Conversations of Inspiration

Ever wondered as a small business if you should share your personal views or keep it strictly business?  For Rebecca Strickson she sees it as one and the same thing. In this episode, alongside Rebecca’s personal journey to a successful artist, Holly and Rebecca explore the role that political and personal opinion play within building a brand.  They also discuss the barriers facing women entering into the creative industries as well as exploring Rebecca’s own influences and driving force behind her work. Enjoying listening to these unfiltered chats? It's worth following Holly Tucker MBE and Holly & Co on Instagram, and subscribing to our weekly newsletter on our website, where Holly downloads her thoughts, and exclusively shares small business finds and topical, 'ungoogleable' business advice.

What does living with cancer do to your perspective on life? If Deborah James is anything to go by, it gives you a hunger for life, and a drive to make fundamental and long-lasting change to the system. Mum of two, Deborah James, also known as Bowel Babe, joins Holly in this episode to discuss her formative years, how she navigated the news every person would dread and how she is spending each day driving to make a change to the system. It is this desire to see a better way and strive to change it, that runs throughout Deborah’s story.  Her open and honest words on riding the roller coaster of life are a testament to the power of the human spirit. Enjoying listening to these unfiltered chats? It's worth following Holly Tucker MBE and Holly & Co on Instagram, and subscribing to our weekly newsletter on our website, where Holly downloads her thoughts, and exclusively shares small business finds and topical, 'ungoogleable' business advice.

With a strong mission to empower women in the boardroom as well as the bedroom, Jacquline revolutionised a male-dominated industry.  Beginning her career at 21 when she started working for her father’s company, Jacqueline quickly saw the potential to change the focus of the business. Using her passion, ambition, and creativity Jacquline developed the concept of at-home parties and forever changed the way women could shop for lingerie and sex toys.  This episode follows Jacquline’s incredible journey of a young woman bringing sex to the high street, empowering women in business and overcoming personal tragedy.  Warning - this conversation includes the heartbreaking loss of Jacqueline's son. Enjoying listening to these unfiltered chats? It's worth following Holly Tucker MBE and Holly & Co on Instagram, and subscribing to our weekly newsletter on our website, where Holly downloads her thoughts, and exclusively shares small business finds and topical, 'ungoogleable' business advice.

Tough times don’t last, tough people do - are the words shared in this episode by Rob and Paul, the founders of Gandys. But what do you do, when the very worst happens? How will the experience shape your life, and what will life look like on the other side? Recounting their experience of the Tsunami where Rob and Paul, were orphaned at a young age, resilience, building a legacy and purpose sit at the very core of this conversation. This episode follows Rob and Paul's journey to change the lives of children across the world through their foundation, as they share their views on retail, the high street and building a better world through business.  Enjoying listening to these unfiltered chats? It's worth following Holly Tucker MBE and Holly & Co on Instagram, and subscribing to our weekly newsletter on our website, where Holly downloads her thoughts, and exclusively shares small business finds and topical, 'ungoogleable' business advice.

How does a beauty counter girl, become the beauty industry’s most powerful women at 50? This week, Holly speaks to Caroline Hirons. Born in Liverpool but her childhood spent in Mississippi, Caroline’s greatest influences on her life were her grandmother and mother both of whom were beauty counter girls. With a love of the glamour and strong memories of the scents and makeup so loved by her heroines, you would imagine that Caroline’s path to beauty industry powerhouse was set. But after many years herself on the beauty counter at Harvey Nichols, it was at 40, when Caroline started her blog, that her life took a dramatic turn. Fast forward 10 years, 13 million views on YouTube, 120 million views on her blog, and her latest book ‘Skincare’ has topped the Amazon bestsellers list on pre-order alone, Caroline’s success and legions of fans for her no-nonsense approach to skincare continues to grow. Funny, honest, and truly authentic - this conversation covers everything from harnessing the power of social media and the role YouTube can play in building a brand, to remaining truly authentic and unapologetic for staying true to your own values and views. Enjoying listening to these unfiltered chats? It's worth following Holly Tucker MBE and Holly & Co on Instagram, and subscribing to our weekly newsletter on our website, where Holly downloads her thoughts, and exclusively shares small business finds and topical, 'ungoogleable' business advice.

A funny, straight-talking and brilliant storyteller, John’s journey will have you enraptured from start to finish, in what must be one of the most iconic social enterprises in existence today. Lord John Bird’s story is one of the greatest Holly has had the pleasure to share on this podcast. From his early days in an orphanage, surviving through fighting and stealing, John’s childhood was not an easy one. Poverty-stricken, and in and out of prison, John realised that he would have to make his own path in life. It was a chance meeting, which developed into a friendship with Gordon Roddick (Anita Roddick’s husband), that would set John off on his incredible journey with ‘The Big Issue’. 29 years later, and over 200 million copies sold, The Big Issue is a social enterprise synonymous with the UK and has supported hundreds of thousands of people on the streets. This is a story of grit, chance meetings and the belief that poverty and social inequality should be tackled by empowering those so often forgotten in society. Enjoying listening to these unfiltered chats? It's worth following Holly Tucker MBE and Holly & Co on Instagram, and subscribing to our weekly newsletter on our website, where Holly downloads her thoughts, and exclusively shares small business finds and topical, 'ungoogleable' business advice.

