Explore every episode of the podcast Strategy & Tragedy: CEO Stories with Steph Melodia

Mona Tiesler is an investor at tokentus, a leading VC firm in the German blockchain ecosystem, where she invests in startups that leverage blockchain technology globally. She has several years of experience in venture capital, and has been involved in pre-seed to Series A deals across Europe, USA, UAE and Asia.
With a background in strategy consulting, venture building, and entrepreneurship, Mona has a passion for supporting innovators who are building the decentralized future of the internet.

She has co-founded and led companies in Fintech, Edtech, and Foodtech, and has an MBA from INSEAD.

In this episode, Mona and Steph discuss:

- How to re-invent yourself while navigating huge career changes
- The mental reframe required when facing rejection (after rejection, after rejection...) 

- Practical tips on learning the key skill *every* entrepreneur needs; SALES!
- The importance of strategy and how each step helps the next
- PLUS! What Mona looks for now as an investor

Mona is passionate about breaking down barriers to access - both for fundraising founders and equalising gender opportunities. In-line with her mission, Mona is a member of Global Women in VC, the world's largest community for women in venture capital to connect, collaborate, and create opportunities for each other. 

Discover more here:
https://www.women-vc.com/

Mona is also the Co-Founder of Distributed Funding, a platform for underrepresented founders in the Web3 space to submit pitch decks and a short survey in just a few minutes.

Learn more here: https://roomy-tailor-258.notion.site/Distributed-Funding-
b49508c6d2484d62b3c0calab286a132

Fundraising? Learn more about what tokentus looks for in their investments here:
https://tokentus.com/targets

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Want more?

Follow Steph:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephmelodia/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniemelodia/

Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/videos

Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

Olivia Parkes is the Founder & CEO of Persi, making fashion personalisation actually personal! With Persi, retailers can deliver highly personalised product recommendations based on what each customer owns, loves, and actually wears.

In this interview, you'll hear about...

👗 The £176K post: How Olivia raised almost £200k from a single LinkedIn post for her female-first cap table
👗 Resilience amidst a triple pivot to SEIS disaster recovery
👗 Scrappy MVPs and non-technical founder success (before meeting her perfect co-founder match!)
👗 Balancing motherhood & startup life (including pitching while pregnant and breastfeeding in the boardroom - normalising what it really takes to make it work as a working mother)
👗 And so, so much more inspirational wisdom and practical tips...

Discover more about Persi here: https://www.yourpersi.com/

Get involved in the conversation:
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🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmelodia-keynotespeaker/

🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

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Stuart Trevor is the founder of AllSaints, the high street brand he launched in 1994 and scaled to £15M turnover business & household brand name. 

Now, the fashion entrepreneur is on a mission to create the world’s most sustainable fashion brand, clothing brand that doesn't produce any clothes.

Discover more here: https://stuarttrevor.com/

In this interview, Steph and Stuart cover:

🖤 His journey from fashion student to AllSaints founder
🖤 How creative constraints led to an *iconic* brand identity
🖤 Organic growth without traditional investment
🖤 Surviving a near-fatal business crisis
🖤 ADHD as an entrepreneurial superpower
🖤 Stuart's mission now for sustainable fashion - building "the world's most sustainable fashion brand that doesn't produce any clothes"

Get involved in the conversation. What resonated most with you from this interview? What did you learn? What made you go, huh, I never thought about it like that? We want to hear from you!
🤍 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephmelodia/
🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmelodia-keynotespeaker/

🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

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Andy Ayim MBE is the founder of Angel Investing School, which has trained over 500 angels who have invested $5,000,000 globally, including the Black Angel Group's run out of Google's Black Network, which has invested over 3,500,000.0 in over 30 startups. Andy himself has personally invested in 17 startups, including Farmland, Patch, and Unplugged with 70% led by diverse founders. 

In this interview, you'll hear about...

💸 From Tottenham to Windsor Castle: Andy's incredible journey from a working-class kid whose dad traveled to neighbouring boroughs just to get him copies of the Financial Times, to receiving an MBE and training 500+ angel investors globally

💸 The £10K mistake that changed everything: How Andy's costly early investment blunder (putting more money than he could afford into a startup he didn't understand) led him to create Angel Investing School and democratise access to investment education

💸 Why angel investing is "one of the fastest ways to lose money": Andy reveals the non-financial benefits that matter more than returns, and why understanding your intrinsic "why" is crucial before writing any checks

💸 The Instagram success secret: How Kevin Systrom's £100K angel investment gave him the runway to pivot from restaurant app "Burbn" to Instagram - and why most startups fail because they don't have time to experiment

💸 Silicon Valley vs UK: Why American investors take bigger risks on consumer plays while UK investors stick to "predictable B2B software" - and what needs to change for Britain to compete globally

