In this podcast we bring together Galahad Clark and Mahira Kalim, two entrepreneurs passionate about regenerative business. Vivobarefoot, founded by Galahad, and Spruce, founded by Mahira, have both recently been accredited as B Corps, a certification demonstrating that a business is a force for good. 

The certification is only attained when a business is meeting high standards of verified performance, accountability, and transparency on factors from employee benefits and charitable giving to supply chain practices and input materials.

Galahad and Mahira discuss the importance of B Corp and why businesses should pursue this accreditation; the challenges of the process from the perspective of different sized businesses; and advice to founders looking to become accredited.

About the Speakers

Galahad Clark, CEO and co-founder of Vivobarefoot

Galahad is a seventh-generation cobbler. His ancestors founded Clarks shoes, and he is now the driving force behind Vivobarefoot, which makes shoes that allow the wearer to enjoy the same range of movement and sensation as if they were barefoot.

Mahira Kalim, founder of Spruce and graduate of the Hatch Launchpad programme

Mahira is the founder of Spruce, an ethical and sustainable brand of cleaning products designed to do no harm to your body, or the health of the planet. She is on a mission to spread more education about how our convenience-led lifestyles and especially air pollution from harmful chemicals and plastics affect our fertility and overall wellbeing. 

How do you create a strong digital presence for your business?  Join experts Brian Kofi Hollingsworth and Timi Merriman-Johnson to learn key insights into creating courageous digital brand presence and stories. 

Do you need help building a strong digital presence that helps you to achieve your sales and marketing goals?  

We can learn from hearing other people’s stories and journeys, so hear from two remarkable entrepreneurs who are fearless in their creativity and in building a strong digital blueprint for their business.  

Listeners will gain insights in:

- how to build a personal brand presence 
- how to create a creative and innovative digital brand story 
- how to construct a unique and consistent brand identity to achieve your goals 

Who is this podcast is for:

• Founders wanting to gain clarity in their brand
• Founders who are struggling to build a digital brand
• Founders who want inspiration and creativity 
• Founders who want to gain key insights into brand innovation 

In this talk with Emilie Bellet, founder of Vestpod, and Timi Merriman-Johnson, founder of Mr MoneyJar, we discussed how our mindset around money influences our business direction and planning. In striving towards a healthy approach to money across both business and personal matters we must first address our financial habits - once we master this we can then align our core business values and purpose with a financial strategy that reflects our approach.  

Saeeda Ahmed, founding director of Education Partnerships UK Ltd (EPUK), talks to Eleanor Mills, journalist and Founder of Noon on why and how you can build bridges between communities and networks to create fundamental change, plus the role you can play in projects that help in the transfer of power that support the economy and society.

In this Founders Talk, Timi talks to Andy, founder of The Angel Investing School, about the key principles of growing your business and how to secure investment from angel investors.  Just how do you go about finding and approaching angel investors? Why is having a  clear vision and direction so important when starting your  entrepreneurial journey in order to get investment at the right time? 

Through this talk, Andy will explain why he believes first time founders should be building a community around them that is diverse and reflects the society they live in.  Your community matters and this ranges from your customers who love your business to investors who understand your business model and vision. 

Andy has built a school of diverse investors that understand the businesses of underrepresented entrepreneurs and has changed the start-up world forever

In this talk we were joined by  founders Anne Boden and Eleanor Mills for an open talk on how Anne built Starling, the UK's most successful challenger bank.

Anne founded Starling Bank in 2014 after a distinguished global career in financial services. Her previous roles include  Chief Operating Officer of Allied Irish Banks (2012 – 2013), Head of EMEA, Global Transaction Banking, for RBS (2009 to 2011) and Executive Vice President Europe, Transaction Banking, for ABN AMRO (2006-2009). A computer scientist by training, she is a Fellow of the Royal Chartered Institute of IT and a member of the FinTech Strategy Group, created by Innovate Finance and the City of London Corporation. She was awarded an MBE for services to financial technology in 2018.

Our host for this talk ,  Eleanor Mills, CEO of Noon, talks to Anne about how she started her entrepreneurial journey in her forties, the challenges she has faced, and what it's like to be a disruptor in the financial sector despite not being the likely face of a new challenger bank.  

In this talk we were joined by Timi Merriman-Johnson and Raphael Sofoluke who, despite the challenges they have faced, have risen to the top in their industries.

