The Bottom Line

Harry Destecroix was studying for his PhD at Bristol University when he co-founded Ziylo. Based on 20 years of Bristol chemistry research, the spin-out company created a new technology that can be developed to treat diabetes more effectively. It's a breakthrough that led to its acquisition by pharmaceutical firm, Novo Nordisk, in a deal reportedly worth up to 600 million pounds. Harry has also fou...

Sophie Mirman was thrown in at the deep end when – at the age of 13 – she was in a car accident with her parents. They were both badly injured and, a few years later, Sophie felt she had to find a way to help the family finances. She started as a very junior secretary in M&S, applied for jobs she says she wasn’t qualified for, and went on to hold the top jobs at Tie Rack, SockShop and Trotters...

When Jesper Brodin landed a job as IKEA’s purchase manager in Pakistan, he was only 26. And had no idea he was the only applicant. He’s now spent 30 years with the iconic Swedish brand - since 2017, as CEO of Ingka Group, which runs most IKEA stores. During that time, he’s led two major transformations - taking the company digital and making it more eco-friendly. Now, as he steps down from his rol...

Heather Vernon never expected to become an entrepreneur. Her goal after university was to become a teacher, through the Teach First graduate programme - two years of intense learning on the job, schooling disadvantaged children in low income communities. It taught her resilience and prompted a move into politics, initially at a local level, then a job with the Labour party, advising members of the...

Three business leaders tackle fictional dilemmas that test their instincts, experience and nerves. To make it more realistic, none of the guests have any idea what the scenarios are in advance. Guests: Ben Branson, Founder, Seedlip and Sylva Sophie Mermin, Founder, Trotters Childrenswear Margaret Heffernan, former CEO, entrepreneur, author and professor of practice at the university of Bath school...

Productivity drives prosperity, yet the UK continues to lag behind countries like the US, France and Germany. We work harder, yet produce less than our peers. In this episode, Evan Davis and guests discuss what productivity really looks like in practice – from offices and factories to call centres and operating theatres. And ask whether AI could be the boost Britain's economy needs. Guests: Katy D...

Do you ever feel the world is stacked in favour of the extrovert people – the most gregarious, the most outwardly confident, the perhaps sometimes sharp-elbowed, the loudest? What can natural introverts do to try and level the playing field and create a positive impression? Evan Davis asks Richard Etienne from the Introvert Space, Clare Farthing from South Somerset meet ups and Heather Vernon, co-...

Once known as “personnel”, Human Resources seems to have become a real centre of power in modern business. No longer just handing out payslips or organising the Christmas party, HR now shapes company culture, influences major decisions and – some say – acts as a kind of corporate police force and judiciary. The profession has doubled in size over the past two decades and grown in authority. How di...

Can chaos ever be good for business? From Donald Trump’s unpredictable tariff policies to Elon Musk’s disruptive leadership style, some of the world’s most high-profile figures seem to thrive on disorder. But does chaos drive innovation – or just confusion? In a world where start-ups often celebrate mess and speed over tidy management, we ask if “getting things done” sometimes means throwing out t...

What happens when university research becomes a business? It’s called a spin-out and it’s built Silicon Valley, with Stanford University at the centre. In the UK, Oxford alone has launched more than 200 in the last 15 years. Whether it’s a new drug, software or material, brilliant university research can create huge rewards – for founders, universities and the economy. But also battles over who re...

It's easier than ever to create a website for your business and talk directly with customers, but what are the pitfalls to avoid? Three business leaders discuss the pros and cons of selling 'D2C' with Evan Davis. Sellers no longer need to convince bigger retailers to carry their products or invest in inventory just to fill the shelves. Selling direct to consumers online also means businesses know...

Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, Greg Jackson left school at 16 to write computer games, later joining Greenpeace before returning to study economics at Cambridge. Growing up in a family so stretched that the energy supply was cut off, he channelled that experience into a drive to make energy fairer and more affordable. By his twenties he was running a mirror business, before moving into tech star...

In 2019, Charlie Bowes-Lyon co-founded Wild with childhood friend Freddy Ward, frustrated by the lack of sustainable options in personal care. Their first product — a refillable deodorant in compostable packaging — struck a chord with consumers looking to cut down on plastic. From a standing start, Wild became one of the UK’s fastest-growing consumer brands, selling millions of units, building a l...