💸 The personal cost of entrepreneurship: Andy opens up about losing his father suddenly, how grief transformed his approach to life and business, and why he now optimises for family time over rapid growth - plus his 7-year digital journal practice that's like "Google Analytics for his personal life"

Learn more about Angel Investing School here: https://angelinvestingschool.com/

Get involved in the conversation:
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🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

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Trisha Wing is the Co-Founder & CEO of SuLe (https://www.sule.io/), a first-of-its-kind legal platform supporting startups at every stage of their growth. SuLe is the smart legal hub that cuts legal costs 90%. Book a free call here: https://calendly.com/d/cq55-w8f-wsg/introductory-call?month=2025-07

In this interview, Steph and Trisha cover:

👩🏼‍⚖️ Jargon-free legal wisdom - from company ownership to IP
👩🏼‍⚖️ The most common legal traps to avoid
👩🏼‍⚖️ Managing co-founder partnerships
👩🏼‍⚖️ Practical help for entrepreneurs
👩🏼‍⚖️ Trish's own entrepreneurial journey - from building a tech product as a non-technical founder, meeting her perfect match, and how she fundraised to scale impact

Discover more about SuLe here: https://www.sule.io/ 

Book a free call here: https://calendly.com/d/cq55-w8f-wsg/introductory-call?month=2025-07


Other episodes mentioned in this interview:

Anna-Sophie Hartvigsen of Female Invest
- Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFx6rPcEAC0&t=2188s
- Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5ycHdY40jdUmwRKTM28WBe?si=661c5d8936b442be

Thomas Panton of Endgame Capital (former Canopey co-founder)
- Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scpY7W_bOdU&t=267s
- Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1OkQX9hzbbzcWNzgkQycZy?si=07cd5caa47154264


Share your thoughts:
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🍿 Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@stephmelodia/videos

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Get £50 off your Unplugged stay: UPMSTEPHMELODIA50

Hector Hughes is the Co-Founder & CEO of Unplugged, the platform for digital detox cabins as featured in The Times, Cosmopolitan, The Telegraph, and Evening Standard with over 12,000 guests served to date.

In this interview, you'll hear about:

🏕️ The benefits of digital minimalism
🏕️ Contrarian takes on the Lean Startup model
🏕️ Hector's transformational entrepreneur journey
🏕️ The importance of brand positioning (especially in our AI marketing world)
🏕️ How a commitment to a vision and even creating friction has paid off
🏕️ Fundraising challenges and securing angel investment

Get £50 off your next digital detox with Unplugged using this code: UPMSTEPHMELODIA50

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Get involved in the conversation:
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🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

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🎧 Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

Claudia Gasson is a Business Psychologist & Talent Strategist at the psychology-backed culture consultancy, Bailey & French. She is also a seasoned recruiter and former founder, with her own talent consultancy, Ortus.

In this interview, host Stephanie Melodia and Claudia cover:

- Insights from 10+ years in recruitment (including the top reason people leave their jobs 👀)
- The psychology of motivation and how to attract top talent
- Practical tips on how employers can increase engagement & reduce burnout
- How to create a culture of success 
- Claudia's own entrepreneurial story (and why running your own business isn't ALL it's cracked up to be... )

Want to boost your employee experience? Check out Bailey & French: https://www.baileyandfrench.com/ or connect with Claudia directly: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claudiagasson/

Get involved in the conversation:
🤍 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephmelodia/
🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniemelodia/

🎥 Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@stephmelodia/videos

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

Steve Peralta is the Co-founder of Unmind, helping over 2.5M employees prioritise mental health and build cultures where people thrive. He is also a keynote speaker and coach, helping purpose-driven leaders bring out the best in themselves and their teams.

Tune in to hear about:

👉 The moment that changed everything for Steve

👉 Why human-centred leadership is the way forward in an AI world

👉 Connecting mission-driven business with the pressures of VC

Connect with Steve here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peraltasteve/

Get involved in the conversation:
🤍 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephmelodia/
🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmelodia-keynotespeaker/

🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

🎧 Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

Thomas Panton is a serial entrepreneur and now Venture Fellow at Endgame Capital, investing in early-stage 'climate-change-denier-proof' tech startups.

In this interview, Steph and Thomas discuss:

- What happened with the eco marketplace he co-founded, Canopey
- The key lessons from Canopey's post-mortem - and how he's applying them to his new stealth startup
- Co-founder alignment - red flags / green flags - and the best way to test them
- How being a serial entrepreneur has helped him be a better investor now
- What Endgame Capital looks for in their investment deals
- How to help remove some of the unconscious bias in VC
- What makes a 1% founder

(Psst! Here's the Matt Lerner interview mentioned in the conversation: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6i0oJnpsNDgW0JF8ZkKu3R?si=652d59ea50d14c30 )

Fundraising? Head to Endgame Capital's website, here: https://www.endgamecapital.vc/ or drop Thomas a message here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomaspanton/

I'd LOVE to know, what resonated most with you here?

