Building The Brand with James Burtt

How She Spotted Grenade, BrewDog and Tangle Teezer Before They Were Household Brands! Great British Entrepreneur Awards Founder Frankie James On The State Of Business In The UK Right Now!

Frankie James is the founder behind the Great British Entrepreneur Awards, Ideas Fest and one of the UK’s most influential entrepreneur communities. In this episode of Building The Brand, Frankie shares how she built a platform that celebrates and connects British founders, startup leaders, scale-up businesses and some of the UK’s most exciting future household-name brands. The Great British Entrepreneur Awards have helped spotlight entrepreneurs and brands including Grenade, BrewDog, Tangle Teezer, Dr.PAWPAW, Zilch, Cera Care and Simmer Eats. But this conversation is not just about business awards, black tie events or winning trophies. It is about the real power of UK entrepreneurship, founder community, business networking, face-to-face events, visibility, resilience and human connection. Frankie explains why entrepreneurial spirit in Britain is still alive and well, why the government needs to listen to founders across every region and industry, how GBEA became more than an awards programme, and why Ideas Fest has become known as the Glastonbury of business. She also opens up about intuition, ADHD, working with her partner Dylan, using AI in business communities, and why the best entrepreneurs are often not the ones with the perfect business model — but the ones hungry enough to keep figuring it out. Watch more episodes and connect here: https://www.youtube.com/@buildingthebrandofficial [https://www.youtube.com/@buildingthebrandofficial] https://buildingthebrand.co.uk/newsletter [https://buildingthebrand.co.uk/newsletter] ▪️ Why UK entrepreneurship is still alive and well ▪️ How Frankie James built the Great British Entrepreneur Awards ▪️ Why Ideas Fest became known as the Glastonbury of business ▪️ Why business awards can help founders build visibility and credibility ▪️ How founder communities help entrepreneurs through difficult times ▪️ Why entrepreneurship is not just tech companies in London ▪️ What Frankie looks for in future household-name founders ▪️ Why face-to-face events still matter in an AI-driven world ▪️ How AI can help connect founders, investors, partners and business support ▪️ Why the best entrepreneurs are hungry, resilient and willing to pivot ▪️ How Grenade, Simm Eats and other UK brands came through the GBEA ecosystem ▪️ Why there is nothing wrong with building a great business you enjoy running Key Moments: 0:00 — Frankie James and the UK entrepreneurship scene 0:30 — Is British entrepreneurship still alive and well? 1:52 — Why entrepreneurship is not just tech companies in London 3:57 — Frankie’s journey into business and entrepreneurship 7:03 — How the Great British Entrepreneur Awards started 8:38 — Building GBEA with data, insight and founder stories 10:03 — Spotting future household-name entrepreneurs 11:12 — Why business awards matter for founders 13:31 — Building community beyond trophies and events 15:21 — Ideas Fest: the Glastonbury of business 17:31 — Founder intuition, ADHD and big business decisions 19:13 — Scaling Ideas Fest from 1,200 to 6,000 people 22:12 — Why founder community matters during difficult times 24:47 — The hidden fear behind successful entrepreneurs 25:32 — Grenade, GBEA alumni and British business success stories 27:48 — The future of Ideas Fest and entrepreneur networking 31:11 — How AI could make business communities more human 35:16 — Creating meaningful connections at large-scale events 37:32 — Building a business you actually enjoy running 39:16 — Why Simmer Eats is a UK founder story to watch Reach out to Frankie ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/frangbea/⁠ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/frangbea/] Find out more about the Ideas Fest ⁠https://ideasfest.uk/⁠ [https://ideasfest.uk/] Enter this year's ⁠Great British Entrepreneur Awards ⁠ [https://greatbritishentrepreneurawards.com/]

Batch LDN: No Fashion Experience But They've Built The UK's Coolest Menswear Brand That Celebrities Love

