The Entrepreneurs

Meadow’s CEO, Victor Ljungberg, shares how smart design can create a practical alternative to single-use packaging. Plus: Lombard Odier Group’s UK CEO, Mark Goddard, talks about Britain’s entrepreneurial environment. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We meet Charlotte Staerck, founder and CEO of the UK’s first luxury aftercare and restoration service, The Handbag Clinic, to assess the health of the circular fashion economy. And: former Six Senses CEO Neil Jacobs talks about the changing expectations of travellers and his role at Capella Hotel Group. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ahmed Elhawary talks about navigating the ups and downs of launching Mayfair Jets just weeks before the pandemic. Plus: The CEO and president of The Leading Hotels of the World, Shannon Knapp, on 2026 travel trends. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We check in with friend of the show Laurent Kleitman, CEO of Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, to discuss its Austrian debut. Plus: Retail veteran Rania Masri El Khatib on her sustainable fashion label, The Giving Movement. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Designer Alexander Neumann talks about the creation of Misfits, a tactile wooden blocks stacking game that started as a student project and is now stocked by more than 35 retailers worldwide. Plus: we catch up with the co-founders of Suri about launching new products ahead of a busy season. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nomad founder Nicolas Bellavance-Lecompte tells us why he brought his remarkable, roaming design showcase to Abu Dhabi airport’s decommissioned Terminal 1 – a modernist marvel designed by Paul Andreu. Plus: the duo betting Indian food could be the new healthy morning staple. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Klättermusen CEO, Gonz Ferrero, talks about balancing heritage and innovation at the Swedish technical apparel brand. And: Edzard van der Wyck joins us to discuss Sheep Inc’s success at the intersection of sustainability and style. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Brendan Nelson, president of Boeing Global, talks about the company’s turning point as airlines in the Middle East place record orders. Plus: A catch up with Dubai Airports CEO, Paul Griffiths. And: Monocle’s Gulf correspondent, Inzaman Rashid, rounds up the deals and stories that defined the Dubai Airshow 2025. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Synhelion co-founder Dr Gianluca Ambrosetti joins us in Zürich to explain how his team is turning sunlight into usable liquid fuel. He talks about the big name partners backing the technology and why scaling solar-made fuels could transform the aviation and mobility industries without overhauling existing infrastructure. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Entrepreneur and Childs Farm founder Joanna Jensen shares how a know-it-all attitude can stall growth and why confidence alone can’t save a struggling enterprise. She discusses lessons from her new book, ‘Making Business Child’s Play: How to Build a Winning Brand’, a practical guide to creating companies that last.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nicolas Budzynski, the CEO of globally acclaimed French Mediterranean restaurant La Petite Maison, shares his expansion plans and why he keeps his team focused on long-term vision. Plus: A dispatch from Aalto Founder School. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

L’Objet founder Elad Yifrach talks about the value of materiality in design, smart collaborations and growing a luxury decor brand celebrated for its commitment to craftsmanship. Plus: we meet the boss of Kachimode, a Japanese firm that investigates whether real estate properties are haunted. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

António Amorim, the CEO of the world's leading producer of cork, talks about the surprising versatility of the material and its many uses in industries from wine to aerospace and construction. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

N.Peal’s owner, Adam Holdsworth, discusses his measured approach to the company’s expansion strategy and collaborations. Plus: We meet Tomokuni Tsuji, the CEO of Sanrio, the Japanese entertainment business behind Hello Kitty. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We visit Wandl in Ruhpolding, Bavaria, where a husband-and-wife team host corporate retreats in a historic alpine farmhouse. Teams leave behind dull hotel rooms to breathe fresh mountain air and find new focus for leadership. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rejoice! Rosé season doesn’t have to end. We meet husband-and-wife duo Stephen and Jeany Cronk, the founders of award-winning rosé brand Maison Mirabeau, which is now sold in over 40 countries. They share how a risky move to Provence paid off and why rosé deserves a place on festive tables. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We meet Ece Gözen, co-founder of Gozen, the biotechnology company behind Lunaform, a biomaterial now catching the attention of major fashion houses such as Balenciaga and offering a new approach to sustainable design. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How Italy is positioning itself to become Europe’s next tech hub. Plus: author Mehran Gul on ‘The New Geography of Innovation: The Global Contest for Breakthrough Technologies’. And: Kagi founder Vladimir Prelovac on the search engine’s answer to combating internet AI slop. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We meet Pietro Collina, co-founder of Whitebox Cocktails, a company making full-strength, single-serve classics such as negronis, espresso martinis and cosmopolitans. Collina talks about creating canned cocktails and scaling the brand to international shelves. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Founder Scott Hudson shares the story of Henrybuilt and how the company constructed a business around custom kitchen systems that combine design, craftsmanship and function. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Founder Natalie Enslöw shares how she launched Fjör, a skincare brand tackling dryness, sensitivity and other skin issues with advanced microbiome technology and a purpose-driven approach. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We explore different ways to build community through entrepreneurship. June O’Sullivan talks about the role of social enterprise in shaping modern business. Then: Alexei Korolyov meets the founder of an independent Viennese cafe chain. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

CEO of Cata, David Brunier, shares his journey to creating a next-generation SaaS platform that launches fully branded consumer apps with no coding and minimal upfront costs, including the top app in Singapore. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Aera co-founders Jas Minhas and Olof Larsson join us at Midori House to discuss how things have been ticking along at their watch brand since Minhas’s previous visit. Plus: Monocle’s Brenda Tuohy on Geneva Watch Days trends. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

French-Togolese architect and co-founder of Studio Neida, Jeanne Autran-Edorh, talks about the future of design in Togo and how her work is making an impact internationally. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.