Get involved in the conversation:
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🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmelodia-keynotespeaker/

🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

🎧 Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

Anna-Sophie Hartvigsen is an award-winning entrepreneur, bestselling author and TedX speaker. She's listed on the Forbes 30 under 30 list, and closing the gender investment gap with FemaleInvest by educating women on investing and personal finance through educational events, e-learning and strategic partnerships.

In this interview, Steph and Anna cover:

💰 Why getting more women into investing helps *everyone*
💰 What makes women better investors and where they can start
💰 Anna-Sophie's founder story, meeting her co-founders, and starting FemaleInvest
💰 From the brink of bankruptcy to being listed on Forbes 30 Under 30 - overnight!
💰 Top lessons learnt from fundraising $24M - and the biggest surprise
💰 Creative marketing tactics
💰 And more.

Learn more about FemaleInvest here: https://www.femaleinvest.com/en-gb

Get involved in the conversation:
🤍 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephmelodia/
🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniemelodia/

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/XFx6rPcEAC0

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

TW: Contains themes of mental health including depression and suicide.

Founder of StoryCast®. Leadership Communication Expert. Global Keynote Speaker. Award-Winning Author of GLOW IN THE DARK 💡

Mark Leruste helps leaders harness the power of their stories to build trust and inspire action. He’s worked with the likes of Google, Microsoft, and Nike to communicate and connect in a way that resonates and drives real impact.

His TED talk, ‘What they don’t tell you about entrepreneurship,’ has amassed 1.3M views, and Steven Bartlett listed it as the number 1 TED Talk every entrepreneur should watch.

In this interview, Mark and Steph discuss:

🎤 Why storytelling matters

🎤 Practical frameworks (like the 3 C's) to help you become a better storyteller 

🎤 Inspirational examples from Mark's time at the Movember Foundation

🎤 The blurred lines between storytelling and the truth

🎤 Entrepreneurship and mental health

🎤 And so much more.

Transform your story into your most powerful asset through engaging talks,  masterclasses and coaching programmes for business leaders to leverage the power of personal storytelling to connect with their audience, build trust and inspire action with StoryCast®: https://www.storycast.co/

Book Mark to deliver a talk to your organisation: https://www.markleruste.com/

Get involved in the conversation:

🤍 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephmelodia/

🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmelodia-keynotespeaker/

🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

🎧 Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

Nina Briance is the Founder & CEO of CULT MIA, the values-driven luxury fashion platform that retails conversation-starting, standout pieces with sustainability and minority-empowerment at its core. 

In this episode, Steph and Nina discuss:

🖤 The marketing mistake that taught Nina an unforgettable lesson
🖤 "Your network is your net worth" - the value of connections
🖤 How Nina took on the fashion giants - and won
🖤 The power of branding (and defending it to investors) 
🖤 A specific use case where Cult Mia empowered one of their female designers
🖤 And so much more.

Comment what resonated with you 👇

Discover new designers, support women in business, and shop your next conversation-starting piece all on Cult Mia: https://cultmia.com/

Get involved in the conversation:
🤍 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephmelodia/
🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmelodia-keynotespeaker/

🎬 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

Varun Bhanot is the Co-founder & CEO of MAGIC AI, the at-home personal fitness system crowned one of TIME's best inventions and featured in Sifted's top high-growth startups.

In this interview, we replay the first time Steph & Varun sat down to record in 2023, and catch up at the 31:34 mark, on...

🪞 What's been the biggest game changer for MAGIC AI
🪞 What Varun has now learnt having fundraised more venture capital
🪞 Which growth marketing hack has helped them scale faster
🪞 How the awards & accolades have impacted the business
🪞 Varun's updates now he's a dad!

Get involved in the conversation:
🤍 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephmelodia/
🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniemelodia/

🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

Kim Innes Is the Founder & CEO of Humble Crumble - the country's most loved dessert that went viral! She is also a Forbes 30 under 30 winner of the Everywoman Scale Up award, and one of NatWest x Telegraph’s Top 100 Female Entrepreneurs to Watch.

In this interview, Steph and Kim cover...

🧁 Kim's passion for baking and particular love of crumble 
🧁 Applying 'The Lean Startup' principles to a food business
🧁 The near-misses and mistakes made along the way
🧁 How Humble Crumble unexpectedly went VIRAL
🧁 ...and maintained momentum as they grew

Visit a Humble Crumble near you: https://www.humble-crumble.com/pages/locations

What resonated with you from this interview?

