched in 2013, Togethera was a private sharing app for families, reflecting Sokratis's commitment to creating platforms that foster personal connections.
In 2018, Sokratis founded Numan, a digital health clinic for men, aiming to provide accessible medical treatments and knowledge. Under his leadership, Numan has empowered over 400,000 individuals to take control of their well-being, offering services that address various aspects of men's health.
Beyond his ventures, Sokratis is an active angel investor, backing innovative companies like Calm, the world's first mental health unicorn. His career is marked by a commitment to innovation, a focus on destigmatising health issues, and a vision to use technology for social good.
Join us as we delve into Sokratis's experiences, exploring his entrepreneurial journey, the challenges he's overcome, and his insights into the evolving landscape of digital health and technology.
James Griffith, CEO and co-founder of Mous—a tech accessories brand renowned for its innovative approach to product design. Founded in 2014, Mous emerged from a desire to revolutionise the tech accessories market by offering products that seamlessly blend functionality, performance, and style. Under James's leadership, the company has grown exponentially, captivating a global audience with its commitment to quality and innovation.
James's entrepreneurial spirit and dedication to excellence have been instrumental in Mous's success. His vision has led to the development of products that not only protect but also enhance the user experience, setting new standards in the industry. Beyond his professional achievements, James is an avid watersports enthusiast, often sharing his passion for kitesurfing and other aquatic adventures.
In this conversation, we explore James's path from the inception of Mous to its current status as a leader in tech accessories. We discuss the challenges faced, the innovations introduced, and the lessons learned along the way.
George Taylor is the visionary founder and CEO of Frive, formerly known as Lions Prep, the UK's leading chef-cooked meal plan service. Established in December 2016, Frive has delivered over seven million meals, evolving from a brand initially catering to gym-goers and fitness enthusiasts to one that appeals to a broader audience seeking convenient, nutritious meal options.
Under George's leadership, Frive underwent a significant rebranding in 2024, collaborating with creative agency Among Equals to transform its identity. The rebrand aimed to position Frive as a mainstream ready-to-eat meal brand, moving beyond its original fitness-focused image. The new name, an abbreviation of 'food to thrive,' reflects the company's commitment to providing meals that promote well-being and convenience.
Frive's subscription-based service offers flexible meal plans, ranging from three to six days per week, with prices starting at £35. The microwaveable meals are crafted from real, whole foods, free from ultra-processed ingredients and artificial additives, aligning with George's mission to inspire busy individuals to eat well and live better.
George's innovative approach and dedication have positioned Frive as a leader in the UK's meal delivery industry, continually adapting to meet the evolving needs of health-conscious consumers.
Co-founder of Misfits Henry hasn't always been an entrepreneur, in fact in a previous life he worked for Aston Martin, so why the jump into entrepreneurship?
From a passion for fitness Henry and his co-founder forged a career in the indulgent protein market but nearly lost it all when focusing exclusively on female only nutrition. A quick pivot in 2020 saw Misfits re-strategise and refocus and in 2021 sold over 7 million protein bars with the vision "to create indulgent, plant-based snacks that EVERYONE can enjoy"
With annual revenues in excess of £10m and an untapped Misfits market in America, what's on the horizon for scale-up brand Misfits in 2023?
Series Sponsor Huboo. Your eCommerce fulfilment partner www.huboo.com
Episode Sponsor Hux Health. Use discount code SUCCESS for 30% off. www.huxhealth.com
Produced by PinPoint Media. www.pinpoint-media.global
Marietta Hickman recently founded Cheeky Nibble whilsy working out of a disused RAF hanger. UK Young Innovator of the year winner, Marietta produces her delicious handmade cereal with little more than an idea, a big bowl and spoonfuls of passion! Marietta admits "this is the first time in my life I have not been bored!"
So, how difficult is it as a solo, female entrepreneur with autism and a passion for baking to bring a product to market? With Cheeky Nibble's striking packaging and the generous portions that come in a box, the flavour development through to the illustration and branding was all the brainchild of Marietta's.
Series Sponsor Huboo. Your eCommerce fulfilment partner www.huboo.com
Episode Sponsor Hux Health. Use discount code SUCCESS for 30% off. www.huxhealth.com
Produced by PinPoint Media. www.pinpoint-media.global
From being able to focus on tasks that matter through to benefiting from a good night's sleep, Damien Bryne and his co-founders at Hux Health have developed and brought to market one of the 'coolest' and most accessible superfoods, nootropics, sleep and beauty supplements around.