Mark Dixon left school at 16 and began selling hot dogs before building a bread roll business. In 1989 he founded Regus, spotting the need for flexible offices after watching people hold meetings in coffee shops. From a single site in Brussels, he grew the business into IWG — now the world’s largest provider of flexible workspace, with thousands of locations in more than 120 countries. Along the w...

Tom Beahon played youth football for Tranmere Rovers from the age of eight, but when he realised he’d never make the very top, he walked away to chase a new dream: building a sportswear brand with his brother, frustrated by the lack of quality kit on the market. Today, Castore is valued at almost a billion. Tom joins Evan Davis to discuss giving up football, starting a business from scratch, and h...

When he finished university Anthony Eskinazi was destined for a graduate scheme with a top accountancy firm, but he couldn’t resist a business idea he’d had while trying to get to a baseball game during his gap year. The tech entrepreneur tells Evan Davis how he gave up job security, and a promising career path, to try to connect drivers with under-used parking spaces. Producers: Simon Tulett and...

When an investor pulled the plug on a £3m cash injection for Joanna Jensen’s fledgling business, it could not have come at a worse time. The Childs Farm founder was just about to launch in two of the UK’s biggest high street stores, and was also going through a divorce and moving out of the family home with her two young daughters. Joanna tells Evan Davis how the last-minute let-down taught her wh...

When Nick Grey started his cordless vacuum business 20 years ago he took a big risk by handing a lot of control to a much bigger rival. The entrepreneur, who’d designed and built prototypes in his garage, tells Evan Davis about that decision and the moment he knew it had really paid off. Production team: Producer: Simon Tulett Editor: Matt Willis Sound: Gareth Jones and Jonny Baker Production co-o...

Zak Brown didn’t graduate high school – he was thrown out for fighting - but he loved sport. He watched his first Formula 1 race when he was 10, and became captivated by the cars, sound and speed. An appearance on a teen version of Wheel of Fortune, aged 13, won him some Cartier watches that he would later pawn for $1000, using the money to buy a go-kart and launch his racing career. But when it b...

Which business leader, or company, has had the most outstanding 12 months? What's been the biggest disaster or blunder? Evan Davis and guests look back over the business highs and lows of the last year. Evan is joined by: Sir Martin Sorrell, executive chairman, S4 Capital; Greg Jackson, founder and CEO, Octopus Energy; Joanna Jensen, founder, Childs Farm. Production team: Producers: Georgiana Tudo...

It's an industry that has few fans, but how does it really work, and will there be enough spaces in future for the UK's growing fleet of cars? Evan Davis looks under the bonnet of a much-maligned industry to find out where the money goes and why motorists have to pay in the first place. The government has been clamping down on 'cowboy' operators - can this, along with technology like Automatic Num...

What does it take to grow a new enterprise? Evan Davis hears about the decisions behind creating a multi million-pound business. Founders share the challenges of shifting from solo entrepreneur to CEO, and navigating the make-or-break moments: when to invest, when to take risks, and when to hold back. Plus, the realities of failure, internal setbacks, and the strategic role of social media in driv...

Care homes are to be barred from recruiting overseas staff, as part of government plans to cut net migration, but will the sector be able to tempt enough British workers to take their place? Evan Davis asks two providers how they plan to adapt, why it's so hard to recruit and retain local staff, and what the care home sector might look like in the future. Also, if low pay really is one of the bigg...

Few things in working life are as familiar or as dreaded as presentations, but done well they can persuade and even inspire. So what are the tricks to getting them right? From nerves to narrative, Evan Davis explores how structure, delivery and storytelling shape the way ideas land, and why clarity and connection matter more than ever. And is there still a role for the much-maligned PowerPoint sli...

Cyber criminals have seriously damaged some household names recently - M&S, Co-op, North Face, Harrods - but what really happens behind the scenes when a business is hacked? Evan Davis speaks to the former head of information security at Royal Mail about the major attack it suffered in 2023 - from the initial alert and the eye-watering ransom demand, to the media leak and the long, slow rebuil...