Get involved in the conversation:
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Meet the first female CEO of a city stockbroking firm; Sam Smith. Founder and ex-CEO of finnCap, Sam is now the Co-Founder of SuperScalers and no. 1 bestselling author of The Secret Sauce: How to SuperScale. 

In this interview, you'll hear about...

🚀 Taking finncap public on the London Stock Exchange during tumultuous times
🚀 Top growth levers to go from £1m turnover a year to £1m turnover a week! 
🚀 Leadership pitfalls to avoid as you scale your businesses
🚀 Balancing a high-powered career with motherhood
🚀 What's in the secret sauce of how to SuperScale
🚀 How entrepreneurship can be a force for good
🚀 Resources for female founders fundraising

Are you ready to scale to £50m & beyond? Learn more about SuperScalers here: https://www.superscalers.world/

Get involved in the conversation:
🤍 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephmelodia/
🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmelodia-keynotespeaker/

🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

🎧 Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

Akash Mehta is the Forbes 30 under 30 CEO of Fable & Mane, an Ayurvedic-inspired hair brand, which he Co-Founded with his sister, Niki, making it the first Indian beauty brand co-founded by siblings. 

Akash harks from beauty & fashion household names including Burberry, Estée Lauder, and Dior, before launching his own business with Fable & Mane in 2019, now stocked in the likes of Sephora, Selfridges and Cult Beauty.

Akash is also a wildlife Conservationist and Ambassador for Jane Goodall, passionate about wildlife and on a mission to save the animals.

In this interview, Akash and Steph cover...

🐯 How Akash started his successful FMCG brand (including a loan from Papa Mehta!)
🐯 How he and his team built a highly-engaged community
🐯 Social media mastery from the expert himself
🐯 Building a well-loved, purpose-driven brand
🐯 Getting stocked in Sephora

Discover more about Fable & Mane here: https://fableandmane.com/

Get involved in the conversation:
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🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmelodia-keynotespeaker/

Subscribe to the podcast:
🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3NuiaWjWsOXpsFx2euglVe
🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/strategy-tragedy-ceo-stories-with-steph-melodia/id1711083280
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🎧 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/0239e1a6-027c-41c5-b80a-f51d80f49eb0/strategy-tragedy-ceo-stories-with-steph-melodia

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

The right dev partner can make or break your product. AppUnite embeds with your team to build apps that scale. Learn more at https://bit.ly/3FHeCC0

Geoff Wright is the CTO of Tembo, but his path leading up to this position was anything but ordinary.

Entrepreneurial as a kid, Geoff forged his own, alternative path. Instead of doing the usual by completing his studies, going to uni, and getting a job, Geoff realised he could make money doing what he loved...

Of course, there were lots of lessons along the way - the kind you DON'T get taught at school!

Ultimately, what Geoff has developed a deep appreciation for is THE PROBLEM.

The bigger the problem, the more your customers will want it. 

The more painful the problem, the more they'll pay for it. 

And the more they'll forgive you flaws. 

(Particularly helpful in the early days when the tech is somewhat lacklustre!)

Tune into Geoff's fascinating story to hear how he went from school dropout to serial entrepreneur and now CTO at a fast-scaling proptech.

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🏡 Discover more about Tembo, the online digital mortgage broker focused on helping first-time buyers, movers & re-mortgagers overcome the affordability gap: https://www.tembomoney.com/

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Get involved in the conversation:
Instagram: https://instagram.com/stephmelodia/
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/stephaniemelodia/

The right dev partner can make or break your product. AppUnite embeds with your team to build apps that scale. Learn more at https://bit.ly/3FHeCC0

In this interview, Steph and Jeremy discuss...

💼 The serial entrepreneurship path that led to HomeServe
💼 Building it to a £4bn multinational and one of the biggest LSE IPOs
💼 His investment thesis for fundraising founders

Fundraising? Get in touch here: https://middletonenterprises.com/contact/

Jeremy Middleton CBE co-founded HomeServe, a multinational home emergency repairs & improvements firm which he, together with Richard Harpin, grew to a public FTSE 100 company in 2004 - one of the largest offers for a London-listed company that year - before getting acquired by Brookfield Asset Management in 2023 for £4.1 billion.

He is now the CEO of Middleton Enterprises which invests in ambitious founders and their profitable businesses. He is also a philanthropist as the founder of The Middleton Foundation, which provides social housing for people with learning difficulties.

Get involved in the conversation:
🤍 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephmelodia/
🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmelodia-keynotespeaker/

🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

🎧 Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

The right dev partner can make or break your product. AppUnite embeds with your team to build apps that scale. Learn more at https://bit.ly/3FHeCC0

Karen Barrett is the Founder & CEO of Unbiased, the leading B2B SaaS fintech platform that connects consumers with the best professionals and products for their financial needs. 

