Before The Billion-Euro Exit: Julian Hearn on Building Huel

This episode was recorded when Huel was four years old and doing £14 million in revenue.You are listening to it knowing what it eventually became.Julian Hearn started Huel with a simple goal: find 1,000 people willing to pay £45 a month for a nutritionally complete food. Half a million pounds a year. A lifestyle business he could run three days a week.When they hit £750,000 in year one, he knew that plan was gone.In this Bite-Sized episode of Screw It Just DO It, Julian talks about the early Huel story: the initial product order of £5,000 of stock, the PR that arrived in the first month without asking for it, the customers who started defending the brand online before Julian even had a team, and why he never wrote a proper business plan for any of it.He also talks about hiring, culture, direct-to-consumer, and why the biggest risk in any product business is manufacturing — not the market.Key Takeaways- Why Huel started as a lifestyle business and when Julian realised it was not going to be one- The 1,000 fans model and why it is the right way to start anything- Why execution beats business plans, and what Julian did instead- How building direct-to-consumer gave Huel a weapon that retail-first competitors never had🎧 This episode is powered by WorldFirst, specialists in international business payments. If your business pays overseas suppliers or receives payments from abroad, those transaction fees can quickly add up. As a Screw It Just DO It listener, you can get 50 international transactions completely fee free for 60 days.👉 Create a free account and claim the offer at worldfirst.com/screwit🎧 Don't miss a moment of entrepreneurial insight. Subscribe to Screw It Just DO It wherever you get your podcasts.🎟️ Join us at the Festival of Entrepreneurs, November 3-4 at NEC Birmingham👉 www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk

Joe Woodward had what most people would call a dream job. Chief Marketing Officer for the Rajasthan Royals in Mumbai. Ten years building things in sport, music and entertainment. Then the pandemic hit, the rug came out from under him, and he moved home.He sat down to update his CV. He immediately got frustrated.That frustration became Vizzy — a platform built to replace the 500-year-old document Leonardo da Vinci invented, and give people a genuinely human way to show who they are. Not bullet points and PDFs. Not job titles and logos. Who they actually are.In this episode of Screw It Just DO It, Joe tells the full story. The flip chart moment with his sister Jess and her husband Chris. The investor conversation with Robert Dodds, Simon Fuller's business partner, that ended with four words: 'That's the idea. I'll back it tomorrow.' The cold start launch. The Instagram DM from a stranger who said Vizzy had just landed them their dream job. And the lesson from Burberry, Louis Vuitton, EY and Tiffany that the future of hiring is not about getting more applicants — it's about getting fewer, better ones.Key Takeaways- Why the flip chart moment changed everything — and what that looked like in practice- How Joe went from zero to Burberry and Louis Vuitton without a hiring background- Why the best founders are still personally obsessed with hiring at £2 billion- What Vizzy taught Joe about the difference between instinct and overthinking🎧 This episode is powered by WorldFirst, specialists in international business payments. If your business pays overseas suppliers or receives payments from abroad, those transaction fees can quickly add up. As a Screw It Just DO It listener, you can get 50 international transactions completely fee free for 60 days.👉 Create a free account and claim the offer at worldfirst.com/screwit🎧 Listen to the full episode of Screw It Just DO It🎟️ Join us at the Festival of Entrepreneurs, November 3-4 at NEC Birmingham👉 www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk

Raj Thiruchelvarajah was running a health and fitness business when his co-founder sent him a document that changed everything. It was an idea about wearable blood flow restriction technology. Within months, Raj had shut down his original company and gone all-in on Hydro.In this Bite-Sized episode of Screw It Just DO It, Raj explains the exact moment he knew they had to pivot — the internal disagreements, the decisive call he had to make as CEO, and why April 2022 was the turning point that blew the business up.From Leeds Rhinos to Newcastle United, Leicester Tigers and the Washington Commanders, Hydro is now embedded across 80+ elite sports teams globally. This is the story of how focus — not funding — made that possible.Key Takeaways• Why trying to serve every customer nearly killed the business• How one decisive pivot to pro sports transformed growth• The screw it just do it moment that started it all• Why experience matters more than age in founding a startup🎧 This episode is powered by WorldFirst, specialists in international business payments. If your business pays overseas suppliers or receives payments from abroad, those transaction fees can quickly add up. As a Screw It Just DO It listener, you can get 50 international transactions completely fee free for 60 days.👉 Create a free account and claim the offer at worldfirst.com/screwit🎧 Don't miss a moment of entrepreneurial insight. Subscribe to Screw It Just DO It wherever you get your podcasts.🎟️ Join us at the Festival of Entrepreneurs, November 3–4 at NEC Birmingham👉 www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.ukTwo days of real conversations, practical insight, and founder-led growth.👉 www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk

