Entrepreneurs' Forum enjoys La Dolce Vita

May 23 2008 by Andrew Hebden, The Journal

A supermodel, a sportscar tycoon and a chocolate entrepreneur brought more than a touch of glamour to this year’s Entrepreneurs’ Forum conference yesterday. Andrew Hebden was on the scene.

PREDICTABLY, it was the bra lady who stole the show. Sadie The Bra Lady, of Consett, County Durham, that is, whose interrogation of supermodel-turned- lingerie entrepreneur Elle Macpherson provided an entertaining finale to the fifth annual Entrepreneurs’ Forum at the Gateshead Hilton yesterday.

Sadie – who runs six bra shops in the North East – was curious to know Elle’s thoughts on the difficulty of finding bras in larger cup sizes.

And, in fairness, once she had grasped what Sadie was getting at, the Australian was only too happy to enter into a healthy debate, even if the intricacies of the subject did leave much of the audience (well, OK, the men) baffled. Earlier, the supermodel – who had helped attract the kind of paparazzi attention rarely witnessed at a North East business conference – explained how she had made the move from cover girl to global entrepreneur. Quite how much the audience of leading business figures and budding entrepreneurs will have taken from her story is unclear, but entertaining it was.

The largest laughs, though, were reserved for the contributions from excellent conference host Guy Browning, who could not help but poke fun at the sound engineer who jumped at the chance to provide assistance when Elle’s radio mike seemed to be playing up. “There’s nothing wrong with it, Elle,” remarked Browning, wryly, as the engineer grappled around Elle’s chest.

As befits an event now firmly established as a highlight of the region’s business calendar, the conference provided an eclectic mix of speakers who were well received by the delegates.

There was also a welcome success story from manufacturing provided by Charles Morgan, the former ITN cameraman who has helped transform the fortunes of his family’s luxury car business.

He even brought a rather nice Morgan motor with him, which added an extra touch of glamour to the Hilton car park, in case the presence of a global supermodel wasn’t enough.

Personally, I was equally excited by the rather lovely free samples from Hotel Chocolat left on the seats. Anyway, we all went home happy.

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Elle Macpherson

THE flurry of excitement and camera lights flashing meant only one thing – Aussie superstar Elle Macpherson was in town.

The NorthEast Entrepreneurs’ Forum was marking its fifth annual conference glamorous fashion and the group's success in signing the former supermodel as keynote speaker was a sign of its ambitions.

With Macpherson joined on stage by the likes of Live 8 promoter Harvey Goldsmith, there was no doubt that the organisation was pulling out the stops to enhance the region’s renowned entrepreneurial spirit.

More than 300 delegates attended the conference, not only for a glimpse of the stars but to see how they could help their businesses grow – and they were not disappointed.

Elle, who launched the Elle Macpherson Intimates lingerie range in 1990, said: “It was a huge honour to be asked to be here and a great experience to get up in front of so many entrepreneurs.

“I feel really at home because the Tyne Bridge reminds me of Sydney. It’s like a mini harbour bridge and the architecture is similar.”

Another speaker, Charles Morgan, corporate strategy director for the Morgan Motor Company, told his fellow entrepreneurs that the business blended tradition with high technology and operated in a fun and family atmosphere, but one that could adapt to change.

“We are just starting a new period in our history where the tradition of Morgan must continue, but we have to be more aware of the environment,” he said.

Carole Beverley, chief executive of the Forum, said: “The Forum was set up with the goal of helping the region’s entrepreneurs, sharing experiences and inspiring emerging talent to guide them through the many challenges they may face.

“The response to this landmark fifth conference has been stunning and reflects the success of the organisation, as well as the hard work of our team in bringing together a world-class line-up of speakers.

“I’m sure that everybody here today will have taken something away from the event that will help grow and progress their business – and that’s precisely what the Forum is all about.”

Forum chairman and CEO of the Sage Group, Paul Walker, added: “This has become quite simply the premier business event in the North-East.

“There are 300 people here today. Five years ago we had 150 and that just goes to show the progress we’ve made.”

The conference was sponsored by Bank of Scotland Corporate, One NorthEast, the Tyne and Wear Development Company and Business Link North East, with support from additional corporate partners Ernst and Young, Ward Hadaway and Todd and Cue Insurance.     

