Next generation of regional Champions offer insights into their careers

Three young entrepreneurs based in Coventry and Warwickshire have spoken of their plans to take their businesses global at an event in the region.

Callum Powell, a Coventry-based professional footballer and founder of CP Coaching Academy; Harriet Lloyd, the founder of matcha brand Drink Lomi; and Paul Scanlon, the co-founder of digital agency The Herd, were the guest speakers at C&W Champions Next Gen event at 1 Mill Street in Leamington.

The event brought together businesspeople and leaders as well as young professionals from across the region to network and hear from entrepreneurs under the age of 35.

The audience for the session, facilitated by the RSC’s Sophie Davies, heard the back story of each business, the challenges and the exciting plans ahead.

After a spell in Canada, Coventry-born Powell returned to England and has played for a range of clubs throughout his career including Wrexham, Southend and now Harborough Town.

He established CP Coaching Academy in <year> and it has now grown to supporting more than 1,000 players in Coventry, Warwickshire and the wider Midlands.

He said: “I fell into coaching rather than choosing it. I had been a professional footballer from a young age, but when I dropped out of the professional game I needed to earn some money. I had always said I would never coach because I was so focused on playing. Once I started, however, I discovered a real passion for it.

“I am a huge believer in individual development. I had a personal mentor and a psychologist who helped me make some of my biggest breakthroughs in football and in business. That one-to-one support, both on and off the pitch, worked for me, so I wanted to create the same kind of environment for other people. Our aim is to help players develop not only as footballers, but also as people.

“I want us to become the biggest private academy in the UK, with programmes and centres around the world.”

Harriet spoke of how she has gone from redundancy to owning her own factory in Nuneaton in just over a year.

She said: “We incorporated in August last year, shortly after I was made redundant. We secured £50,000 of investment on the strength of a pitch deck, and we began trading in January. It has grown very quickly since then.

“I wanted to create something completely different from what was already on the market.

“My first experience of matcha was not enjoyable, and I realised the preparation and quality made a huge difference. We use a grade that works well in a latte without taking away from the tradition of drinking the very highest-grade matcha on its own. The goal was to create a genuinely enjoyable at-home experience.

“I have a ten-year-old daughter, and she is my pride and joy. I wanted to build something more for her and show her that you can do hard things. After I was made redundant, I could not find another role that offered the same excitement and decided to build something of my own.

“I am proud of how far I have come in less than a year. I went from being made redundant and worrying about losing my home to owning a factory! Now we want to go global.”

Paul and his brother, Keiran, launched The Herd as a home-based business in Coventry two years ago and is now working with a range of brands supporting them with digital marketing.

Many of its clients are based in the region but The Herd is also operating in Europe and the Middle East.

Paul said: “In my final two employed roles, the desire to start my own business kept nagging at me. When one role ended during the probation period, I was effectively pushed into taking the leap, and I am glad I did.

“We initially leaned heavily on our domestic network, particularly in Coventry. Then we were introduced to international trade opportunities. As a service business, we do not have to ship physical products – with the right opportunity, we can deliver overseas much as we do in the UK.

“We explored different markets and began winning work in places including Mexico, Spain, Germany, Dubai and Australia.

“We have grown from four people to around 10 and we have ambitious plans to grow further and become a top 100 media agency.”

Sharon Stilgoe, commercial manager and partnership lead for the C&W Champions, said: “Our Next Gen event was truly inspiring. All three speakers – and our brilliant facilitator Sophie – showed that the future of Coventry and Warwickshire is very bright with so much passion and positivity on display.”