For 20 years Dominic Day knew exactly who he was.Professional rugby player. Wales international. Saracens. Bath.Then it stopped.No changing room. No match day. No structure. Just questions.Who am I now? Dad? Founder? Ex-player?In this conversation Dom talks about what it actually feels like when 20 years of identity ends overnight, what the transition from elite sport into business is really like, and why the best opportunities in his life — playing in Japan, moving to Bath, starting FourFive with George Kruis — have always been on the other side of fear.Key Takeaways:- Why Dom was wildly unprepared for retirement despite every club having a support system- The identity question he is still working through years after leaving rugby- The 30-year regret test he uses for every major decision- What it actually felt like when three orders came through on a website they'd only just switched on- Why balancing fatherhood and building FourFive is the hardest thing he has ever had to do🎧 This episode is powered by WorldFirst, specialists in international business payments. If your business pays overseas suppliers or receives payments from abroad, those transaction fees can quickly add up. As a Screw It Just DO It listener, you can get 50 international transactions completely fee free for 60 days.👉 Create a free account and claim the offer at worldfirst.com/screwit🎧 Listen to the full episode of Screw It Just DO It🎟️ Join us at the Festival of Entrepreneurs, November 3-4 at NEC Birmingham👉 www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk

Daniel Priestley started every one of his businesses on a credit card.No investor deck. No grant. No seed round. A mentor he shadowed, a sales muscle he built from scratch, and a clear-eyed read of where the economy was heading.In this Bite-Sized episode of Screw It Just DO It, I ask Daniel the one question that cuts to the heart of every founder journey: what was the single thing you needed to go from where you were to where you are now?His answer is not what most people expect. And the framework he uses to explain why enterprise has become the only factor of production that matters in the digital age is one of the clearest things I have heard on this show.If you are stuck waiting for the right moment, the right funding, or the right connection, this is the episode that reframes all of it.Key Takeaways- Why working for a founder beats any formal business education- How a credit card became the launchpad for a multi-million pound business- Why sales is not optional, it is the foundation- What the shift from the industrial age to the digital age actually means for founders right now🎧 This episode is powered by WorldFirst, specialists in international business payments. If your business pays overseas suppliers or receives payments from abroad, those transaction fees can quickly add up. As a Screw It Just DO It listener, you can get 50 international transactions completely fee free for 60 days.👉 Create a free account and claim the offer at worldfirst.com/screwit🎧 Don't miss a moment of entrepreneurial insight. Subscribe to Screw It Just DO It wherever you get your podcasts.🔥 If you're serious about growing your business, join us at the Festival of Entrepreneurs, 3-4 November 2026 at the NEC Birmingham. Two days of real conversations, practical insight, and founder-led growth.👉 www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk

Danielle Close didn’t just launch another skincare brand.After working with Charlotte Tilbury and seeing how little the beauty industry was doing around sustainability, she launched My Skin Feels — creating skincare from fermented food waste.What happened next surprised everyone.Customers started reporting major improvements in eczema, sensitive skin and skin conditions completely by accident.In this episode Danielle shares:Turning down a £250K investmentBuilding a startup completely aloneBurnout and founder mental healthThe hidden stress of scaling a businessDragon’s Den behind-the-scenesBuilding skincare from food wasteHow intuition shaped major business decisionsOne of the most honest founder conversations we've had on SIJDI.#Entrepreneurship #Startup #Skincare #FounderStory #MentalHealth #BusinessGrowth

Leroy Kincaide has lived about five lives already.Undertaker at 17. Professional wrestler. WWE SmackDown. Writer. Director.But this episode isn't really about any of those things.It's about what happens when you see mortality up close at a young age — and how that one experience changes the way you view every decision you'll ever make.In this Bite-Sized episode of Screw It Just DO It, Leroy talks about working as an undertaker at 17 and the perspective it gave him on time, instinct, and purpose. He shares the moment he walked into WWE — unannounced — and just knocked the door. And he explains why he ignored years of doubt to make his debut feature film for £27,000, which went on to be picked up by Samuel Goldwyn and land on Hulu.This is a conversation about listening to the voice that tells you where you're supposed to go. And the cost of ignoring it.Key Takeaways• Why working as an undertaker at 17 changed Leroy's relationship with time forever• The inner calling that wouldn't go away — from wrestler to filmmaker• The screw it just do it moment at WWE SmackDown• Why he did the pitch of his life on the same day he lost his grandmother• The difference between being happy and being content🎧 This episode is powered by WorldFirst, specialists in international business payments. If your business pays overseas suppliers or receives payments from abroad, those transaction fees can quickly add up. As a Screw It Just DO It listener, you can get 50 international transactions completely fee free for 60 days.👉 Create a free account and claim the offer at worldfirst.com/screwit🎧 Don't miss a moment of entrepreneurial insight. Subscribe to Screw It Just DO It wherever you get your podcasts.🎟️ Join us at the Festival of Entrepreneurs, November 3–4 at NEC Birmingham. Two days of real conversations, practical insight, and founder-led growth.👉 www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk