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Angus Thirlwell

ENTREPRENEUR Angus Thirlwell told NorthEast business chiefs that they too could savour the sweet taste of success – after roots in the region inspired him to make his name in style.

The co-founder of luxury chocolate firm Hotel Chocolat enthralled delegates with a success story that has seen him rise from humble beginnings renting hot water bottles to fellow pupils at school in Barnard Castle, County Durham, to his booming business acquiring bases in the Caribbean.

He outlined the evolution of Hotel Chocolat, from its origins as ChocExpress 15 years ago through to a re-branding that has helped to make it the UK’s leading premium chocolate brand, with sales hitting £40m.

And he revealed that the “North East entrepreneurial gene” was definitely within him, his father having launched ProntaPrint in Collingwood Street, Newcastle, and his grandfather being Ted Vardy – younger brother of Reg Vardy, Sir Peter’s father.

Thirlwell attributed his – and his business’s growth – to three key elements: originality, authenticity and ethics.

“Every month, we develop 14 new recipes for members of our chocolate tasting club to try,” he told delegates.

“All ideas are developed in-house and you won’t see our products in any other outlets. We don’t want to punt our ideas around the supermarkets – we like to have control.”

He added that consumer input was vital in an age where dietary habits were regularly headline news, with the 80,000-member tasting club a key component.

“We listen to the feedback we get. Consumers are becoming increasingly savvy about foodstuffs and they want to know that they have a say,” he said.

Ethical issues have also become more and more prevalent, particularly in St Lucia wherethe company’s Engaged Ethics Cocoa Programme is making a genuine difference to people’s lives and what was once an ailing economy.

In a country with 50% unemployment in the agricultural sector, Hotel Chocolat’s 140-acre Rabot Estate has helped create 100 new jobs in the past year.

“We wanted to encourage cocoa farmers to get back to growing cocoa again,” said Angus. “We provide free technical support and guarantee to buy every single cocoa bean that a farmer on our scheme can grow.”

Looking to the future, he has the rest of the world in his sights – and a real Hotel Chocolat is a possibility.

“It is a dream to build the hotel in St Lucia,” said Thirlwell. “It would be luxurious, contemporary but ecologically-based with solar panels and recycled rainwater.

“We have a database of 400,000 active members, so that gives me comfort that we could actually fill it.”  

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Harvey Goldsmith

LEGENDARY promoter and music impresario Harvey Goldsmith sounded a strong note of optimism for entrepreneurial spirit in the NorthEast in his keynote speech to delegates.

The man behind some of the biggest shows on earth – notably Live Aid and Live 8 – gave an inspirational address to the region’s foremost business leaders, recounting tales from his four decades in the music business.

He captivated delegates at the Entrepreneurs’ Forum Progres5ive conference with the story of how he rose from being the son of a tailor in London's East End to work alongside the likes of Sir Paul McCartney, The Who, The Rolling Stones, Bob Marley and Jimi Hendrix.

And he told those spearheading the drive to boost entrepreneurship in the North East that they could follow in his remarkable footsteps.

“Being an entrepreneur is about pushing the boundaries in ways that nobody thought was possible,” he said.

“I’m incredibly proud to be a promoter and an entrepreneur. There are no set rules to become an entrepreneur – it’s something you’ve either got or you haven’t.

“The people in this room are all experts in their fields. It’s about belief – if you believe you can achieve something then really go for it.”

Goldsmith’s speech included anecdotes involving enough names to constitute a Who’s Who of the British and international music business over the past 40 years.

From his early days posing as a major promoter on a Greyhound bus tour of America through to launching the renowned Crystal Palace garden parties and most recently reuniting Led Zeppelin for a gig that attracted 20 million ticket applications, his stories kept the audience spellbound.

He took questions from Forum members and responded passionately to the issue of “secondary ticket sales” taking opportunities away from genuine fans.

“It is the bane of our lives as promoters,” said Goldsmith, who is now chairman of experiential marketing firm Ignition.

“We believe we have a duty of care to our audience and we have urged the government to do something about it, but we are powerless to stop these dreadful websites doing what they do in selling tickets.”