Tell Beyond with Heloise Finch

How do you turn a personal parenting problem into an award winning sustainable baby care business?In this episode of Tell Beyond, Heloise Finch speaks with Laura Crawford, founder and CEO of Mama Bamboo, about leaving a successful corporate career in management consulting and banking to build an ethical British nappy brand.Laura explains how her son’s sensitive skin, leaking eco nappies and the demands of reusable nappies exposed a major gap in the UK baby care market. With support from her father’s manufacturing network in China, she began developing bamboo nappies that combined performance, comfort, affordability and environmental responsibility.The conversation explores female entrepreneurship, motherhood and career balance, sustainable FMCG, product development, direct to consumer subscriptions, B Corp values, cash flow, supply chain disruption and the emotional reality of running a business. Laura also reveals how soaring freight costs brought Mama Bamboo close to closure and forced her to make one of the hardest leadership decisions of her career.This episode covers:Laura Crawford’s journey from management consultant to entrepreneurHow her parents shaped her approach to business and social responsibilityChoosing career security through consulting and bankingWhat Accenture taught Laura about problem solving and business structureBalancing motherhood, ambition and a demanding corporate careerThe parenting problem that inspired Mama BambooBamboo nappies, reusable nappies, nappy rash and sustainable baby careFinding manufacturers and developing a better nappy productThe support Laura received from her father’s manufacturing networkBuilding Mama Bamboo with cofounder JennyThe financial and emotional sacrifices involved in entrepreneurshipRunning a direct to consumer subscription business around family lifeProtecting sustainability, affordability and customer trustB Corp values and the importance of avoiding greenwashingSurviving rising freight costs and global supply chain disruptionThe leadership decision that kept Mama Bamboo tradingDeveloping fully compostable nappiesCampaigning for better nappy waste and composting policies in the UKKey Moments:00:00: Introduction02:54: Growing up with entrepreneurship and community service07:17: Laura’s childhood ambition to lead her own company11:10: Choosing consultancy and discovering the limits of career security14:24: What Accenture taught Laura about solving problems17:21: Why running a business is harder than consulting21:32: Frustration with slow corporate change in banking24:08: Realising corporate life would not fit the mother she wanted to be29:12: Two young children, nappy rash and the idea for Mama Bamboo34:16: How Jenny became Laura’s cofounder37:14: Building a business around motherhood and family life38:29: Why a strong network makes entrepreneurship possible39:28: The corporate systems that still power Mama Bamboo41:24: Protecting sustainability and refusing to greenwash46:00: Laura’s advice for founders entering a major product category

How did a British family farm become one of the UK’s leading gluten-free food manufacturers - and successfully defend itself against a global oat drink giant?In this episode of Tell Beyond, Heloise Finch speaks with Philip Rayner, owner and managing director of Glebe Farm Foods, the UK’s only farm growing and processing certified gluten-free oats.Philip shares how he combined farming, engineering and entrepreneurship to build a vertically integrated food business producing gluten-free oats, porridge, granola, oat flour and their award-winning oat drink range.They discuss the realities of running a family business, British food manufacturing, product innovation, sustainable farming and the importance of controlling the supply chain from field to finished product.In This Episode:Building a business from a family farmCambridge engineering and entrepreneurshipGrowing and processing gluten-free oatsVertical integration and supply-chain controlScaling a British food manufacturing businessWorking with familyProduct innovation and plant-based foodGlebe Farm’s High Court battleBritish farming, sustainability and climate changeFamily business successionKey Moments:0:00 – Work ethic, family and fighting back00:59 – Why the Glebe Farm story matters03:05 – Farmer, engineer and entrepreneur07:15 – Learning to finish every job13:29 – Cambridge and nanotechnology18:51 – Returning to the family business25:27 – Why great ideas are not enough26:59 – Building a field-to-product supply chain29:12 – What makes oats gluten-free?34:38 – Running a business with family39:31 – The Oatly trademark battle44:52 – What winning changed48:44 – Sustainability and British farming51:28 – Succession and the next generation