Roei Samuel built his first company at 21. Real Sport was a content creation toolkit for the sports industry — working with the Premier League, NBA and NFL — before being acquired by Gfinity in 2018. Then came the identity crisis. The "who am I now?" moment that every founder dreads.What followed was Connected: a fractional talent marketplace that has grown from zero to 7,000 customers in just over four years, raised $20 million, and is now operating across five global cities.In this episode of Screw It Just DO It, Roei breaks down the exact moment AI became Connected's biggest growth driver — and why it wasn't just productivity that changed, but the entire labour market. He shares why he spoke to 100 people before building anything, how he's generated 7–8 figures from LinkedIn without spending a penny, and why product is no longer the moat for modern founders.Key Takeaways• Why AI is driving both productivity gains and mass corporate layoffs — and how Connected benefits from both• How to validate a startup idea by speaking to 100 people before building• Why distribution and attention now matter more than product• The identity crisis every founder faces after an exit• How weekly therapy has made Roei a better CEO🎧 This episode is powered by WorldFirst, specialists in international business payments. If your business pays overseas suppliers or receives payments from abroad, those transaction fees can quickly add up. As a Screw It Just DO It listener, you can get 50 international transactions completely fee free for 60 days.👉 Create a free account and claim the offer at worldfirst.com/screwit🎧 Listen to the full episode of Screw It Just DO It🎟️ Join us at the Festival of Entrepreneurs, November 3–4 at NEC Birmingham. Two days of real conversations, practical insight, and founder-led growth.👉 www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk

Eugene Amo-Dadzie has been fast his whole life. He knew it. His teachers knew it. His parents knew it.He just never actually tried.From the age of nine, Eugene was the fastest kid in the school. He grew up watching Usain Bolt and dreamed of the track. But running was always just a hobby — something to enjoy, never something to pursue. His parents pushed academics. His culture valued qualifications. And somewhere along the way, Eugene made a quiet peace with never finding out how good he actually was.For years he was the guy who said: if I had tried, I could have done it.Then, at 26, standing beside an athletics track in Woodford, his best friend turned to him and said: think you could put a pair of spikes on and beat these guys?In this Bite-Sized episode of Screw It Just DO It, Eugene tells the story of what happened when he finally said yes. A debut season that ended with a torn hamstring. A British Championship silver medal. A sub-10-second 100 metres. And a semi-final at the World Athletics Championships — where he lined up against the Olympic champion, the World champion, and the Commonwealth champion in the same race.All of it starting at 26. All of it built around a full-time accounting career, a wife, a daughter, and a job he loves.Key Takeaways- Why Eugene spent years believing in his talent without ever testing it — and what finally changed- What the Parable of the Talents taught him about buried potential- How to handle a setback that arrives before you have even properly started- What it takes to balance elite sport with a full-time career, a family, and faith🎧 This episode is powered by WorldFirst, specialists in international business payments. If your business pays overseas suppliers or receives payments from abroad, those transaction fees can quickly add up. As a Screw It Just DO It listener, you can get 50 international transactions completely fee free for 60 days.👉 Create a free account and claim the offer at worldfirst.com/screwit🎧 Listen to the full episode of Screw It Just DO It🎟️ Join us at the Festival of Entrepreneurs, November 3-4 at NEC Birmingham👉 www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk

Carly Meyers was a professional West End dancer. An injury ended her career with no plan B.That same no-plan-B mentality drove her from Apple business specialist to digital course builder to one of the most practical voices on AI implementation for founders in the UK.In this episode of Screw It Just DO It, I sit down with Carly to talk about why most founders are getting AI completely wrong, why tools without infrastructure create more problems than they solve, and how her Simplify, Automate, Amplify framework helps founders compete at scale without a large team.We get into speed to lead, the opportunity quadrant, and why the founders who do not adapt now will find themselves looking up at competitors they did not even know existed.Key Takeaways• Why choosing tools over infrastructure is the number one AI mistake founders make• The Simplify, Automate, Amplify framework explained step by step• How AI levels the playing field for a team of one• What happens to founders who wait🎧 This episode is powered by WorldFirst, specialists in international business payments. If your business pays overseas suppliers or receives payments from abroad, those transaction fees can quickly add up.As a Screw It Just DO It listener, you can get 50 international transactions completely fee free for 60 days.👉 Create a free account and claim the offer at worldfirst.com/screwit🎧 Listen to the full episode of Screw It Just DO It🎟️ Join us at the Festival of Entrepreneurs, November 3–4 at NEC Birmingham👉 www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk