Q: On the topic of Covid, what kind of lessons did you learn when running a business through difficult times or economic downturn?
A: “Having survived a couple of economic downturns and Covid, where we really didn't get any help. It's tenacity, absolute tenacity. I remember being sat in the corner of that room crying one day on a zoom call during the first lockdown, wondering what the hell are we going to do? And then I sat down with Richard and we rewrote our entire business plan. What were we good at? What could we then do? And just really played to our strengths. We helped people with their risk assessments. We went away and learned. I could tell you so much about Covid it was untrue. Ventilation rates, contact time of sanitizers. It was all bang, bang, bang. Somebody would ring up, with questions about how to keep their business safe. They had the answer straight away. Not I think you should do this, or the government says this… we were direct and efficient.“
Q: What's the most rewarding part of running No.8 and Red Cat?
A: “No.8 is the smiles when they come out of a meeting, or an event and you know you've nailed it. And then when they come back and ask to book again. With RedCat it’s when you hear a personal recommendation, or when the penny drops and your client says I get it now, I understand what I've got to do because you've explained it in such a simple practical and relevant way!“
Q: If you had to give some advice to someone that's starting their career, would you say?
A: “Do what you love and have a good a number of people around you that will answer the hard questions honestly. You’ve got to have your trusted folks, your soul sisters and brothers haven't you? Surround yourself with people who have warmth, who aren’t mood hoovers. Folks who you have an absolute understanding and trust with. We have that with the No.8 crowd. They've all got keys; they can come and go when they like. I trust them with my building, the biggest asset that I've got. To lock the door, to turn the lights off. You can't do that with everybody, can you?“
Q: Final question. Everyone has their go to guilty pleasure when they need a mental break. What's yours?
A: “It would have to be rhubarb gin, kettle crisps and dark chocolate. Dark chocolate praline, with a bit of bite and texture, but smooth. And when I want to unwind, I love the woods. Any kind of forest by the beach is even better. That’s why I think there's plants here in No.8. Like I said there’s a natural element here. There's wood, there's brick, there's light. And we bring items in from home. There are real bits of us here - my dad built that cabinet in one of the rooms, to fit. Everything has a story behind it. There's just real soul here, isn't there? Depth. Yes, depth.“
