Founders with Nick – Détails, épisodes et analyse

Sam Winsbury, founder of Kurogo, joins the show for a sharp, tactical conversation on building a personal brand that actually drives business, especially on LinkedIn. Forget vanity metrics or recycled advice; this is about creating content that positions you as the go-to in your niche, not just another voice in the feed.

Sam's unpacking the systems behind building authority at scale, how founders should approach personal content differently, and why attention without conversion is a waste of time.

🟣 In this episode, we’re diving deep into:

💡 Why most LinkedIn content fails to build real trust
🧠 The psychology behind content that converts
🔧 How to systemise your personal brand without sounding robotic
📈 Balancing growth, positioning, and monetisation as a founder
🛠️ Creating leverage from content that compounds over time

This is an episode worth tuning into if you’re serious about making your online presence drive real results.

Timestamps:
00:00 Introductions
01:00 Starting a marketing agency straight after graduation
04:00 Hustling for freelance gigs and the unexpected power of LinkedIn
06:28 Overcoming fear and shame when you start posting online
08:32 Insecurity and building conviction as a young founder
10:30 Splitting the business into agency and education models
14:44 Do you actually need a personal brand to succeed?
16:41 The 30-day game plan to build your brand from scratch
18:52 What part of Sam still feels unseen despite all the visibility
20:00 Why 10% extra effort changes everything
26:48 Fear of complacency and being driven by internal standards
29:57 Grief, ambition, and the emotion behind building something alone
30:41 Founder vs performer, how personal branding blurs the line
33:17 Hiring globally and building a high-performing remote team
36:00 Growing beyond LinkedIn, adding PR, speaking, and funnels
39:21 Why most of LinkedIn content feels cringey and superficial
42:14 Image plus text - what actually performs best right now
44:27 Sam’s no-BS approach to routines

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→ Follow Sam:
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Starting a winery in a city with no vineyards is bold—but doing it as a trio of first-time founders takes a different level of trust and tension. In this episode, I’m joined by Ross McLauchlan and Matt Smith—two of the three minds behind The Austin Winery (Cooper in spirit)—to unpack what co-founding really looks like behind the scenes. From blurred roles and creative conflict to growing pains and long-haul alignment, they share how the partnership evolved, what nearly broke it, and what’s kept it strong over a decade of building. It’s a refreshingly honest look at what it takes to build something meaningful without burning out—or burning bridges.

00:00 Introduction
01:00 How wine became their cultural bridge
06:08 Launching Austin's first urban winery
08:42 The hidden challenges of wine production
13:23 Reshaping Texas wine's reputation
16:08 Making wine approachable for everyone
20:13 What they'd do differently now
23:15 Wisdom for aspiring wine entrepreneurs
25:30 Staying passionate after a full decade
27:32 The value in starting small
28:43 Navigating decisions as cofounders
33:04 Inside the winery's team culture
35:18 Finding balance in workplace dynamics
42:11 Breaking down wine business economics
46:06 When politics disrupted their global plans
50:05 The five-year vision ahead
54:23 Stories behind their signature bottles
57:50 Approaching each wine like an album release

→ Follow Founders With Nick:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/founderswithnick
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/founders-with-nick

→ Nick Langridge
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-langridge/
LNGR: https://www.lngr.co.uk/

→ Follow Austin Winery:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theaustinwinery/?hl=en
Austin Winery: https://www.theaustinwinery.com/

On this episode of Founders With Nick, I am joined by Harry Turpin of The Savourists Ltd.

Harry is trying to conquer the healthy snack isle and disrupt and entire industry. He speaks about how he got into the snack game, what he thinks of the consumer and how his business is going to be the go to brand of healthy snacking.

Enjoy the show!

Founders with Nick | Episode 2: Navigating the VC Landscape with Daniel Sawko

In this episode, I sit down with Daniel Sawko, the founder of Ship Shape VC, to explore his journey from the world of finance to launching a platform that simplifies venture capital fundraising for startups.

He is a hugely likeable individual, who is intelligent, driven and focused to ensure ShipShape is authority in search engines for the VC world and beyond.

Whether you're a startup founder or just curious about the inner workings of the VC ecosystem, this conversation is packed with valuable advice and perspectives.

Founders with Nick - Episode 1: Tom Cullen, Founder of Zoplo

In the debut episode of Founders with Nick, we sit down with Tom Cullen, the visionary founder of Zoplo, the largest Gen Z polling app in the world. Tom takes us on an inspiring journey, from his humble beginnings growing up on a council estate to his academic pursuits at Newcastle University.

We delve into his early career experiences at EY and Barclays, where he honed his skills in sales and thrived in fast-paced environments. These pivotal moments paved the way for the creation of Zoplo, a groundbreaking app that is set to revolutionise the polling industry.

Join us as Tom shares his origin story, the challenges he faced, and his aspirations for Zoplo to become the next big thing in the world of polling.

Founders With Nick is on the move—this week, we're in Austin, TX with Abel Olmos, founder of The Barbashop, to break down the truth behind building a brick-and-mortar brand from scratch. Far beyond clean fades and cool interiors, Abel reveals what it really takes to scale a people-first business in a saturated space.

From team dynamics and toxic hires to co-founder trust and learning how to let go, this episode explores the uncomfortable but necessary challenges of early-stage leadership.

Whether you're building a barbershop or a startup, the mindset shifts and management lessons here are universal.