How do you convince people to spend £400 on a suit… and then wait up to eight weeks for it? That is exactly what Sam and Julian, the founders of Batch LDN, have managed to do. In this episode of Building The Brand, they share how two founders with no fashion background built one of the most interesting menswear brands in the UK by doing almost everything differently. Batch LDN is not a traditional fashion brand. They do not hold huge amounts of stock. They do not rely on fast fashion cycles. They do not lead with endless paid ads. Instead, they batch customer orders together, make every item to order in London using premium Italian fabrics, and have built a brand around quality, community, retail experience and smart casual menswear that actually fits modern life. But this conversation is not just about suits. Sam and Julian talk openly about why industry naivety became an advantage, why sustainability alone was not enough to drive sales, how a real-life robbery became one of their most successful marketing moments, why having the right co-founder changes everything, and why they chose to build through physical retail first when most fashion brands start online. They also break down how Batch LDN has attracted celebrities, sports teams and investors, why Romesh Ranganathan became involved in the brand, how they became the official menswear supplier to Burnley Football Club, and what comes next as they look to expand the product range, grow online and take Batch international. SHOP @ Batch LDN [https://batchldn.com/] CONNECT WITH OUR BUILDING THE BRAND COMMUNITY [https://buildingthebrand.co.uk/newsletter] ▪️ How Batch LDN created a made-to-order casual suit brand ▪️ How batching orders helps reduce waste, stock risk and cost ▪️ Why premium Italian fabrics and London manufacturing became core to the brand ▪️ Why Sam and Julian’s lack of fashion experience became a superpower ▪️ How sustainability shaped the business internally but failed as the lead marketing message ▪️ How a robbery at their store became a viral marketing campaign ▪️ Why the “See It. Say It. Suited.” campaign put Batch on the map ▪️ The importance of having the right co-founder in a startup ▪️ Why physical retail became Batch LDN’s strongest sales channel ▪️ Why the founders hired a creator and doubled down on storytelling instead of paid ads ▪️ How celebrities including Romesh Ranganathan, Ashley Walters, Simon Pegg, Ant and Dec, Josh Denzel and others have worn the brand  Key Moments: 0:00 — Intro 03:33 — How Batch LDN’s made-to-order fashion model works 06:42 — How Sam and Julian started Batch LDN with no fashion experience 08:03 — The fashion waste problem behind the made-to-order model 12:00 — Why sustainability alone does not sell fashion15:32 — How startup experience helped Batch challenge the fashion industry 17:41 — PAUSE POINT: Industry naivety can be a competitive advantage 19:34 — The Batch LDN robbery story 23:18 — Why the co-founder relationship matters in startup life 26:36 — Why Sam chose Julian as his Batch LDN co-founder 30:34 — PAUSE POINT: The right co-founder helps carry the weight 32:58 — Building the Batch Members Club and fashion community 35:20 — How the Covent Garden flagship store became a retail and events space 36:54 — Why 80% of Batch LDN revenue comes through physical retail 39:20 — Replicating the in-store fitting experience online 40:58 — PAUSE POINT: Do not blindly follow the direct-to-consumer startup playbook 43:35 — Why Batch LDN hired an in-house content creator 46:59 — Doubling revenue without paid social advertising 48:55 — Celebrities, social proof and Batch LDN suits in the wild 52:17 — Why Romesh Ranganathan invested in Batch LDN 53:59 — Taking Batch LDN to America and testing international growth 54:30 — Becoming Burnley Football Club’s official menswear supplier 56:00 — Why sports teams and smart casual menswear are a major opportunity 58:29 — New Batch LDN products: corduroy suits, cropped jackets and wider-leg trousers 1:00:20 — The five-year vision for Batch LDN

Thomas Hal Robson-Kanu: The Premier League & Euro 2016 Hero Building The Turmeric Co In Order to Take On Big Food & Big Pharma!

Can you imagine choosing to walk away from a dream career as a Premier League and International Footballer?  Well, that’s exactly what Thomas Hal Robson-Kanu did and in this episode of Building The Brand, he shares the full journey from professional footballer to founder, from home-brewed shots made by his dad to producing hundreds of thousands of units a week, building a vertically integrated manufacturing operation, taking strategic investment from AG Barr and pursuing a mission to make functional nutrition mainstream. But this conversation is not just about building another drinks brand. Thomas talks openly about the pressure of running a business while still playing professional football, why a side hustle is only a problem if it damages performance, how The Turmeric Co is trying to challenge the way people think about food, health and medicine, and why scaling a business requires the founder to evolve from passionate generalist to true CEO. Thomas and his team have generated a discount code for Building The Brand listeners to benefit 20% off of their first one-time purchase - enjoy! Click https://tinyurl.com/turmericbtb [https://tinyurl.com/turmericbtb] and use code BTB at checkout ▪️ How a career-threatening football injury led to the creation of The Turmeric Co ▪️ Why his father’s kitchen-made blend became the foundation for the business ▪️ What it felt like going from Euro 2016 hero to health brand founder ▪️ Why business impact now feels more meaningful than football glory ▪️ The pressure of building a company while still playing Premier League football ▪️ Why a side hustle is only a problem if it damages performance ▪️ How The Turmeric Co is trying to challenge big food, big pharma and the wider health system ▪️ Why evidence, data and clinical research matter for functional health brands ▪️ How the brand scaled from kitchen batches to a 20,000 sq ft manufacturing site ▪️ Why vertical integration became one of the company’s biggest advantages ▪️ The leadership shift required when going from startup to scale-up ▪️ Why The Turmeric Co chose strategic investment from AG Barr ▪️ What comes next for The Turmeric Co, Raw Hydrate and functional beverages Key Moments:  0:00 — Intro 01:15 — The Euro 2016 goal against Belgium 03:37 — The testimonials driving The Turmeric Co mission 04:13 — Thomas’ career-threatening knee injury 06:13 — Why standard medication did not work for him 07:19 — How the original turmeric blend changed his recovery 08:03 — Retiring from football on his own terms 10:00 — Running the business while playing professional football 11:32 — The pressure around athletes having side hustles 14:00 — PAUSE POINT: A side hustle is only a problem if it hurts performance 16:16 — Thomas’ dad and the origins of the kitchen-made blend 18:50 — The mission to make functional nutrition more accessible 20:30 — Taking on big food, big pharma and outdated health beliefs 21:26 — Moving from testimonials to data and health markers 24:58 — Why healthcare needs to think more about prevention 28:19 — PAUSE POINT: Some brands are trying to change a system, not just sell a product 30:30 — Going from home brew to scaled production 32:45 — Why manufacturers refused to make The Turmeric Co blend 34:33 — Launching The Turmeric Co direct-to-consumer 36:00 — Moving from 1,200 sq ft to a 20,000 sq ft site 36:46 — Why vertical integration became a superpower 37:14 — Achieving BRCGS AA+ manufacturing standards 39:17 — Moving from startup chaos to scale-up structure 43:03 — Why growing businesses need specialists 45:46 — The founder’s shift into the CEO role 48:11 — Process, SOPs, cadence and business traction 50:16 — PAUSE POINT: The founder who starts the business is not the same one who scales it 54:26 — The business book Thomas recommends to founders 56:23 — Taking investment from AG Barr 57:36 — Why strategic investment made more sense than private equity 1:00:31 — Launching Raw Hydrate and entering natural hydration

