Building The Brand is a Top 50 business podcast for people who don’t just want success stories - they want to understand how success is actually built. Hosted by James Burtt, each episode features in-depth conversations with entrepreneurs, founders, and creators behind standout brands. This isn’t surface-level storytelling. This is a tactical break down of real decisions, trade-offs and lessons behind standout brands Past guests include world-renowned business and entrepreneurial figures Gary Brecka, Grant Cardone, Joe Foster, Mark Victor Hansen and John Lee Dumas. Not how to. This is how you.
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John Vincent: Why I Bought LEON Back, How Purpose Builds Better Brands & What’s Killing UK Business Right Now
Episode 1
Wednesday, March 25, 2026 • Duration 01:57:39
Why would someone sell a business for a reported 9-figures… and then buy the same business back in one of the toughest markets imaginable?
John Vincent is the co-founder of LEON Restaurants, bestselling author of Winning Not Fighting, and one of the most original thinkers in British business.
He explains:
▪️Why he felt he had to buy LEON back
▪️Why most businesses get purpose completely wrong
▪️How rising rents, VAT, National Insurance and the government are crushing hospitality
▪️Why chasing money as the main goal often makes businesses worse
▪️How LEON was built to prove that business can be based on love, purpose and profit
▪️Why the UK High Street is being damaged by policy, not just market conditions
▪️How founders should think about money, mission, control and long-term value
PREVIEW: LEON Founder John Vincent - The Story Of Buying Back The Brand He Loves
Wednesday, March 25, 2026 • Duration 01:25
Why would someone sell a business for a reported 9-figures… and then buy the same business back in one of the toughest markets imaginable?
John Vincent, co-founder of LEON Restaurants, bestselling author of Winning Not Fighting, and one of the most original thinkers in British business tells us all.
WELCOME TO BUILDING THE BRAND (LAUNCHING 25TH MAR '26)
Thursday, March 19, 2026 • Duration 02:34
Building The Brand is a Top 50 business podcast for people who don’t just want success stories - they want to understand how success is actually built.
Hosted by James Burtt, each episode features in-depth conversations with entrepreneurs, founders, and creators behind standout brands. This isn’t surface-level storytelling. It’s about the thinking, decisions, and trade-offs that drive real growth.
Past and upcoming guests include world-renowned business and entrepreneurial creative figures Gary Brecka, Rob Moore, Grant Cardone, John Vincent,Joe Foster, Mark Victor Hansen Thomas Hal Robson-Kanu and John Lee Dumas.
Not 'how to'. This is how you.
Jake Lee: Inside Celebrity Talent Management, Creator Economics & Why Owned Media Now Beats Traditional Fame
Season 1 · Episode 3
Tuesday, April 7, 2026 • Duration 01:22:21
What does it actually take to build a modern talent brand in a world where followers mean less, engagement means more, and creators now hold more power than the platforms and brands trying to use them?
In this episode of Building The Brand, James Burtt sits down with Jake Lee, founder of Alpha Talent Group, to unpack what is really happening inside the creator economy, celebrity talent management, and the new rules of influence. From managing major personalities and sports talent to navigating brand deals, reputation risk, platform shifts and long-term career planning, Jake gives a sharp behind-the-scenes view of an industry that many people still misunderstand.
Watch more episodes and connect here:
https://www.youtube.com/@buildingthebrandofficial
https://buildingthebrand.co.uk/newsletter
Jake explains why engagement matters more than follower count, why creators should think like business owners, why LinkedIn is wildly underrated, and why the smartest operators are planning for life beyond the current wave of attention.
He also opens up about working with high-profile names including Tommy Fury, how trust is built in the talent world, what brands still get wrong when working with creators, and why the future belongs to people who own their audience rather than just rent attention from traditional media.
In this episode, you will hear:
• Why owned media has become as powerful as, or more powerful than, traditional media
• Why follower count is often a vanity metric and engagement is what really matters
• How brands should brief creators if they actually want better content and better ROI
• Why talent management today has to go far beyond brand deals
• How creators can turn content into a genuine full-time career
• Why long-term planning matters for creators, athletes and founders alike
Rory McFadyen: How Reflo Built a Sustainable Sportswear Brand, Landed Harry Kane & Scaled Through Partnerships
Episode 4
Wednesday, April 15, 2026 • Duration 01:28:30
How do you build a performance wear brand in one of the most competitive industries in the world… while trying to fix one of fashion’s biggest environmental problems?
In this episode of Building The Brand, James Burtt sits down with Rory McFadyen, co-founder of Reflo, to unpack how a startup launched in 2021 and grew from an ambitious idea into a fast-scaling sportswear business working with major partners across football, golf, motorsport and elite sport.
Rory explains why Reflo positions itself as a performance wear brand with sustainability at its core, not the other way around, and why great product and great storytelling matter more than green-washing. He shares the origin story of the brand, how he and co-founder Pete turned a problem in the fashion industry into a commercial opportunity, and why they chose one of the hardest categories in business to enter.
The conversation also goes deep on startup reality; building products with no industry background, learning how to scale systems, evolving from founder chaos into process-led growth, and recognising when the original business model needs to change.
Rory also reveals how early inbound interest from the Australian Open and WM Phoenix Open changed the route to market, how Reflo built real traction in teamwear and partnerships, and how Harry Kane became both an ambassador and investor in the business.