From undergoing investment rounds through to developing a product that not only works but is designed to also look great when sat on your kitchen shelf to boys at Hux Health spanned varying walks of life before coming together to go into business.
With varying personalities at the top but a shared goal and vision, Damien shares how best to manage the differing skill sets when striving for the same end goal which, ultimately is inspiring people to find their daily edge by making complex nutrition simple...
Series Sponsor Huboo. Your eCommerce fulfilment partner www.huboo.com
Episode Sponsor Hux Health. Use discount code SUCCESS for 30% off. www.huxhealth.com
Produced by PinPoint Media. www.pinpoint-media.global
The behemoth that is Huel started off as a convenience idea and fast became a necessity for so many. James Collier a former NHS Dietitian was wholly responsible for the formulas and nutritious benefits of Huel in the early days.
A nutritionist by trade James joined Oliver to discuss how Huel was once just an idea around his co-founder Julian Hearn's kitchen table before becoming the recognised 'go to' brand it is today. James also reveals the title, background and context of his new book 'Thought for food' which is available to buy late 2023 early 2024.
In an episode that delves into the nuances of health and wellbeing as well as growing and scaling a succesful business it would be remiss of you to skip this one...
Huel products are nutritionally complete foods, formulated to include all the protein, carbs, fats, vitamins and minerals, along with phytonutrients, that your body needs. Huel provides optimal amounts of recommended requirements for all nutrients.
Series Sponsor Huboo. Your eCommerce fulfilment partner www.huboo.com
Episode Sponsor Huel. huel.com/success for your free shaker and t-shirt.
Produced by PinPoint Media. www.pinpoint-media.global
Co-founder of Mixtons, Xav struggled with Dyslexia from an early age, ultimately discovering music as his form of expression as a teenager. With Dyslexia forming Xav's unique outlook on life he tried, and sometimes failed in business, that was, until the 3 co-founders of Mixtons came together...
One third of Mixtons, Ranj, trained as an engineer before becoming a cocktail mixer in a local bar ultimately finding his love for hospitality and the perfect pour.
It wasn't until the 2019 pandemic that Mixtons took off. From making the perfect cocktail in their co-founder Sim's kitchen, Ranj and Xav managed to scale in little under 2 years the brand from zero to hero bringing on investors spanning the world of food, drink and influencer from Calfreezy through to the founders of Goat and dare we say it, even Oliver's invested in Mixtons on their latest round which values the business well into severn figures.
So, how do 3 friends come together to work so seamlessly on scaling a business in a world only one third of them had ever experienced? When is the right time to raise outside money? And when is the right time to move out of your mates kitchen and into something a little more professional...?
Series Sponsor Huboo. Your eCommerce fulfilment partner www.huboo.com
Episode Sponsor Huel. huel.com/success for your free shaker and t-shirt.
Produced by PinPoint Media. www.pinpoint-media.global
From Africa to Spain and everywhere in between, co-founder of UniTaskr Joe Black has had a varied life from an early age. Part of an entrepreneurial family, Joe found himself at a young age plotting the line of lost golf balls from a Spanish golf resort, cleaning and re-selling those same balls to the players.
Realising that students and peer-to-peer work stems innovation, gives experience but is an often overlooked resource by business and individuals alike, UniTaskr launched and recently became a Startup 100 business in 2023. The model of UniTaskr is simple. Enable students with no money to monetize their free time and undertake small, simple tasks for those willing to pay. From building an Ikea wardrobe to populating lines of data on a spreadsheet, UniTaskr is empowering the students of today.
Not only does this innovative model enable students to keep the wolf from the door and earn some cash on the side but UniTaskr recently launched Shout the world's largest nano-influencer platform harnessing the breadth of it's student resource through social.
Series Sponsor Huboo. Your eCommerce fulfilment partner www.huboo.com
Episode Sponsor Huel. huel.com/success for your free shaker and t-shirt.
Produced by PinPoint Media. www.pinpoint-media.global
Find us on Virgin Atlantic inflight entertainment.
Beer But Better, it's true! Oliver Bruce sits down with Harvy Armstrong and Sam Holmes to discuss why Harv left his highflying job in the city and Sam decided to give up working with private jets with a clear vision to bring caffeine infused and low calorie lager to the UK.