Timi Merriman-Johnson is an award-winning financial content creator, podcaster, author and founder of Mr MoneyJar, a UK-based financial education company, who has been featured on the BBC, LadBible and Sky News.

Raphael Sofoluke is the Visionary Founder and CEO behind The UK Black Business Show & UK Black Business Week, the first dedicated week in the UK for Black entrepreneurs, professionals and allies in the UK. Raphael has been instrumental in changing the landscape for Black entrepreneurs.

Timi interviewed Raphael on why he created the Black Business show in 2017 and its importance and relevance in promoting and highlighting Black entrepreneurs in the tech and the entrepreneurial space which has typically been dominated by white privilege. 

This talk  explored the challenges of building an event of this magnitude and what his vision for the future is. They also spoke about the obstacles and hurdles that have been placed in their way and how to overcome these in a society that is still inherently racist. 

Join this uplifting and high energy conversation with Eleanor Mills, founder of Noon, and a journalist who has interviewed everyone from David Cameron to Sheryl Sandberg, and Rose Marley CEO of Co-operatives UK, and co-founder of social enterprise Sharp Futures.

Rose has been a pioneer in leading initiatives that help everyone get a chance to build a business that they love. Having started her career in the creative industries, during the “Madchester” era, working in the music industry, she then went into the social enterprise sector and has supported many young entrepreneurs through her time at SharpFutures. She has been the Social Enterprise Advisor to the Manchester City Council and has ensured that everyone who wants to start a social enterprise has the opportunity to. She is a progressive leader with a passion for inclusion. 

What will you learn?

• How to build a social enterprise and coop and how to make it stand out from competitors
• The importance of creativity in the entrepreneurship world 
• The important role of diversity and inclusion in entrepreneurship
•  An understanding into why supporting young entrepreneurs is so important and why we should ensure that all voices are represented.
• Community action and how to spark passion 

Who is this for?

All entrepreneurs and business owners, especially social entrepreneurs and impact businesses, who want to learn about building a purpose-driven business. 

We sat down with Louisa Ziane, founder of Toast Ale, and Georgina Wilson-Powell, founder of Pebble Mag to discuss how you can build a business with climate change in mind. 

Louisa co-founded Toast Ale in 2015. She is the Chief Operating Officer, managing the company's commitment to people, planet and profit, and ensuring the brand is true to its purpose: to end food waste over a cheeky pint. She is a certified management accountant with a background in sustainability consulting and marketing. She's passionate about social enterprise, the circular economy and the growing B Corp movement.

Georgina is a passionate journalist and magazine editor who is using her 16 years in the media industry for global change. She founded pebble magazine 3 years ago as a stylish portal for sustainable living advice and positive stories that help inspire people to change the world. pebble covers everything from eco-travel to ethical fashion, plastic waste, food waste, permaculture, foraging, heritage crafts, yoga and pioneers trying to impact the planet. pebble expanded to events in 2019, producing 4 large scale consumer festivals in London and is focusing on creating positive digital communities this year.

In this episode they discuss:

• The challenges and hurdles of growing a sustainable business
• What do you need to consider to build an ethical and sustainable business
• Practical techniques with ethical and values at the heart of what you do
• How does it affect financial growth
• A decision around becoming a B-Corp

.Come and join in to get some inspiration on thinking big, growing your business and how to fight challenges on the way from those who have been there.

Find us at: www.hatchenterprise.org

Other the past year we've seen many businesses closing down, and others which have continued to operate during the pandemic. Some have responded rapidly with agility and creativity throughout 2020, enabling them to keep going and even excel at what they do. 

However coronavirus has posed new challenges for creative businesses, and staying creative hasn't come easy. The industry has been hit hard and received very little support from the government. But what does it actually mean to be creative in these challenging times? And how do some businesses succeed while others fail?

In this we'll be hearing from two amazing women, Kelly Mackenzie - founder of White Bear Studio ,and Kai Lutterodt - founder of My Soho Times, who will be reflecting on the past year and how they have adapted and future-proofed their brands in the age of coronavirus. 

In this episode we’ll hear from two leading social entrepreneurs Dirk and Catherine who have grown their businesses through purposeful partnerships . 

Dirk is the founder of Hatch Enterprise, which started in 2013. He’s been following his passion to build responsible businesses since 2004 where he’s worked on over 50 projects across the UK and Europe, focusing on sustainability, vocational training and entrepreneurship. Dirk helped set-up a number of social enterprises and a commercial Solar PV company. He’s passionate about enterprise and helping people get their ventures off the ground.