Clem Schoutenden began her career in genetics research — on a path that is demanding, defined, and difficult to leave. Raised in France, she also grew up within a set of expectations about what a successful life looks like, and how a woman is expected to behave within it. She went on to a high-status corporate role. And still, something didn’t fit. Clem left both to build a business of her own — starting from something small and uncertain, now far beyond what she first imagined. In this conversation, she reflects on what it takes to step away from paths that make sense on paper, and the quieter challenge of unlearning the instinct to please. We talk about: leaving a career in genetics, and the weight of walking away the tension between expectation and instinct building a business before it looks like success why ambition is still something women are asked to justify and the moment she stopped waiting for permission A conversation about leadership, identity, and what happens when you choose your own direction. 🎧 Catch the full episode on YouTube, Spotify, Apple, or Amazon, just search “Tell Beyond Podcast.” Listen & Connect: 🎧 Full episode: https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond 🎙️ More episodes of Tell Beyond: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEZEJAVAHhXn1Abg8CdiXblO6odiR9LMx If you're new to the show, welcome. We're so glad you're here. Find us and follow us on LinkedIn: / https://www.linkedin.com/in/heloisefb/ Instagram: / heloisefinch_sellbeyond TikTok: / heloise.finch Facebook: / Sell Beyond Website: / https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond Credits Host: Dr Heloise Finch Our email address is [email protected] Listen on: Apple podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch/id1845135397 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/68N9bMDmR5dzH5l1QzW3wA Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/f302b1ef-c161-4868-a7d6-e8630be2b20d/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch

What does it take to move from outsider to leader? In this episode of Tell Beyond, Sara Wajid MBE reflects on growing up as the only non-white family on her street, learning early how to read a room, and understanding what it means to belong. Or not. She shares how those early experiences shaped her instinct to question systems, build alliances, and eventually step into positions of real influence as co-CEO of Birmingham Museums Trust. This is a conversation about power: who has it, who doesn’t, and what happens when you decide to use yours differently. Sara talks about: Growing up between cultures and learning to translate the world The emotional cost of being “the only one” in the room Activism as care, not confrontation Leading during uncertainty, and when there is no clear plan Building movements like Museum Detox and creating space for others Holding authority without losing empathy She reflects on the tension between politeness and truth, between fitting in and speaking up, and what changes when you stop asking permission. At its heart, this episode asks: Who gets to tell the story? And what happens when the outsider becomes the one holding the microphone? A thoughtful, honest conversation about belonging, responsibility, and becoming the kind of leader you once searched for. 🎧 Catch the full episode on YouTube, Spotify, Apple, or Amazon, just search “Tell Beyond Podcast.” Listen & Connect: 🎧 Full episode: https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond 🎙️ More episodes of Tell Beyond: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEZEJAVAHhXn1Abg8CdiXblO6odiR9LMx If you're new to the show, welcome. We're so glad you're here. Find us and follow us on LinkedIn: / https://www.linkedin.com/in/heloisefb/ Instagram: / heloisefinch_sellbeyond TikTok: / heloise.finch Facebook: / Sell Beyond Website: / https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond Credits Host: Dr Heloise Finch Our email address is [email protected] Listen on: Apple podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch/id1845135397 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/68N9bMDmR5dzH5l1QzW3wA Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/f302b1ef-c161-4868-a7d6-e8630be2b20d/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch

On Tell Beyond, presenter Heloise Finch speaks with Kav Tanna, founder of Discount Fabrics, about the tension between security and ambition — and what happens when those forces collide. Kav grew up in a British Asian family shaped by stories of displacement, survival and starting again. His parents arrived in the UK after being forced to leave East Africa, carrying a deep belief in safety, stability and hard work. That history shaped how Kav understands money and responsibility — but it also created a quiet inner conflict. While he was raised to avoid risk, he has always felt drawn to it. After qualifying as an accountant and building a successful corporate career, Kav chose to step away. Not out of rebellion, but out of restlessness. What followed was the challenge of building a business alongside a father who had earned security the hard way, while learning to trust his own appetite for risk, decision-making and independence. This is a conversation about inheritance that goes beyond money. About how survival instincts are passed down through generations. About the unspoken emotional weight inside family businesses. And about why choosing uncertainty can feel both freeing and frightening when you know what your parents endured to create safety. In this episode, we explore: Growing up British Asian with survival woven into everyday thinking Why security and entrepreneurship often pull in opposite directions The hidden emotional dynamics of working in and alongside a family business Money as protection, pressure and possibility Learning when inherited rules still serve you — and when they quietly hold you back This episode is for you if: You’ve ever felt grateful and restless at the same time You were raised to value stability but feel drawn to risk, change or ownership You’re navigating family expectations, cultural inheritance or generational pressure You’re trying to honour where you come from while choosing what comes next 🎧 Catch the full episode on YouTube, Spotify, Apple, or Amazon, just search “Tell Beyond Podcast.”  Listen & Connect:  🎧 Full episode: https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond  🎙️ More episodes of Tell Beyond: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEZEJAVAHhXn1Abg8CdiXblO6odiR9LMx  If you're new to the show, welcome. We're so glad you're here. Find us and follow us on  LinkedIn: / https://www.linkedin.com/in/heloisefb/  Instagram: / heloisefinch_sellbeyond  TikTok: / heloise.finch  Facebook: / Sell Beyond  Website: / https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond  Credits Host: Dr Heloise Finch  Guest: Kav Tanna (CEO, Discount Fabrics)  Email: [email protected]  Listen on:  Apple podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch/id1845135397  Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/68N9bMDmR5dzH5l1QzW3wA  Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/f302b1ef-c161-4868-a7d6-e8630be2b20d/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch 