In this interview, Steph and Karen discuss...

What it was like to win the GB Entrepreneur of the Year

🏆 Transitioning from working in the financial services industry to starting her own fintech business
🏆 Karen's entrepreneurial journey from starting Unbiased in 2009
🏆 How discovering the world of R&D tax credits was a game changer for her business (and what else she wished she knew before!)
🏆 How to be the outlier inc. top book recommendations
🏆 Expanding from the UK into the US 
🏆 Karen's advocacy for financial inclusion and education

Want unbiased financial advice? Check out Unbiased here: https://www.unbiased.co.uk/

Get involved in the conversation:

Follow Steph on social media:
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🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmelodia-keynotespeaker/

🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

🎧 Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

Giuseppe Baidoo is the founder of Gusto Snacks - delicious, low calorie, high fibre apple crisps made from misshapen produce that’s not deemed pretty enough for the supermarkets.

Giuseppe’s entrepreneurial journey features the classic tale of starting a bootstrapped project from his kitchen and turning it into a £1.2 million business now stocked in the likes of Selfridges and WHSmith.

🏀 What his career in basketball taught him about resilience 
💪 Moving to the UK and overcoming obstacle after obstacle 
👀 How he started his first business - and picked himself back up again after it failed...
👥 Finding his co-founder and getting early investment 
🍏 Through to getting his product on supermarket shelves including Selfridges

Shop yummy fruit snacks here: https://snackgusto.com/

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Get involved in the conversation:
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🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

🎧 Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!

Join Steph for this solo episode debriefing on last week's interview with Cien Solon of LaunchLemonade


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🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniemelodia/

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The right dev partner can make or break your product. AppUnite embeds with your team to build apps that scale. Learn more at https://bit.ly/3FHeCC0

Cien Solon is the Co-Founder & CEO of LaunchLemonade, described as the "Canva of AI apps." Cien is on a mission to make sure that no one gets left behind in the time of AI.

In this interview, Steph and Cien discuss:

- The practical applications and use case examples of AI
- The feminist importance of women getting into AI
- Cien's career trajectory and biggest lessons learnt

Learn more about LaunchLemonade here: https://launchlemonade.app/


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Join Steph for this solo episode debriefing on last week's interview with Lottie Whyte of MyoMaster.


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Lottie Whyte is the Co-Founder & CEO of one of the UK’s fastest growing wellness brands, MyoMaster - the home of human optimisation providing world-class recovery products including ice baths, at-home sauna pods, compression boots, and massage guns.

Tune in to hear about…

🚀 What makes Lottie Whyte the outlier (practical advice you can *actually* action)

🚀 Behind the scenes of BBC’s Dragon’s Den - and how Lottie and her co-founder & partner, Joe, received offers from FOUR investors

🚀 Going from 0 to 1 and scaling beyond 

🚀 Consumer growth marketing strategies

🚀 Lessons from mistakes (like retailing in Selfridges)

🚀 The case for the overlooked BAME / female founders 

🚀 Personal brand strategy & the cost of visibility as a female founder

🚀 How to curate your life for unshakeable self-confidence 

Check out MyoMaster here: https://myomaster.com/

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Join Steph for this solo episode debriefing on last week's interview with Alex Merry of MicDrop.


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Alex Merry is a public speaking coach who turns founders into thought leaders. He runs MicDrop, the well-loved public speaking community and training resource. He’s also the author of Make It Count and Former TEDxClapham Founder.

In this episode, Steph and Alex discuss:

🎤 Why public is speaking *so* important for any leader
🎤 How Alex overcame his own fear of public speaking
🎤 What makes a GOOD talk (including the best talk Alex has ever heard!)
🎤 How to actually earn an income from public speaking
🎤 LinkedIn strategy + lessons from going viral
🎤 Behind-the-scenes stories

Curious to join Mic Drop? Mention Steph Melodia for a referral: https://alexmerry.com/micdrop

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Serial entrepreneur, content creator, author, and investor, Simon Squibb is the founder of HelpBnk (https://helpbnk.com/) on a mission to make people's dreams come true.

Simon started his first company when he was homeless at 15 years old, and sold his last company, Fluid, to PwC. He has since invested in over 70+ startups, and is now on a mission to help 10 million people achieve their dreams.

Order Simon's new book 'What's Your Dream?' here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/whats-your-dream/simon-squibb/9781529935578


I'd LOVE to know, what resonated most with you from this interview? 

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Join Steph for this solo episode debriefing on last week's interview with Matt Lerner of SYSTM.

Listen to the Anthony Pierri interview to learn more about articulating your core value proposition here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/16KEMPnzJV1GabDtAmzwsw?si=4a35fa1d75a14ec6

Or watch on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiwWh-IUxJg

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Matt Lerner is the Founder & CEO of SYSTM, an online program to help startups find their big growth levers. 

