How They Started

I read this book to try and get a broad sense of the conditions under which a number of the most successful businesses in the UK have started.  It is an interesting read as it shows many examples of business start-ups in some very different industries with some very different conditions in play at the time.

The book does give you a useful set of hints, tips, pieces of advice and insights that can be used when developing a plan for starting up a new business.  Although there is no common theme between the businesses or the way they managed to overcome different challenges, what the book suggests to me is that there is no one formula that can be used to predict whether a start up will succeed or fail.  Clearly there are some personal characteristics or attributes that may make it more likely but even in this area the broad spectrum of business leaders makes these assumptions difficult.

The book also covers a number of models for both starting out and expanding.  It covers businesses with low start up funds but almost immediate income through to businesses requiring substantial upfront investment and the challenges that can bring.

Interestingly the book does quote a number of web-based companies from the mid nineties.  In all cases whilst at the time of writing these appeared solid businesses with a bright future, they were all sold for multi-million pound sums, in 2010 the value of these businesses has reduced dramatically.  I think the out-take here is the genuine innovation in a market is almost impossible to predict by definition, and therefore when valuations are made based on the current market situation and the current state of innovation there is always a risk, particularly in technology markets, that a “game changer” will enter with new technology which has an immediate impact and bearing on the whole market.

Some of the great brands included in the book are Gu, Cobra Beer, Cotton Traders, Pizza Express, Psion, Dyson, and Sage Accounting Software.  An interesting easy read.

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