How to start your own business in 2020 January 17, 2020 As many of us embark on our new year’s resolutions to eat less and get fit, a good 20 per cent of us will be making plans to start a business. According to Companies House, 2019 was a record year for UK company registrations. An incredible 678,288 new businesses were registered. This is part of [...]
Revealed: The 10 fastest growing UK scale-ups of 2019 December 10, 2019 Renewable energy provider Bulb has won the top spot on a list of the fastest growing UK scale-ups thanks to a surge in value over the last three years. The energy provider, which has acquired 1.5m members since it was set up in 2015, has increased its valuation by 318 times since 2016, according to [...]
Too much regulation on bitcoin and cryptocurrency could scare away future tech innovators December 9, 2019 Back in October, the FCA closed its consultation on banning the sale of cryptocurrency derivatives to retail investors. A consultation that I hope will start a collaborative discussion, bringing crypto and its regulatory framework up to speed with the rapid growth of the industry. Thankfully, the FCA’s approach so far has been inclusive and forward-thinking. [...]
If you were chancellor, what would be in your Budget? November 6, 2019 Today was scheduled to be the first Budget of Boris Johnson’s premiership. The chancellor announced the Budget last month, saying: “This is the right and responsible thing to do – we must get on with governing.” Unfortunately, to misquote a phrase, the best-laid plans of chancellors and Prime Ministers often go awry. The Budget has [...]
Startup entrepreneurs are seeking more advice than ever before November 1, 2019 As a nation, we’re not great at admitting when we need help. We like to soldier on with a stiff upper lip, while often heading for a fall. It was therefore interesting that in a recent poll among our Enterprise Nation adviser community, we found that more than half of them say that small business [...]
Top tips for National Mentoring Day October 27, 2019 We all know that having a mentor can make a huge difference to entrepreneurs, business owners and leaders. The most successful people surround themselves with those they learn from, so it’s no surprise that many of our aspirational clients ask for a mentor. I’d like to think that we know a thing or two about [...]
Founders, change with the times as your startup scales up September 17, 2019 You’ve had your brilliant idea, and others are backing you by working for or even investing in your startup. Your role as founder is clear: you need to make sure that all your people pull together to make your vision a reality, but the buck stops with you. It will take all your energy and [...]
The next dimension – bringing 3D advertising graphics to the masses September 2, 2019 What’s the most visually stunning advert you can think of? Perhaps it’s one of the John Lewis Christmas campaigns, or maybe it’s an ad by Apple or Samsung that shows their phones in incredible detail as they float across the screen. Whatever you imagined, it was likely made using computer-generated imagery (CGI), or other 3D [...]
Banks aren’t keeping up with the rise of the intangible economy August 30, 2019 Innovation is the key to growing the economy and creating prosperity. It creates new industries, transforms old ones, and often generates well-paid jobs. Today, innovation usually relies on the investment in and the growth of intangible assets, such as software, data, networks, and design. But the financial system has failed to keep pace with innovation. [...]
Meet Par Hedberg – the godfather of Sweden’s tech startups August 27, 2019 If you were asked where the most tech innovation comes from, you’d probably answer Silicon Valley – the home of Google, Amazon and Facebook. And you’d be right. But what you might not know is that Stockholm is a close second. The Swedish capital produces more billion-dollar companies per capita than any other region in [...]