Talent: the team behind Coinrule. Below, Will Moxham of Planthoo
(Picture: Handout)Change creates opportunity and we’re living through a huge shift in the way people live and shop,” says Will Moxham, founder of Planthood, the fast-growing vegan recipe kits service company.
“If you’re the first one to spot how customer behaviour is changing, then you can really use that to your advantage.”
As any entrepreneur will tell you, the kind of volatility that’s on the economic horizon now can often create opportunity if you act quickly.
But spotting new trends is not enough. Good entrepreneurs need to interpret what change means for their business.
Changes in behaviour during lockdown and greater awareness of the need to reduce carbon emissions convinced many to go vegan.
But Moxham explains that Planthood’s success is not based on catering only to vegans but also to those who are trying to eat less meat.
“When you’re starting a business, think as broadly as possible about what you offer,” he says. “By appealing to those who want to reduce their meat consumption as well as to vegans, we’ve grown faster. Who knows, some of those meat eaters may well become vegan.”
Moxham, 32, who will be on hand at SME XPO this month to share this kind of advice, also urges entrepreneurs to “make things simple” for consumers.
“We know people care about sustainability but the reality is that it’s not always easy to live in the most sustainable way. So, we decided to remove the friction — to make it easy to do the right thing. We do all the time-consuming prep so it takes 15 minutes or less to put a restaurant-quality meal on the table.”
He adds: “We put quality and flavour first, too. We want people to be inspired and excited about eating plant-based. We don’t just do standard chickpea curries, we do mushroom shawarmas with tahini and charred hispi cabbage with zhoug and dukkah. This all makes it work for anyone who does not have much time but who wants a more plant-based diet, with great flavours.”
Fintech entrepreneur Gabriele Musella, who will also speak with Moxham at SME XPO, urges those firms that can do so to take advantage of the dramatic changes in global working practices.
Musella, head and co-founder of Coinrule, an automated trading platform for cryptocurrencies that is enjoying monthly growth of 25 per cent, singles out the “vast acceleration of remote working that has enabled us to hire better talent globally. We have developers and customer service staff in Nigeria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Austria. It is so much easier and more efficient.”
But he cautions firms not to look too far afield. “A workforce works best when staff are no more than plus or minus two hours from the London time zone because when you are working remotely it’s so important to have regular virtual meetings — no one wants to do that in the middle of the night.”
To attract and retain young staff Musella also recommends “radical transparency around performance, management and values”. He urges chief executives to share as much information as they can so employees are clear what the company stands for and how it is delivering its goals. Feedback should be continuous.
“You cannot manage Gen Z with rules or fear, as was the case for me and many others when I started my career in conventional banking. You need to manage with values. Make sure they buy into what you are trying to achieve and show them that you are delivering.”