First time founders but with entrepreneurial backgrounds, Harvy and Sam who notably have appeared on reality TV show Made In Chelsea have, off their own backs, raised capital, built a brand and become listed in some of Londons most loved venues, but how?
Series Sponsor Huboo. Your eCommerce fulfilment partner www.huboo.com
Episode Sponsor Huel. huel.com/success for your free shaker and t-shirt.
Produced by PinPoint Media. www.pinpoint-media.global
Find us on Virgin Atlantic inflight entertainment.
From over 100 staff with Design My Night and an 8 figure exit to building what could be a unicorn Oliver speaks with Nick Telson now of Trumpet.app
Exiting a business and starting again takes some doing, however, Nick and his 2 co-founders have been on a warpath of funding, development and scaling since late 2022 for their new vision and venture Trumpet, the sales app.
Nick a serial investor himself talks to Oliver about what he looks for when investing his own money in others, what he suggest founders look for from their co-founders and how he managed to scale for sale his first business and why he's decided to go at it again, this time with a larger price tag at the end of the tunnel.
Series Sponsor Huboo. Your eCommerce fulfilment partner www.huboo.com
Episode Sponsor Huel. huel.com/success for your free shaker and t-shirt.
Produced by PinPoint Media. www.pinpoint-media.global
Find us on Virgin Atlantic inflight entertainment.
From living in America as a child and shovelling show to earn some extra pocket money Jesse had very little entrepreneurial heritage but that doesn't seem to have stopped him growing a brand that can now be found in pubs, bars and restaurants across the UK.
With Jesse's Dad being a Vicar and his mum a French teacher, how did Jesse build such a strong beer brand with such little knowledge.
Jesse graduated from University and ended up working for Mars, this however wasn't for him. An idea he baked up on his Uni ski trip for an 'Apres Beer' kept nibbling away at him, so much so, Jesse was developing the concept of Jubel Beer, the apres beer, alongside his job at Mars.
Once Jesse could see that his brand and flavour would take off, Jesse left his life in the corporate world and started to scale the brand and business.
With Jesse's background of Mars and PWC, albeit brief, Oliver asks him what the perfect investment deck looks like, and with a recent funding round in 2022 of £2.7million Jesse clearly knows what he's doing!
Watch this episode on our NEW website: https://www.successpodcast.co.uk/
Sponsored by Capsule Cover
Produced by PinPoint Media
Available on all Virgin Atlantic flights via their inflight entertainment
Founder of GRIND Coffee David Abrahamovitch grew up watching his dad build multiple businesses as a child ultimately inspiring him to go it alone. It didn't however start with coffee!
Having turned his Dad's business around and pivoted it into new sectors, David speaks to Oliver about how there's a seismic culture shift in today's world about what being an 'entrepreneur' actually is.
David started his first 'proper' business at University at aged 22 whilst studying UCL. David and his co-founders found themselves pitching for seed capital around a boardroom table before even graduating, the business he was pitching for capital still trades today.
GRIND took on the giants of Costa Coffee and Starbucks and, in time, started to win. Having arranged external investment for GRIND it was still just a side hustle. David ended up jumping ship from his University founded business to go into GRIND full time.
It was during the start of the 2019 pandemic that everything changed for David and the GRIND team.
GRIND, a business that was turning over c£10m at the time, had no choice but to close it's high street coffee shops overnight, ultimately leading to David exploring new avenues for revenue. It was this world first, D2C compostable pod offering that doubled GRIND’s turnover in less than 12 months to over £20m.
Still going strong, GRIND and David are looking to take on the US.
Ecologi, one of only a few businesses in the world genuinely striving for economical change. Planting over 100,000 trees PER DAY, Elliot came up with the idea for a subscription based environmentally focused business whilst on his morning commute. He thought, "what is the cost of a coffee per day could be put into changing the planet?" The rest was history.
Having suffered from burnout in his previous job Elliot never set out to become an entrepreneur but had an idea that he believed would make a genuine difference and change the world. He wasn't wrong.
Oliver speaks with the very humble Elliot in this episode of Success Is In The Mind unearthing some eyeopening stats and an inspiring roadmap for Ecologi, could this be the world's first $1bn environmentally focused subscription business and will we see an IPO in the years to come?
