Driven by passion
Hi, my name is Pip, lover of espresso martinis, travelling, live music, and taking risks.
I have wanted to create a business community for a while after feeling the effects first hand of how lonely owning a business can be.
I, like many of us, was drawn in by the romantic idea of being my own boss, stepping out of the system, choosing when I work and empowering others to do the same. These are all massive advantages of going alone, and things I still strive for, but the underlying hard work, risks, mistakes, worry and quite frankly, blood sweat and tears can be a harsh reality check if you have never owned a business before.
My love for business feels engrained in me. I grew up in a household where both my parents owned and ran successful businesses, I saw the hard work and sacrifices they made. And, unfortunately, I was witness to the empire falling. All I wanted to do up until that point was start my own business, but seeing it all unravel firmly put me off.
Nevertheless, I still had a passion for business studies. It was the only subject I genuinely enjoyed at school ad the only one I got an A in. I knew it was all I wanted to do, and had a place at Bristol University to study it. But I spent the summer thinking how can you learn business from a textbook? Surely experience is the real key to success?
Over the summer my Mum said to me one day, “why don’t you just go out and do something, what have you always wanted to try?”
“I’ve always fancied working in a bank?” (this literally came from my love of the till I had from the Early Learning Centre when I was about 5!)
“Well go and apply for a bank!”
A month later I started at Halifax, it didn’t take me long to realise finance wasn’t for me. Hard selling to elderly ladies who just wanted to take some money out felt morally wrong. So, I left and went to work for a computer software company that made software for visually impaired people. Much more morally aligned, but zero opportunities to grow within the company, ultimately, I got bored of the admin job.
Next up, I decided to follow in my Mum’s footsteps and went into property. I got myself a property management job and absolutely loved it. I seemed to excel in the people management and problem solving, and it wasn’t long before I became a senior property manager and I got the bug for promotion.
As I approached my 20s, I started to feel like I wanted more. Bristol was calling me - I never knew why - but I knew I had to be there. Being young and ballsy really helped here.
Looking back, it was hands down the best life decision I have ever made. What unfolded over the best part of a decade was nothing short of poetic chaos. Bristol was the melting pot I needed to truly spread my wings and become successful.
My property career went from strength to strength, and by the time I was 27 I was managing Andrews in Bath, and earning more than I had set myself by the time I was 30. This was where I started to realise I was pretty good at this business stuff. I took the branch over when it was underperforming, it was March and we had lost £50k already. By the end of that year, we had clawed that £50k back, and made £53k profit. Year 2, we did £108k profit. I won manager of the year award and had my eye on my area managers job.
But something wasn’t right, I had all the money, but I was stressed and it didn’t make me happy. My soul was yearning for something else so, I gave it all up to go travelling with my best mate. Over the next 5 months we travelled Sri-Lanka, India, Thailand, Laos, Vietmnam and Cambodia. I spent the last 2 on my own in Bali. Cue major life change….again.
When I got back, I started working in hospitality again. I was approached to go and run a coffee shop in Cheltenham that was in a bad way after the manager had sadly passed away. Within 3 months we had given it a complete refresh. New menu, new suppliers, new pricing and a very busy coffee shop taking more than it had before. After that, another owner approached me to do the same in their truck stop in Teddington. I was there for 6 months and again, did a complete menu overhaul, got the truckers involved asking what they wanted to see on the menu, started doing themed nights (Pie, Fish Chips, Burgers), and more healthy offerings. We were slammed every night and the truckers loved it.
After that, a friend of mine was opening a coffee shop nearby in Kemerton, and I was asked to go and help out there. I was also studying Jewellery Making at The School of Jewellery in Birmingam at the time so it worked perfectly for me. When I graduated, the owner invited me to become director of the business to help it grow. I was there for 1 year and we got it taking more than it ever had in the previous 4 years. It is still thriving now.
I am now full time with my jewellery business making bespoke engagement rings and wedding bands and dealing with high end heirloom re-models. I don’t believe you need a huge social presence to be successful, I have 750 followers on Instagram, yet my bespoke diary is always full. What I do believe in is word of mouth and you, the owner being the USP. I am so passionate about business and get a real kick out of seeing others thrive. I am finally in a position where I feel I can give so much knowledge back and can’t wait to be part of your journey too.
