From Acorns...... how to start your brilliant business from scratch
09 Jan 04

Over 300,000 people in the UK took the plunge and started their own business last year. And according to a recent Government Household Survey, a huge 30% of us are actively considering starting up in the future. Caspian Woods, author of the recently published From Acorns… has met and advised a lot of these would-be entrepreneurs, and they gave him the inspiration to write the book "I sit on a business funding panel for the Prince's Trust and found myself so carried away trying to give advice to other young people starting up I thought I'd put it all in a book and save them from an ear-bashing."

No novice to starting businesses, Caspian is himself a successful serial entrepreneur. In writing From Acorns… Caspian wanted to show just how much fun it can be. But which of his businesses has been the most fun? "I greatly enjoyed my stint as an Event Organiser with my business 'Let me hold your balls for you'. My flagship event was erecting a huge marquee for an Indian Ball for the Scottish Polo Association. I had about 200 people sitting down to dinner when all the lights went out - I had forgotten to buy enough petrol for the generator. However, luck tends to smile on the risk taker, and as the marquee was packed full of candles the guests thought it was part of the plan and a collective 'ahhh!!' went up. Meanwhile my brother and I nipped to the local petrol station to surreptitiously fill up a curry urn with petrol."

The book is packed with wisdom from other entrepreneurs, including Tom Hunter (who made millions founding Sports Division) and Tom Farmer, the man behind Kwik Fit. Why does Caspian think these two men have been so successful? "I think they are born hustlers! They both also have incredible integrity and I believe went into business because they love the thrill of it, and not for the money." Is there any envy there? "Tom Hunter took eleven years to amass a £290m fortune - I should say so!"

So, for all those in the 30% of us thinking about it, what's the first thing you should do if you think you've got a great idea for a business? "Only tell strangers about it," says Caspian "If you tell family and friends they will often start to pick holes in your idea (for the most well-meaning of reasons). Before you know it, your dream is in tatters."

Caspian originally started in business with support from the Princes Scottish Youth Business Trust and is now a poacher turned gamekeeper with a role as an Ambassador for the Trust. He thinks the most common misconception about starting your own business is "that the people who succeed are super-heroes." In an attempt to disprove this, Caspian describes himself as having had a ‘hapless’ childhood and that nobody was more surprised than his teachers, friends and family when he started his first company and became a successful entrepreneur.

From Acorns… sets out to provide the essential nuggets of wisdom that entrepreneurs like Tom Hunter say they wish they had known before they set out, and to show how simple and fun it can be. Whether you want to build an empire or just earn a comfortable living working for yourself, From Acorns… is an invaluable and hugely enjoyable read. For further information or to purchase click here.

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