Watch this episode on our NEW website: https://www.successpodcast.co.uk/
Sponsored by Capsule Cover
Produced by PinPoint Media
Available on all Virgin Atlantic flights via their inflight entertainment
In this live on location recording, Oliver caught up with Andy Shovel co-founder of vegan food brand THIS at their London HQ.
A born entrepreneur Andy’s hit the headlines recently for his slightly ‘out there’ marketing stunts, one of which included a life size naked statue of Piers Morgan in Leicester Square with his ‘THIS’ product housed around Piers’ nether regions… That said, the self proclaimed ‘un-cool’ entrepreneur that is Andy, co-created his first business with a group of mates whilst at University. Ironically quite a ‘cool’ clubbing night called ‘cash throw events’ and yes the clue is in the name, it didn’t take off financially but opened Andy’s eyes to the possible.
From University to founding a recruitment business which he later exited through to finance, insurance and everything in between Andy has built and sold multiple businesses.
Not all of Andy’s business ideas however have succeeded. One such flop was ‘Equity Fish’, a business similar to what Crowdcube is today. Andy left this idea behind after being “outgunned by the legal system” - It didn’t stop there however, Andy also ventured into advertising on escalator handles however, that too also didn’t work…
Relentless and not knowing when to stop, Andy has since learnt, thankfully, when to say ‘no’. Clearly however, and contrary to that, he said ‘yes’ at exactly the right time when launching THIS, his most recent business.
Having overfunded on multiple occasions and recently rolled out vegan THIS sandwiches into WHSmith and other high street stores, Andy’s vision of a mass market vegan brand is coming to fruition as their current market value is circa £75million.
Watch the full episode on Youtube here: https://youtu.be/BULhsd5cgg0
Sponsored by Capsule Cover
Produced by PinPoint Media
Paul's Father ran away leaving his Mother to contemplate taking him to an orphanage. His Father returned, a 'wheeler dealer', Paul's father ended up as a market trader. As a teenager Paul ended up working for his Father in Waste and Disposal. There's money in muck as they say selling for millions just before his Father passed away. Paul's business acumen served him well growing and exiting multiple Waste brands. Paul was number 3 at sportswear brand Gymshark after the co-founders approached Paul in a Birmingham gym. Paul was critical in taking Gymshark to the £1bn valuation it is today.
Paul became Chairman of Birmingham City Football Club later on in his career and after just 6 months of joining managed to get then promoted, but how? Paul joins Oliver to talk about upbringing, perceptions and determination not forgetting of course Paul's recent acquisition HERA Clothing which he wants to build into a £100m brand in under 3 years!
Watch the full episode on Youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cPAgwuKxUM
Sponsored by Capsule Cover
Produced by PinPoint Media
After dropping out of school with no qualifications aged 16, Daniel Hegarty got signed to the same label as Boy George and went touring with his punk band for just £100 a week. He then spent the next ten years carving out a career as a working musician in LA, writing for and performing with the likes of S Club 7, Robbie Williams and the Sugababes, before returning to the UK to be one of the first employees at Wonga, where he became fully immersed in the world of tech startups.
Dan became frustrated with the whole property buying process after almost losing the house he was trying to buy due to mistakes made by his solicitors. He realised there was huge potential for change in the mortgage and property market, and in 2016, Habito was born.
Habito is a tech startup that is dedicated to ending ‘mortgage hell’ and aims to streamline the whole process, cutting down the average transaction time from 21 days to just 10. Since its founding six years ago, Habito has seen rapid growth, from sorting just 245 mortgages in 2016 to a whopping £4 billion worth of mortgages in 2020. With £80 million of funding raised so far, Habito had recently expanded into lending their own mortgages, streamlining the process even further.
In this week’s episode of Success Is In The Mind, Oliver Bruce sits down with Daniel to ask, how do you set up a business with no experience and raise millions in funding? Was dropping out of school the best decision he ever made? And what does the future of mortgage broking look like?
Watch the best bits here - https://bit.ly/3tqDcyq
Listen to the full podcast – https://link.chtbl.com/lsgRUCSI
For more exclusive content visit Oliver's YouTube - https://bit.ly/32eboTi
Sponsor - Capsule Insurance
Produced by: PinPoint Media
Comments
Download from Google Play
Download from App Store
United States