How Hytro Built in Pro Sport, Reached NASA & SpaceX and Chose Not to Go DTC Too Early with Co-Founder & CEO Raj Thiruchelvarajah
Episode 5
Wednesday, April 22, 2026 • Duration 01:19:13
What do you do when your product is scientifically strong, commercially promising… but the mass market won’t understand what it is?
In this episode of Building The Brand, James Burtt sits down with Raj Thiruchelvarajah, co-founder and CEO of Hytro, to unpack how a startup in performance wearables built credibility in elite sport, got product into NASA and SpaceX missions and made the unusual decision to avoid direct-to-consumer too early.
Raj explains how Hytro pioneered wearable blood flow restriction technology, why the business originally started in the wrong market, and how the team realised that pro sport was not just a niche audience but the perfect proving ground. He shares how coaches became one of the company’s biggest growth levers, why athletes and practitioners started investing in the business and how the right kind of advocacy can matter more than pure science-backed data.
0:00 What it feels like to see your product go to space
1:11 Raj on Hytro, NASA and SpaceX
2:24 Why founders often struggle to enjoy the win
5:07 Why co-founder relationships can make or break startups
Batch LDN: No Fashion Experience But They've Built The UK's Coolest Menswear Brand That Celebrities Love
Wednesday, May 13, 2026 • Duration 01:03:43
How do you convince people to spend £400 on a suit… and then wait up to eight weeks for it?
That is exactly what Sam and Julian, the founders of Batch LDN, have managed to do.
In this episode of Building The Brand, they share how two founders with no fashion background built one of the most interesting menswear brands in the UK by doing almost everything differently.
Batch LDN is not a traditional fashion brand. They do not hold huge amounts of stock. They do not rely on fast fashion cycles. They do not lead with endless paid ads. Instead, they batch customer orders together, make every item to order in London using premium Italian fabrics, and have built a brand around quality, community, retail experience and smart casual menswear that actually fits modern life.
But this conversation is not just about suits.
Sam and Julian talk openly about why industry naivety became an advantage, why sustainability alone was not enough to drive sales, how a real-life robbery became one of their most successful marketing moments, why having the right co-founder changes everything, and why they chose to build through physical retail first when most fashion brands start online.
They also break down how Batch LDN has attracted celebrities, sports teams and investors, why Romesh Ranganathan became involved in the brand, how they became the official menswear supplier to Burnley Football Club, and what comes next as they look to expand the product range, grow online and take Batch international.
▪️ How Batch LDN created a made-to-order casual suit brand
▪️ How batching orders helps reduce waste, stock risk and cost ▪️ Why premium Italian fabrics and London manufacturing became core to the brand
▪️ Why Sam and Julian’s lack of fashion experience became a superpower
Thomas Hal Robson-Kanu: The Premier League & Euro 2016 Hero Building The Turmeric Co In Order to Take On Big Food & Big Pharma!
Episode 7
Wednesday, May 6, 2026 • Duration 01:04:25
Can you imagine choosing to walk away from a dream career as a Premier League and International Footballer?
Well, that’s exactly what Thomas Hal Robson-Kanu did and in this episode of Building The Brand, he shares the full journey from professional footballer to founder, from home-brewed shots made by his dad to producing hundreds of thousands of units a week, building a vertically integrated manufacturing operation, taking strategic investment from AG Barr and pursuing a mission to make functional nutrition mainstream.
But this conversation is not just about building another drinks brand.
Thomas talks openly about the pressure of running a business while still playing professional football, why a side hustle is only a problem if it damages performance, how The Turmeric Co is trying to challenge the way people think about food, health and medicine, and why scaling a business requires the founder to evolve from passionate generalist to true CEO.
Thomas and his team have generated a discount code for Building The Brand listeners to benefit 20% off of their first one-time purchase - enjoy!
Grenade Founder Juliet Barratt: Building Carb Killa, £200M Exit & Why Success Felt Like Grief
Episode 6
Wednesday, April 29, 2026 • Duration 01:13:50
Juliet Barratt is the co-founder of Grenade, one of the most successful British brands of the last decade.
In this episode of Building The Brand, Juliet shares the real story behind Grenade, from launching with limited resources, driving a tank into the NEC to stand out at BodyPower, getting picked up by major retailers, creating the Carb Killa bar, helping bring protein into mainstream retail, taking on private equity and eventually selling to Mondelez.
IN THIS EPISODE, JULES SHARES:
▪️ How Grenade was born from years of experience in sports nutrition
▪️ Why Juliet believes founder-market fit matters more than just having a good idea
▪️ How Grenade spotted a gap in a category full of generic white tubs and scientific names
▪️ Why the grenade-shaped packaging gave the brand instant memorability
▪️ How standing out at BodyPower helped get the attention of GNC
▪️ Why early brand building was about being different, not having the biggest budget
▪️ The story behind launching Carb Killa
▪️ How Grenade helped move protein bars from niche sports nutrition into mainstream food retail
▪️ Why timing was crucial to Grenade’s success
▪️ How the brand educated retailers and consumers at the same time
▪️ Why Juliet says the secret to Grenade’s success was simply “giving a shit”
▪️ The reality of having almost no money in the early days
▪️ Why Juliet and Al did not take salaries for years
▪️ How private equity changed the business
▪️ Why selling a majority stake may not always be the right move
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