Catherine is the founder of BuddyHub . She may come from the hard-nosed world of finance but she has a way of understanding others and the difficulties they go through. She became a young carer when her mother developed early onset dementia and this really opened her eyes to the threat of loneliness. 

She has also felt the impact of mental health and multiple bereavements in her family. These experiences, together with her six years of extensive voluntary work with marginalised groups, inspired her to start BuddyHub in 2014. The vision? To create a world where anyone can make new friends and no-one needs to fear being lonely.

In this talk they discuss the best way to form alliances and collaborations, where the pitfalls might be, and how to create a value proposition within your community.

Find us at: www.hatchenterprise.org

In this epiosde we sat down with Timi Merriman-Johnson, founder of Mr MoneyJar, and Mejero Uwejeyah, founder of KasaKasa to discuss how their businesses are shifting the future of finance. 

Timi and Merejo have both participated on our programmes to help them launch and scale their impact. In this episode they discuss their Nigerian heritage, going from concept to a service, the power of putting your users first, giving up on an idea, and advice for moving forward.

Come and join in to get some inspiration on thinking big, growing your business and how to fight challenges on the way from those who have been there. Find us at: www.hatchenterprise.org @hatchenerprise

We sat down with Georgina Wilson-Powell, founder of pebble mag, and Maame Opuku, founder of MamaSia to discuss how they are changing the world through their online impact businesses. Maame recently participated on our Impact Accelerator to help her scale the impact of Mamasia, natural skincare, and Georgina is the co-founder of pebble mag, the sustainable living magazine.

In this episode they discuss how they sett up their legal structures, milestones for their businesses and their vision for the future, and the importance of mentorship.

Come and join in to get some inspiration on thinking big, growing your business and how to fight challenges on the way from those who have been there.

Find us at: www.hatchenterprise.org

Climate change is threatening our livelihoods and ecosystem and no corner of the globe is immune from it. We need to become more mindful of how we live and consume so that we can stop the devastating consequences.

In this episode we’ll hear from two leading climate change activists Liz and Jarvis who have dedicated their lives to building and growing impact businesses that will support and heal the planet.

Liz leads the programmes at Planet Patrol (founded by Lizze Carr), an award-winning non-profit sitting at the intersection of environment and wellbeing. Their mission is to eliminate single-use materials and litter and (re)connect people with nature through a variety of outdoor activities.

Jarvis is the co-founder of My Green Pod the UK’s largest ethical lifestyle magazine supplement and now online marketplace for ethical products.

You'll get to hear them talk about  how to secure funding to continue to grow,  businesses that have really succeeded in inspiring more sustainable lifestyles, and their biggest learning experience from running an impact business.

Find us at: www.hatchenterprise.org

We sat down with Eleanor from Bubble & Squeak and Tessa from Olio to discuss how they started their food waste revolutions. Eleanor recently participated on our Impact Accelerator to help her scale the impact of her impact business Bubble & Squeak, a kids run social enterprise tackling food waste, and Tessa is the co-founder of Olio, the  #1 free sharing app.

In they episode they discuss how to start an impactful business , adapting in covid-19, their long term business models in the new "normal", and  the importance of growing a community.

Come and join in to get some inspiration on thinking big, growing your business and how to fight challenges on the way from those who have been there.

Find us at: www.hatchenterprise.org

In this episode we sat down with Tanisha from BAIOU and Dior Bediako from The Junior Network to discuss their moves into becoming their own bosses. Tanisha recently participated on our Female Founders Launchpad to help her grow her lifestyle brand BAIOU -the UK’s first snappable, sustainable sun-protective swimwear brand for girls, with easy to use snap-button closures at crotch. A business she started as she wanted to create her own opportunities and inspire other mothers to do the same. 

Dior Bediako is the founder of two initiatives centred on providing career support to young fashion hopefuls. Having started her career in PR at Burberry, Dior was frustrated by how little help there was for newbies in fashion; leading her to first create ‘Pepper Your Talk’ for students and graduates, and then went on to launch ‘The Junior Network’ for entry-level fashion professionals.

In this episode they discuss their initial steps to starting their businesses, the importance of having a mentor or a role model, and their advice to others wanting to start a business

Come and join in to get some inspiration on thinking big, growing your business and how to fight challenges on the way from those who have been there.

Find us at: www.hatchenterprise.org @hatchenterprise