Before founding SYSTM, Matt was a Partner of 500 Startups, an early-stage VC fund, where he built & ran a seed-stage growth program for the portfolio companies achieving an average growth of 250% in 12 months. Prior to 500 Startups he was marketing director at PayPal, coming from the birthplace of startups: Silicon Valley.

In this interview, Matt and Steph cover...

🚀 What's wrong with "saving time"
🚀 Nailing your core value proposition
🚀 80:20? Nah. Identify the 10% that will drive the 90%.
🚀 What's NSM and why does it matter?
🚀 The power of good questions.
🚀 Team JFDI vs DFTU

And *SO* much more!

Find your big growth levers: https://www.systm.co/

Want more?

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Join Steph for this solo episode debriefing on last week's interview with Nell Daly of Revenge Capital.

PLUS! Exclusive reveal of the next guest...


Get involved in the conversation!

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TW: Themes of abuse and gun violence

Nell Daly is a social worker turned venture capitalist as Co-Founder of Revenge Capital, a £50M sector-agnostic, global impact fund that invests into overlooked founders and their big disruptive ideas. She describes herself as an advocate for underdogs and works with policymakers to help build a more just, free, inclusive and humane world.

In this episode, Steph and Nell discuss:

❤️‍🔥 Starting a fund NOT coming from the world of finance
❤️‍🔥 Nell's experience in media and what led to her "going dark"
❤️‍🔥 Overcoming adversity and practical tips on how to be the outlier
❤️‍🔥 How her training as a psychotherapist makes her a better investor
❤️‍🔥 The power of manifesting, and what to watch out for
❤️‍🔥 The importance of dreams and working towards your purpose
❤️‍🔥 What her VC fund, Revenge Capital, is looking for in fundraising startups

Fundraising? Apply for investment here: https://b1jxsdtzi9t.typeform.com/revengecapital?typeform-source=revenge.capital

Get involved in the conversation:

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Join Steph for this solo episode debriefing on last week's interview with Georgie Hyatt, Founder & CEO of Rotaro.

PLUS! Fundraising tips, tricks and traps to avoid if you're looking to get investment for your startup.

Get involved in the conversation!

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Georgie Hyatt is the Forbes 30 Under 30 Founder & CEO of ROTARO, the fashtech platform that worked with luxury brands & retailers to power their circular fashion revenue streams through rental & resale before consolidating with My Wardrobe HQ.

In this interview, Steph and Georgie discuss: 

👗 How insights from working at trends forecasting agency sparked Georgie’s lightbulb moment
👗 Getting early validation for Rotaro and testing different business models
👗 Practical lessons learnt the hard way including shareholder agreements (Tip: use Safe note ASA agreements!) 
👗 Fundraising and dealing with investors pulling out at the last minute (after 8 months of negotiations!) 
👗 Biggest business challenges including redundancies and burning out as an overwhelmed founder
👗The importance of personal values

Want more?

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Thinking of starting your own business? Entrepreneur coach, Stephanie Melodia, shares her advice for overcoming the most common blockers to entrepreneurship including the mental barriers and practical challenges.

Did any of this resonate with you? join the conversation:

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Daniel Botcherby is the Co-Founder & CEO of Kalda, the world's first LGBTQIA+ mental wellbeing app that provides self-guided therapy programs and daily reflection journaling. Formed in Antler and grown in Unrest, two top accelerators in the UK, Daniel recounts his rocky early-stage founder journey in this vulnerable interview.

Steph and Daniel discuss:

🏳️‍🌈 Early stage problem/solution validation 
🏳️‍🌈 Antler and Unrest accelerator experiences
🏳️‍🌈 The *new* MVP = Minimal Pathway to PMF!
🏳️‍🌈 The importance of an advisory board
🏳️‍🌈 Recovering from co-founder fall out

Try Kalda for FREE here: https://www.kalda.co/

UPDATE: Since recording, Kalda raised £300k as part of their round led by Growth Impact Fund. Now Kalda is working to deliver their groundbreaking therapy to over 200,000 individuals in the next 2 years. Follow their journey here: https://www.instagram.com/kalda.app/

-

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Lamees Butt is the Co-Founder & CEO of RISER, the video-led AI career matchmaking app that puts the manager at the forefront of the job hunting process. Think Bumble, for your next boss.

She's also the host of the In Her Shoes podcast, on a mission to change the sad statistic that only 9% of the C-suite in the UK is filled by women. The show is in the Top 10 of UK podcasts, listened to in 64 Countries.

Tune in to Lamees and Steph discuss...

