The secret of successful angel investment - Colin Glass OBE

Leeds Business Podcast

This week’s episode is slightly different as we meet one of the Leeds business community’s most well-known faces, Colin Glass OBE.

Colin shares his expertise on a variety of business topics including what makes a great business founder, funding options available for businesses, what is a NED and why you might need one, what sweat investment is and, of course, how to be a great networker.

INTRODUCING COLIN GLASS

Colin is a Chartered Accountant who started his own practice, Winburn Glass Norfolk (WGN) in 1975 and in August 2019 WGN merged with Murray Harcourt

Colin is, or has been, a Non-Executive Director of several companies, some of which are quoted on AIM and has always been passionately interested in helping small businesses, including start-ups to develop to their full potential. He has invested in many start-up businesses over the years.

He was awarded the Star in Practice Award in 2006 from the West Yorkshire Society of Chartered Accountants, Business Adviser of the Year in 2007, Non-Executive Director of the Year in 2008 and 2019 by the Institute of Directors Yorkshire and Humber and, in January 2011, he was awarded Non-Executive Director of the Year in the Quoted Company Awards.

Due to his many years of involvement with SMEs, in 2014 Colin was appointed a Non-Executive Director at the British Business Bank and was awarded an OBE in the 2017 Queen’s New Year Honour’s list.

He is one of the most well-known, and respected, faces on the Leeds business scene.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

[00:00:45] What are the common themes in successful businesses

[00:03:30] The common mistakes business owners make

[00:06:20] The best places to find funding

[00:09:00] Should you bootstrap your business?

[00:10:45] What makes a good Angel investment pitch?

[00:13:00] All about sweat investment

[00:19:40] Colin’s successful first sweat investment deal

[00:26:00] The investment that didn’t go well

[00:31:00] What does a NED do, and do you need one?

[00:36:00] How to be a good networker

3 KEY TAKEAWAYS & BUSINESS LEARNINGS

• You need to listen to the advice of mentors around you

• All companies that are trying to grow should look at some kind of NED

• Don’t try to sell at networking events

BEST MOMENTS

“One successful angel investment can pay for all the others that go wrong”

“Do me a favour, let them wine & dine us”

VALUABLE RESOURCES FOR YOU

Website: www.leedsbusinesspodcast.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinglass1/

Shout out: https://www.luma3.uk/

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ABOUT YOUR HOST

Phil Fraser went from an accidental kitchen table start up, with no investment, all the way to multi-million pound sale to a PLC 18 years later. He’s travelled the full SME business journey of launch, growth, scale and exit.

As well as hosting the Leeds Business Podcast, Phil now works with ambitious SME-owners as a Business Sounding Board (think somewhere between Business Coach and Business Mentor). In simple terms, he’s ‘a pair of ears and an extra pair eyes’ for SME Owners helping them to be better at what they do. Phil’s mantra is It doesn’t need to be ‘lonely at the top’. He helps Business Owners to be better business owners, by helping with their clarity and focus.

As a Business Sounding Board, he gives SME Owners the time & space to regularly discuss their challenges and opportunities, with no sense of judgement or bias, and in complete confidence. This allows them to explore their options in full, culminating with a list of issues to address/clarify, a clear target in mind, a roadmap to success, and a renewed enthusiasm and confidence for the challenges ahead.

Phil has appeared as a guest on over 60 podcasts, webinars and interviews, from around the whole globe, talking on a variety of business subjects. You can view them all at https://philfraser.co.uk/watch-hear-phil/.

LEEDS BUSINESS PODCAST

Luma3, Straight plc, Leeds, Leeds Business, Business in Leeds, Nous of Fraser, Business Sounding Board, Business Coach, Business Mentor,

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