#60 From an idea dreamed up at a cricket match to a £ multi-million exit, Magnus Willis, co-founder of Sparkler on his entrepreneurial journey.

We’re publishing this episode just before the Autumn 2024 Budget, when Rachel Reeves will share her vision of how she plans to improve the country’s economy.

I really hope she understands how valuable the start-up and entrepreneurial economy is in the UK and that she’ll encourage it and ensure its continued success.

Today’s guest is a fantastic example of that British entrepreneurial spirit.

Magnus Willis hatched a plan with his co-founder during a long walk after they’d watched a cricket match at The Oval!

They decided to leave their highly-paid jobs in advertising to take a huge risk and launch a new business.

Through sheer hard work and perseverance, their company grew from two guys in a small room with laptops to become a significant business, employing 80 people, before being sold to a large UK company.

It’s a fabulous story with so many insights and lessons that Magnus shares.

Learn from the best

He explained how he was able to learn so much by being around talented and experienced people in the companies he worked for after he left university.

It’s important to get into the best companies in your chosen field and learn from those people as you build your own knowledge and experience.

Be a specialist, not a generalist

A theme that comes up regularly in my conversations is starting as a generalist and then pivoting to become a specialist. This creates significant value in your business and minimises your competition.

Magnus’s company, Sparkler, began as something of a generalist but then, over time, decided that they wanted to become the leaders in a specific niche market. This became a huge part of their success.

Be future-focused

Magnus discussed the importance of looking up from your day-to-day work, seeing where the world is going, and then aligning yourself with future growth opportunities.

In his case, when traditional magazines went online, and mobile was growing fast, this meant looking at the approaching ‘wave of opportunity’ and getting ready to surf it.

Life after exit

Towards the end of our conversation, he also reflects on his life now as a successfully exited entrepreneur and how he designed his ideal life, now that he’s no longer busy running a company.

His thoughts are deeply insightful.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Mr Magnus Willis.

Links

https://www.linkedin.com/in/magnuswillis/?originalSubdomain=uk  

Business & IP Centre (BIPC): Business Advice & Resources - The British Library 

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