Entrepreneurs from across the UK quizzed top business leaders in a Question Time event as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week, held at the British Library yesterday.
The flagship Q&A event provided the chance for business owners to question four of Britain’s top entrepreneurs on the key opportunities and issues faced when launching and growing a business in the current economic climate.
The 'Inspiring Entrepreneurs' event featured a panel including: Brent Hoberman, co-founder of lastminute.com and mydeco.com; Cath Kidston, founder of Cath Kidston Ltd; Deborah Meaden, Dragons' Den investor and entrepreneur, and Tom Bewick, chief executive of Enterprise UK.
According to Kidston, despite difficulty in raising finance, potential start-ups should not be discouraged: “Starting a business today is difficult but no more difficult than when I started. There are always opportunities, although raising finance is tough there is always a good time to start a business – recession or no recession.”
The main topics for discussion included: how to manage growth, raising finance, the climate for enterprise in the UK and the new opportunities created by social media.
On the topic of whether entrepreneurs’ are born or made, Meaden expressed the view that while people could learn the skills needed to become an entrepreneur, it was vital that they possess the right combination of characteristics.
Meaden said: “You can of course learn many things from research, but you need to have the ability to risk take and must have good judgment. In my experience all entrepreneurs are competitive.”
One of the main concerns voiced by the audience of entrepreneurs was the challenges in securing investment.
On the subject of angel investment the Dragons’ Den star explained that many people fail because they don’t always look for the right type of investment. She said: “Your investment might or might not fit, sometimes I just say no because I am not looking for that type of investment or am too heavily invested in an area.
“Speak to people and make sure you are approaching the right person for the right investment.”
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2010