What do you currently do?
I’m Commercial Director of Search Laboratory, the UK’s leading multilingual search engine marketing company. We work with some of the biggest names in online retail, both domestically and abroad, ensuring they are as visible as possible on the global search engines and in turn helping them maximise their online profit. My role is to continue and accelerate the growth of the business both in the UK and Internationally.
What is your inspiration in business?
I’m driven by the prospect of creating opportunities for both our clients and staff. By ensuring our clients receive the best possible service and that our staff have lots of opportunities to progress and get on in life I believe I’ll fulfil my ambitions in the process.
Who do you admire?
It’s quite cliché but in terms of business I admire Richard Branson as he’s obviously hugely successful and still comes across as a likeable guy. Steve Jobs, with his vision and commitment to detail, quality and user experience, was also someone who I admired.
Looking back are there things you would have done differently?
In hindsight we would have planned our office space based on exceeding our goals and been more ambitious when it came to growth. We’ve grown at an extremely fast rate – doubling our workforce in less than 12 months to over 140 – and looking back we could have backed ourselves a bit more. Overall, however, I wouldn’t have done anything drastically different.
What defines your way of doing business?
A no nonsense, Ronseal approach – I wear my heart on my sleeve when it comes to business.
What advice would you give to someone starting out?
Believe in what you do. I’m of the opinion that you can’t be successful in business if you’re not passionate about what you’re selling – you need to have a desire to be amazing for your clients/customers and give your team a great place to work.
