Monocle 24: The Entrepreneurs

London-based entrepreneur Rebekah Hall left a 10-year career in finance to create an organic cold-pressed juice brand called Botanic Lab. This week she tells us how her company competes in a saturated market of health-conscious consumers.

Antonio Weiss and Matt Brown are the founders of Thomas Clipper, a UK lifestyle brand that crowdfunds design-led products, such as sturdy double-edged razors and Italian-leather wash bags. The two have recently launched a line of French-made cologne on First Edition, their own crowdfunding platform for boutique craft brands. This week the pair share their story.

Restaurateur Brooks Reitz is building an empire of award-winning eateries in Charleston, South Carolina – from the much-loved Leon’s Oyster Shop to Little Jack’s Tavern, recently named one of the ‘Best New Restaurants in America’ by ‘Bon Appétit’ magazine. Brooks shares his rise in the restaurant world, the secrets to his success and his decision to launch a start-up, Jack Rudy Cocktail Company.

For newspapers and magazines, unpacking the complexities of technology stories can be difficult. As editor of ‘Tech City News’, London-based journalist Alex Wood realised that most media outlets did a bad job at writing technology articles for non-experts who care more about big trends than jargon. So, in 2015 Wood quit his job and launched a news site called ‘The Memo’ to fill the gap. This week he shares what he’s learnt after two years.

This week we tell the story of Polly Leonard, founder of the textile industry’s iconic magazine, ‘Selvedge’. What began as a one-off issue is now a cult brand with a dedicated following around the world. Leonard shares how she did it and what she’s learnt.

Marc Vlessing is the founder of Pocket Living, a London-based start-up that’s developed a solution to help priced-out young professionals onto the property ladder. Its product? Compact, well-designed homes sold for at least 20 per cent cheaper than the local-market rate. Vlessing discusses disrupting a stubborn market, shares tips on how start-ups can navigate regulation and looks at the future of living in growing cities.

Station F is the world’s largest start-up campus. Opened weeks ago in Paris with an appearance by France’s president Emmanuel Macron and the project’s billionaire founder Xavier Niel, it’s located in an abandoned 1920s railway depot the size of the Eiffel Tower and has room for thousands of companies. Is this a turning point for the French technology scene? Its director Roxanne Varza tells us more.

Years ago former advertising copywriter David Hieatt left London with his family for the Welsh town of Cardigan, once home to the largest jeans factory in Britain. Since then, he and his wife Clare sold their popular T-shirt company Howies, built the much-loved brand Hiut Denim and created a three-day rural retreat in their old cow barn called The Do Lectures. This week on The Entrepreneurs David shares the secrets to building long-lasting brands and the big takeaways of his purpose-driven career.

Stocksy United is an artist-owned co-op that specialises in high-end curated stock photography. The Canadian startup was launched by entrepreneur Brianna Wettlaufer, who cut her teeth in the trade after rising through the ranks at the photography giant iStock. This week on Eureka, Brianna shares her story.

Juniqe is a fast-growing Berlin-based start-up selling a curated selection of wall art and home accessories from independent artists; it’s one of a growing number of businesses attempting to disrupt the mass art market. Its co-founder Lea Lange tells us how her company is leading the pack – and why Berlin is a great place to set up shop.

Joan Murphy and Pip Black were working in advertising when they met on a surfing trip in 2007. A friendship soon turned into a business partnership when they launched their groundbreaking London-based fitness studio Frame, which has since developed a cult following. This week Joan shares the story of Frame.

From the rise of Mr Porter and Farfetch to the demise of Style.com, the e-commerce industry has experienced an eventful few years. This week we tell the tale of a new entry, an online marketplace called Bombinate. Founded by two friends following a road trip around the world, Bombinate sells only the highest-quality products from lesser-known brands from Europe. The mission is to cultivate a lively community of likeminded brands but how will it fare in a saturated market? Bombinate’s co-founder Massimiliano Gritti shares the company’s story.

Simon Karlstetter and Claudio Ricci share the story of their Munich-based magazine ‘Der Greif’ and their new project Picter, a sharing tool for photographers.

There are 2.5 billion people with uncorrected vision problems. James Chen is a Hong Kong-based venture philanthropist and entrepreneur who’s on a mission to help the world see better – and he’s marshalling start-ups, government and non-profits to make it happen. This week Chen explains how he’s doing it and what he’s learnt along the way.

Unbound is a London-based start-up that’s revolutionising the publishing world, giving authors the tools to pitch, crowdfund and launch their own books. This week, Unbound’s co-founder and chief executive Dan Kieran shares the company’s story.