- Lamees' serial entrepreneur journey
- Why Lamees never thought she'd be a founder again
- Looking up to Baroness Karren Brady
- Fundraising vs growth and red flags to watch out for with angel investors
- Marketplace model prioritisation at pre-seed
- Helping female founders actually make progress

Ready to make your next career move? Download RISER for free here: https://riserapp.co/

See you at the Canva x RISER event in London on 12th Feb? RSVP here: https://events.canva.com/canvaxriser

Follow Steph on social media:
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Podcasters Stephanie Melodia and Sina Sadrzadeh sit down for this special crossover episode of Strategy & Tragedy // The Millennial Entrepreneur, where they discuss...

🎙️ The behind-the-scenes of podcasting
🎙️ Unexpected surprises and lessons learnt
🎙️ Funny stories along the way
🎙️ The mission of their shows

We'd love to hear from you! What did you think of this episode?

Leave us a comment and follow us on social:

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Join Steph for this solo episode debriefing on last week's interview with Joanna Montgomery, the Founder & CEO of Little Riot and creator of the viral sensation, Pillow Talk.

Steph also shares your answers from social media on what makes you HAPPY! As it's Blue Monday (Red Monday in the US) here's to injecting a bit of positivity in your world today.

Get involved in the conversation!

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Joanna Montgomery is the Founder & CEO of Little Riot - behind the viral internet phenomenon "Pillow Talk,” a wristband that picks up your heartbeat and sends it in real time to your loved one, now used in over 70 countries.

Joanna has also spoken at TEDx and WIRED Conference. Fun fact: she's also Britain's former Strongest Woman!

In this interview, Steph and Joanna discuss:

👉 What it's like to have your product go VIRAL
👉 Achieving product validation early on
👉 The bittersweet experience of COVID-19
👉 Investor red flags and the disastrous story that nearly ended the company
👉 PLUS: Why you SHOULDN’T do a crowdfunding campaign!

Learn more about Little Riot here: https://www.littleriot.com/

Want more?

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Top 20 Female Founder, Keynote Speaker, Growth Consultant & Mentor,  Stephanie Melodia, exclusively reveals some of the new guests coming in 2025 and some mantras to help you make the most of the new year.

Get involved in the conversation.

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Top 20 Female Founder, Public Speaker, Mentor, and Podcast Host/Presenter, Stephanie Melodia, shares the Top 5 interviews of 2024 featuring her key takeaways and best soundbites from each episode.

Get involved in the conversation!

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Subscribe to the podcast:
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🎧 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/0239e1a6-027c-41c5-b80a-f51d80f49eb0/strategy-tragedy-ceo-stories-with-steph-melodia

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Solo episode debriefing on last week's interview with Simon Alexander Ong - life coach, business strategist, international keynote speaker, author of Energise, and 2019's Life Coach of the Year. 

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Simon Alexander Ong is a life coach, business strategist, international keynote speaker, author of Energise, and 2019's Life Coach of the Year. 

Simon’s work has got him invited to speak on Sky News, BBC Radio London and LBC Radio; his insights have also been featured in the likes of Huffington Post, Forbes, Virgin and The Guardian.

In this episode, Steph and Simon discuss:

- Energy management vs time management - including the SEVEN different types of energy!
- Deep life advice to achieve your goals, and the difference between motivation and inspiration
- Plus, my favourite: embracing a real-life vision board

For more, check out Simon's YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCERgudp8-SGp2yyqfR-5jhw

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Some people are just built different ...or are they?

Tune into this solo episode where Stephanie Melodia debriefs on last week's interview with the Cambridge, Yale, *and* Harvard-educated 3X CEO, Dimple Patel. 

Join the conversation: 

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Dimple Patel is the 3X exited BAME female founder (and graduate of Cambridge, Yale AND Harvard!!) Recognised as a Top Asian in ImpactTech UK 2024, Dimple is the ex-CEO of Trouva, and now CEO at NatureMetrics, a world-leading intelligence platform for biodiversity. 

In this episode, Steph and Dimple discuss:

- Dimple's early influences
- Going from the trading floor at the finance day job to cleaning toilets at the weekend with her first business, Love Coffee
- The Trouva chapter: her journey to CEO, secrets of a high-performing team, and scale-up lessons from the ecomm furniture's rapid growth
- Sales & marketing tips for techie products
- Taking risks and making mistakes (including how she and her family were a white-knuckling 24 hours away from homelessness!)

Learn more about NatureMetrics here: https://www.naturemetrics.com/

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Stephanie Melodia hosts The Debrief as part of the Strategy & Tragedy podcast, this time debriefing on the Maxine Laceby interview - Co-Founder of the £42M valued Absolute Collagen - with panellists Anna Pearce-Roberts, and Mike Stevens.