The recent months have moved the conversation around flexible working forward at a dramatic pace, but as employees realise the huge benefits, will businesses change the way in which they ask their most valuable assets to work? Anna Whitehouse, also known as Mother Pukka has been leading the Flex Appeal campaign for flexible working since 2015, and throughout this conversation she shares her own personal journey, from lawyer, to journalist and then finding her voice leading the campaign for change. Sharing the insights and statistics that highlight the many benefits of a flexible workforce, Anna also delves into the lows along her own journey and reflects on how these moments led to her being the voice of change for women in the workplace across the UK. Warning - in this conversation Anna covers the difficult topic of miscarriage. Enjoying listening to these unfiltered chats? It's worth following Holly Tucker MBE and Holly & Co on Instagram, and subscribing to our weekly newsletter on our website, where Holly downloads her thoughts, and exclusively shares small business finds and topical, 'ungoogleable' business advice.

Recorded weeks before Covid-19 hit the UK - this episode is even more poignant as Holly and Guy Singh-Watson, founder of Riverford Organic Farmers, discuss the need for Governments to sit up and make real change to support small businesses and our high streets. Riverford was one of the first businesses to reach the market with an organic online food model and led the way in identifying a new conscious consumer in the UK. But life as a young boy, growing up on a farm and highly dyslexic, meant that his formative school years did not guarantee him an easy transition into the business world. Holly and Guy explore how understanding yourself, and your own mind and reactions, is the key to becoming a good leader - a lesson Guy learned later in life and is searingly honest about in this interview. Guy’s philosophy is that good business is common sense, and that we must call on the government, now to make a fundamental change - a sentiment perhaps more apt than ever before. He also explains how selling his business to his employees, not only changed his life for the better but also created a huge positive change for the business too. Enjoying listening to these unfiltered chats? It's worth following Holly Tucker MBE and Holly & Co on Instagram, and subscribing to our weekly newsletter on our website, where Holly downloads her thoughts, and exclusively shares small business finds and topical, 'ungoogleable' business advice.

What is it like, to be entrusted with the creative legacy, of one of the world’s most famous stories? MinaLima, aka Miraphora Mina and Eduardo Lima, are the creative duo behind bringing Harry Potter to life on the big screen. Graphic designers with huge imaginations, MinaLima are pioneers within their craft, and after a chance meeting through a mutual friend, they went on to lead the graphic design on all the Harry Potter films and are designers behind everything from The Daily Prophet to the Quidditch posters, Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and so much more. Taking a moment out from their current work on Fantastic Beasts, Holly meets Mira and Eduardo at their latest design adventure - the House of MinaLima, a gallery and store showcasing their entire treasury of graphic works - JK Rowling has called it ‘the place where objects come to life’. In this conversation, Holly discusses how a "work marriage" can really work, where they find their inspiration, the utter importance of detail and the role their creative upbringings have played in leading them to where they are today. Enjoying listening to these unfiltered chats? It's worth following Holly Tucker MBE and Holly & Co on Instagram, and subscribing to our weekly newsletter on our website, where Holly downloads her thoughts, and exclusively shares small business finds and topical, 'ungoogleable' business advice.

In a society filled with hidden inequality, how do you a) recognise it and b) make ‘change’? Best-selling author Caroline Criado-Perez OBE is a feminist activist and led the campaign for keeping a woman on British banknotes. Not only that, but she also spearheaded the movement to install the first female statue in Parliament Square. Caroline epitomises the difference we can make in the world when we see that something needs to change. In this episode, Holly and Caroline explore how our generation can challenge, and hopefully move on from, the enforced societal “imposter syndrome” and identify the sometimes hidden, but very much rife, inequality within our society. Caroline and Holly discuss the impact of her award-winning book, Invisible Woman, and how it has highlighted and driven forward, the much-needed conversation around gender and data. No easy feat! Honest, fearless and a true activist at her core, Caroline Criado-Perez is a force to be reckoned with and this episode is guaranteed to motivate you to do more when it comes to demanding equality. Enjoying listening to these unfiltered chats? It's worth following Holly Tucker MBE and Holly & Co on Instagram, and subscribing to our weekly newsletter on our website, where Holly downloads her thoughts, and exclusively shares small business finds and topical, 'ungoogleable' business advice.