PREVIEW: Thomas Hal Robson-Kanu On His Natural Health Brand That Is Taking On Big Pharma

DON'T MISS THE WHOLE EPISODE VIA https://tinyurl.com/buildingthebrandofficial [https://tinyurl.com/buildingthebrandofficial]

Grenade Founder Juliet Barratt: Building Carb Killa, £200M Exit & Why Success Felt Like Grief

Juliet Barratt is the co-founder of Grenade, one of the most successful British brands of the last decade. In this episode of Building The Brand, Juliet shares the real story behind Grenade, from launching with limited resources, driving a tank into the NEC to stand out at BodyPower, getting picked up by major retailers, creating the Carb Killa bar, helping bring protein into mainstream retail, taking on private equity and eventually selling to Mondelez. IN THIS EPISODE, JULES SHARES: ▪️ How Grenade was born from years of experience in sports nutrition ▪️ Why Juliet believes founder-market fit matters more than just having a good idea ▪️ How Grenade spotted a gap in a category full of generic white tubs and scientific names ▪️ Why the grenade-shaped packaging gave the brand instant memorability ▪️ How standing out at BodyPower helped get the attention of GNC ▪️ Why early brand building was about being different, not having the biggest budget ▪️ The story behind launching Carb Killa ▪️ How Grenade helped move protein bars from niche sports nutrition into mainstream food retail ▪️ Why timing was crucial to Grenade’s success ▪️ How the brand educated retailers and consumers at the same time ▪️ Why Juliet says the secret to Grenade’s success was simply “giving a shit” ▪️ The reality of having almost no money in the early days ▪️ Why Juliet and Al did not take salaries for years ▪️ How private equity changed the business ▪️ Why selling a majority stake may not always be the right move ▪️ What it really felt like to sell Grenade to Mondelez ▪️ The emotional impact of exiting a business you built from scratch ▪️ Building a business with your spouse ▪️ Why Grenade kept Juliet and Al together professionally even as their marriage changed ▪️ The difference between building a brand and running a numbers-led business ▪️ What Juliet looks for now when she works with founders and brands KEY MOMENTS: 0:00 — Intro 01:24 — The one thing that made Grenade successful 01:43 — Why “giving a shit” became Grenade’s real advantage 02:00 — Juliet and Alan’s experience before Grenade 03:14 — Why the first version of Grenade did not sell 04:20 — Going from distributor to brand owner 05:00 — The gap in the sports nutrition market 07:00 — Why Grenade’s branding came from gut instinct 08:46 — Retiring, getting bored and deciding to build again 10:25 — Creating a product people could actually feel working 12:26 — Wanting Grenade to be the Red Bull of sports nutrition 13:52 — Driving a tank into the NEC 15:00 — How Grenade started attracting athletes and advocates 17:00 — Why bricks and mortar made sense before DTC 18:43 — The tough early days of building Grenade 20:18 — Running lean, paying suppliers and not taking salaries 21:45 — Taking private equity in 2014 23:00 — Bringing in a CFO and freeing up the founders 25:00 — Launching Carb Killa 25:50 — Why Juliet still worries about money 28:16 — The emotional finality of the Mondelez deal 30:00 — Why selling Grenade felt like giving away a child 31:05 — Still feeling protective over the brand 32:08 — PAUSE POINT: Creating a category 35:00 — Leaving the business and losing founder identity 40:31 — How Carb Killa moved Grenade into mainstream FMCG 41:30 — Educating Tesco and helping build the protein category 45:00 — PAUSE POINT: Why timing matters in business 47:00 — Why taste mattered more than health claims 48:19 — Building Grenade as husband and wife 51:44 — Did Grenade break up the marriage or hold it together? 56:40 — PAUSE POINT: The truth about co-founder relationships 58:45 — How the Oreo collaboration came about 1:01:10 — Did Juliet and Al build Grenade to sell? 1:03:00 — Selling a majority stake and what Juliet would rethink 1:07:34 — Why founder DNA matters as a business scales 1:08:59 — Carb Killa, timing and creating opportunity 1:10:30 — Juliet’s work with founders, boards and entrepreneurship 1:12:00 — What Juliet looks for in the brands she supports