• 00:00 Introduction of Abel Olmos
• 01:20 Who you must become for business growth
• 03:50 Finding purpose through early pivots
• 06:26 The magic of finding your cofounder
• 10:05 Building safety and reframing failure
• 13:06 Handling conflict without toxic culture
• 16:42 Knowing when to walk away
• 19:14 How culture naturally filters out toxicity
• 22:38 Bronx roots and adapting to New York
• 26:47 Breaking free from corporate identity boxes
• 28:43 Escape plan for corporate workers
• 35:40 Expanding through hospitality and vision
• 40:05 Playing your own game, not theirs
• 44:55 The moment everything had to change
• 49:23 Creating space for creativity at work
• 52:00 Being the boss you always needed

→ Follow Founders With Nick:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/founderswithnick
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/founders-with-nick

→ Nick Langridge
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-langridge/
Website: https://www.lngr.co.uk/

→ Follow Abel:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abelolmos-pm/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abelolmos/
The Barbashop: https://www.thebarba.shop

Ross Neal—former professional rugby player turned performance consultant—brings a refreshingly honest take on ambition, burnout, and the myth of high-performance culture. We often assume elite athletes are relentlessly driven from day one, but Ross admits he coasted early, only stepping up when the risk of failure became real.

In this episode, he reveals what finally lit the fire, why pressure is really about uncertainty, and how many “high performers” aren’t as disciplined as they claim. A sharp, grounded conversation for any founder or entrepreneur aiming for the next level.

Episode timeline

• 0:00 Meeting Ross and his rugby beginnings
• 06:06 First pro contract and financial lessons
• 10:22 Finding your edge through desperation
• 14:02 Breaking into Wasps’ first team
• 20:49 Career highs, regrets and team culture
• 24:35 From rugby pitch to business world
• 31:26 Building high performance in companies
• 35:53 Creating meaningful workplace interactions
• 39:57 Smart hiring for entrepreneurs
• 42:49 Using your unique expertise

Connect

→ Follow Founders With Nick:
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→ Nick Langridge:
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→ Follow Ross:
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Everyone thinks starting a fashion brand is about aesthetics and creativity—but Ben Hurren knows it's about obsession, patience, and operational grit. After two decades leading menswear at Harvey Nichols, Selfridges, and REISS, Ben’s now building Vingt Quarte: a denim brand four years in the making, born from a gap he saw and couldn’t unsee.

In this episode, Ben shares the reality of launching a fashion business with deep industry experience but zero startup experience. From botched factory relationships to production delays, he opens up about the lessons that almost broke the brand—and the moments that kept it alive. If you’ve ever dreamt of building a label from scratch, this one’s for you.

Episode timeline

• 0:00 The journey into fashion
• 03:39 Learning from industry veterans
• 06:11 When e-commerce changed everything
• 11:18 Inside Selfridges’ buying strategies
• 17:34 How men and women shop differently
• 21:07 The vision behind Concept24
• 25:40 Taking the entrepreneurial leap
• 28:10 Vingt Quarte’s story and valuable failures
• 33:11 Building a team while keeping your vision
• 35:18 Planning for growth and eventual exit
• 38:37 Why fashion startups struggle to survive
• 42:48 The manufacturing challenge
• 44:18 Wisdom for fashion entrepreneurs
• 45:57 Building beyond the brand

Connect

→ Follow Founders With Nick:
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→ Nick Langridge:
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LNGR

→ Follow Ben:
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Starting a business with no experience sounds like a risk—but for this week’s guests Nicklas Vang & Leopold Henriksen, it became their greatest advantage. With no background in supplements, the co-founders of SUPPLME questioned everything the industry took for granted—from outdated pill formats to poor absorption rates.In this episode, they share how a lockdown routine in Copenhagen sparked the idea of a supplement company, the reality of bootstrapping while working full-time, and how they turned scientific curiosity into a fully-fledged supplement brand. From failed manufacturers to bluffing their way into pitch meetings, Nicklas and Leopold prove that with enough grit, energy, and belief, you don’t need industry expertise to build something that matters.0:00 Paddle board conversations that sparked a business04:43 When casual ideas turn serious06:13 Balancing day jobs with startup dreams07:30 Securing crucial government funding08:28 Taking the leap to full-time founders09:44 The supplement industry's dirty secrets11:09 Finding their place in a crowded market13:36 Understanding their ideal customer15:45 Startup life in Denmark18:51 Navigating co-founder relationships21:31 Early sales lessons and B2B focus23:48 Building the first team and community26:00 Breaking down the science behind their product29:35 Learning from early mistakes33:56 Why DTC failed and finding their path36:38 Landing their first major clients39:52 Creative ways to get meetings43:20 The high-pressure first big delivery44:11 The Antler experience and pitch insights45:55 Growing into confident founders48:08 Key takeaways from their journey49:10 Co-founding versus going solo→ Follow Founders With Nick:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/founderswithnickLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/founders-with-nick→ Nick LangridgeLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-langridge/LNGR: https://www.lngr.co.uk/

🎙️ Founders with Nick – Episode with Ross Neal

In this episode, I sit down with Ross Neal, ex-professional rugby player turned high-performance coach. We dive into his journey—starting rugby at a young age, the struggles of not fully applying himself, and the challenges of breaking into the first team.

Ross shares his insights on what separates top performers, the mindset shifts that changed his career, and how he’s now helping others unlock their potential through his coaching business.

A must-listen for anyone interested in resilience, growth, and high performance.