What happens when the life you planned no longer fits? Mark Todd’s story begins in hospital corridors. Born with scoliosis, he missed school, endured painful surgeries, and was once laughed at for daring to imagine university. Against the odds, he became a solicitor. But something still felt unfinished. So Mark did something quietly radical. He left the courtroom for the coast. Today, Mark is CEO of Ocean Youth Trust South, Chair of the Association of Sail Training Organisations, and an MBE for services to sailing and young people. In this deeply human conversation, he shares how the sea became his teacher, and how adventure can become a lifeline for those who feel they don’t quite fit. With warmth, humour and honesty, Mark reflects on: Growing up with a visible difference and learning resilience early Being underestimated and deciding not to accept it The moment he realised law - a respectable, hard-won career - still wasn’t enough How sailing creates space for young people to discover who they really are Why challenge, nature and teamwork can change the course of a life What it feels like to be recognised with an MBE, and why it’s only “level one” This episode explores what happens when the life you worked so hard to build no longer feels like home, and how freedom can be found in unexpected places, far beyond classrooms through taking people and outside their comfort zones.  It’s for anyone who’s built a life that looks “right,” yet hears a small, stubborn voice wondering what might happen if they followed something braver. Listen & Connect 🎧 Full episode: https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond 🎙️ More episodes: Tell Beyond Podcast with Dr Heloise Finch  Follow Tell Beyond LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heloisefb Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heloisefinch_sellbeyond TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@heloise.finch Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SellBeyond  Credits Host: Dr Heloise Finch Guest: Mark Todd, MBE (CEO, Ocean Youth Trust South) Email: [email protected] 

In this episode of Tell Beyond, Heloise Finch talks to Nina Metson, whose life has taken her from a childhood spent in her parents’ lively hair salon to a career across journalism, marketing and HR. After losing her mother, Nina found a new kind of clarity: the kind that makes fear feel smaller and bravery feel possible. So when her mentor unexpectedly offered her the chance to buy the business she worked for, she said yes before she had time to talk herself out of it.Nina shares how grief reshaped her courage, why she spent years hiding her own brilliance, and what it took to finally step forward. From the legacy of her parents’ business to the moment she realised she'd had enough of playing small, this is a story about loss, grit and the power of saying yes when life opens a door.🎧 Catch the full episode on YouTube, Spotify, Apple, or Amazon, just search “Tell Beyond Podcast.”Listen & Connect:🎧 Full episode: https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond📸 Follow Nina Metson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nina-metson/🎙️ More episodes of Tell Beyond: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEZEJAVAHhXn1Abg8CdiXblO6odiR9LMx🔖 Hashtags:#TellBeyond #WomenInBusiness #FemaleEntrepreneur #GriefAndGrowth #FindingCourage #BraveryOverFear #LeadershipJourney #CareerTransformation #InspirationalStoriesIf you're new to the show, welcome. We're so glad you're here. Find us and follow us onLinkedIn: / https://www.linkedin.com/in/heloisefb/Instagram: / heloisefinch_sellbeyondTikTok: / heloise.finchFacebook: / Sell BeyondWebsite: / https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyondCreditsHost: Dr Heloise FinchOur email address is [email protected] on:Apple podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch/id1845135397Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/68N9bMDmR5dzH5l1QzW3wAAmazon Music - https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/f302b1ef-c161-4868-a7d6-e8630be2b20d/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch

What does it take to turn fear into fuel and ambition into action? Jacqueline Taylor-Foo knows. From a challenging childhood to making her mark in the toy industry, she shares the hard lessons, bold moves, and unexpected moments that shaped her journey. This episode is full of candid insights on chasing your dreams, embracing risk, and finding your own path—even when the way isn’t clear. If you’ve ever wondered how to balance ambition with self-doubt, this conversation is for you. Listen & Connect:  🎧 Full episode: https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond 📸 Follow Jacqueline Taylor-Foo: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacquelinetf/  🎙️ More episodes of Tell Beyond: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEZEJAVAHhXn1Abg8CdiXblO6odiR9LMx If you're new to the show, welcome. We're so glad you're here. Find us and follow us on  LinkedIn: / https://www.linkedin.com/in/heloisefb/ Instagram: / heloisefinch_sellbeyond  TikTok: / heloise.finch Facebook: / Sell Beyond Website: / https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond  Credits Host: Dr Heloise Finch  Our email address is [email protected]  Listen on:  Apple podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch/id1845135397 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/68N9bMDmR5dzH5l1QzW3wA Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/f302b1ef-c161-4868-a7d6-e8630be2b20d/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch 

What do you do when the world makes it clear you don’t belong? 💭 Matt Southgate knows. From being told “We’ll only accept you at your funeral” to being refused service because he was “a foreigner,” he’s faced rejection head-on. And yet… he kept going. From the funeral industry to becoming a TV presenter, Matt’s journey wasn’t planned, but it was powered by one thing: unshakable self-belief. This week on Tell Beyond Podcast, we dive into a story of resilience, courage, and finding your place—on your own terms. 🎧 Catch the full episode on YouTube, Spotify, Apple, or Amazon, just search “Tell Beyond Podcast.”  If you’ve ever felt like you didn’t belong, this episode is for you. Listen & Connect:  🎧 Full episode: https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond 📸 Follow Matt Southgate: https://www.tiktok.com/@mattsouthgate2  🎙️ More episodes of Tell Beyond: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEZEJAVAHhXn1Abg8CdiXblO6odiR9LMx If you're new to the show, welcome. We're so glad you're here. Find us and follow us on  LinkedIn: / https://www.linkedin.com/in/heloisefb/ Instagram: / heloisefinch_sellbeyond  TikTok: / heloise.finch Facebook: / Sell Beyond Website: / https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond  Credits Host: Dr Heloise Finch  Our email address is [email protected]  Listen on:  Apple podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch/id1845135397 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/68N9bMDmR5dzH5l1QzW3wA Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/f302b1ef-c161-4868-a7d6-e8630be2b20d/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch 

How do you keep going when the people closest to you don’t understand your dream? 💭 That’s something so many founders and creatives face. And it’s exactly what Sam Feller, co-founder of Popcorn Shed opened up about in our latest episode of the Tell Beyond Podcast with Heloise Finch. From starting a side hustle to running a premium popcorn brand sold across the UK, Sam shares what he’s learned about resilience, risk, and running a company your own way, even when others don’t see the vision yet. 🍿 If you’ve ever had to believe in your dream before anyone else did — this one’s for you. From side hustles to a full-time food business, Sam Feller shares what he’s learned about resilience, risk, and running a business your own way. 🎧 Catch the full episode on YouTube, Spotify, Apple, or Amazon, just search “Tell Beyond Podcast.”  Listen & Connect: 🎧 Full episode: https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond 🌐 Popcorn Shed: https://www.linkedin.com/company/popcornshed/ and @popcornshed 📸 Follow Sam Feller: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thatsamfeller/  🎙️ More episodes of Tell Beyond: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEZEJAVAHhXn1Abg8CdiXblO6odiR9LMx If you're new to the show, welcome. We're so glad you're here. Find us and follow us on  LinkedIn: / https://www.linkedin.com/in/heloisefb/ Instagram: / heloisefinch_sellbeyond  TikTok: / heloise.finch Facebook: / Sell Beyond Website: / https://www.sell-beyond.com/tell-beyond  Credits Host: Dr Heloise Finch  Our email address is [email protected] Listen on:  Apple podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch/id1845135397 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/68N9bMDmR5dzH5l1QzW3wA Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/f302b1ef-c161-4868-a7d6-e8630be2b20d/tell-beyond-with-heloise-finch