Anna Pearce-Roberts is the host of the Her Shift Podcast and founder of Cordelia & Co, a luxury makeup artist business. She also starred in an Absolute Collagen campaign herself! Dubbed, the girl in the yellow swimsuit.

Mike Stevens is serial entrepreneur, advisor to consumer brands, founder of Peppersmith, and former guest of Strategy & Tragedy (listen to EP39 here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7wPkrCT1uT9ugEBmrRFkHJ?si=4d22f5927e754119)

In this episode, we discuss...
💛 Early product-market validation and Maxine getting her friends to sign NDAs!
💛 The importance of being a truly *consumer first* business
💛 The role that LUCK has to play in success
💛 Stratospheric growth and getting investors for the *opposite* reason to most!
💛 How much age has to do with risk tolerance and having no fear... 👀

I'd LOVE to know, what resonated most with you here? 
Join the conversation: 

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Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/hnNWDxhbQTY

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Maxine Laceby is the 58-year-old Co-Founder of Absolute Collagen, a D2C beauty product created in the kitchen with her daughter, Darcy Laceby, now worth over £42M. Maxine is a force to be reckoned with and stands as an exemplary pro-age entrepreneur.

In this episode, Steph and Maxine discuss:

💛  The story behind a wildly successful beauty product
💛  The mistakes - and lessons - learnt along the way
💛  Finding the "goldilcoks" of investors
💛  Founder mental health - from managing anxiety to building confidence
💛  Gender inequities and pro-age mission as a 58-year-old entrepreneur

See what all the fuss is about and discover the award-winning collagen supplements from Absolute Collagen here: https://www.absolutecollagen.com/

-

Want more?

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Managing international teams? Unburden yourself with Deel, the all-in-one global people platform. From cross-currency payroll to expense tracking, from EOR to consolidated HR compliance, get a demo of Deel here: https://bit.ly/4f6yef1

Hannah Chappatte is the Founder & CEO of HYBR, the UK's #1 Accommodation Platform on TrustPilot with press featured in the likes of The BBC, the Evening Standard, and The Times.

In this episode, Steph and Hannah discuss:

🏡  Going from idea to validation (on both sides of a marketplace startup)
🏡  MVP as proof of concept with monetisation
🏡  Scrappy financing - grant funding and taking advantage of furlough to build team
🏡  The importance of storytelling in pitching 
🏡  Growth hacking (how HYBR got their first 100 customers)

Student or parent looking for your next rented home? Check out HYBR here: https://dashboard.hybr.co.uk/marketing/students

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Are you one of the 24 MILLION people who want to become an entrepreneur?

Learn the 10 Commandments of Entrepreneurship in under 20 minutes from Top 20 Female Founder, Stephanie Melodia.

Leave a comment on what resonated most with you. I wanna hear from you!

Follow Steph on social media:
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🤍 About Steph:
As ex-CEO of an award-winning marketing agency, Stephanie now hosts the Strategy & Tragedy podcast, advises MBA students with Oneday, and continues to serve as VC scout for Ada Ventures. She is also a public speaker for events such as opening keynotes, company-wide conferences, team offsites, and senior leadership training. She has spoken at large enterprises including WeTransfer, LinkedIn, Xero, Harvey Nash Group, Web Summit, and more - leaving audiences feeling inspired, motivated, and energised.

Access special perks on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

Stephanie Melodia hosts Josh Hanning, Founder & CEO of Hanubu - an acquisition platform for the automotive aftermarket - and Daniel McCoy Andrade, startup BD & messaging strategist.

In this debrief episode, we discuss...

- Could we have *actually* had our own Netflix?
- Profit & purpose: is it one or the other? 
- Business exits, share options, wealth 
- Entrepreneurialism as a force for good 
- Failed politics + outside thinking for problem-solving

Other podcast episodes mentioned in this conversation:
- EP21: Daniel Hegarty, Habito: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1ccUscX1U5AkFelntshArs?si=e1849e328f4a4f6e
- EP39 Mike Stevens, Peppersmith: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7wPkrCT1uT9ugEBmrRFkHJ?si=7358a395dccb47f8
- EP42: Simon Squibb, HelpBnk: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1mv433hntZHuxfANqn31BV?si=5ea09e027a63448c

If you haven't already, watch / listen to the full Strategy & Tragedy interview with Simon Franks below:
🎥 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgV5QGEJxmo&t=261s
🎧 https://open.spotify.com/episode/1qeqceG9qfAw2cU0TzyGPB?si=ab88af52e48940cd

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Want more?

Follow Steph on social media:
🤍 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephmelodia/
🤍 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniemelodia/

🎬 Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephmelodia/

🙏🏼 Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=108229517

Don't forget to subscribe, rate, review, and share with a friend!