Episódios

  • Every year has its business highs and lows which we don't often get an opportunity to chew over on The Bottom Line.

    This year is different.

    To mark our end of term, we thought we’d reflect on the business year and look at some of the highs and lows across the business landscape, creating our very own (and very unofficial) Bottom Line Business Awards.

    Three panellists, three categories, three nominations.

    Joining Evan are:JESSICA SPUNGIN, Adjunct Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business SchoolSIR KEN OLISSA, Lord-Lieutenant of Greater London and Chair and founder of Restoration Partners, a bank for entrepreneursAnd NISHMA PATEL ROBB, current Executive Member of Women in Advertising and Communications Leadership, founder and CEO of The Glittersphere and formerly Marketing Director at Google UK

    PRODUCTION TEAM:Producers: Drew Hyndman and Alex LewisEditor: Matt WillisSound: Rod FarquharProduction co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

  • Private schools in the UK are mostly registered as charities – but they are also businesses – businesses in the sense that they sell a service to paying customers.

    They’ve recently been in the news because the new government has said it will remove their exemption from VAT.

    In this episode we take a look at the business of private education: how it works, how much money is made and what will happen when exemption from VAT is removed from school fees.

    Evan Davis is joined by:Geoffrey Stanford, Head of Royal Grammar School Newcastle Jesse Elzinga Head of Sevenoaks SchoolCheryl Giovannoni, CEO, Girls' Day School Trust (GDST) Duncan Murphy, Director of Education, MTM Consulting

    PRODUCTION TEAM:Producers: Drew Hyndman and Alex LewisEditor: Matt WillisSound: Rod FarquharProduction co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge and Janet Staples

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  • All eyes have been on the new prime minister as he, and his team of ministers, settle into their jobs running the country.

    In this episode we consider the management challenge of taking over and starting a new role, maybe changing the direction of an organisation.

    Three leaders from the world of business and the charity sector share their experience of coming in as a new broom, reflecting on the mistakes they made and advice they'd offer to the new Prime Minister.

    Evan Davis is joined by:Stuart Hill, UK CEO, DHL Rachel Roxburgh, former CEO, Dallaglio RugbyWorks Alan French, CEO, Thomas Cook

    PRODUCTION TEAM:Producers: Alex Lewis, Drew Hyndman, Miriam Quayyum and Diane RichardsonEditor: Matt WillisSound: James Beard and Hal HainesProduction co-ordinator: Katie Morrison and Rosie Strawbridge

  • Managing the rituals of a loved one's death can be both bewildering and expensive.

    And although no-one wants to think about it being like buying a holiday or car, it is a business with a supply chain involving funerals, burials and cremation.

    A couple of years ago the Competition and Markets Authority - which protects people from unfair trading practices - carried out an in-depth investigation into the funeral market because of the “surprise” people experienced at the final cost of that farewell.

    On average people spend about £4,000, so what do you get for that and how is the industry changing?

    Evan Davis is joined by:Gill Stewart, Managing Director, Co-op Funeralcare Alison Crake, Senior Partner, Crake and Mallon Funeral Directors Kate Tym, independent celebrant And Greg Cranfield from JC Atkinson coffin makers.

    PRODUCTION TEAM:Producers: Alex Lewis, Drew Hyndman and Miriam QuayyumEditor: Matt WillisSound: James Beard and Hal HainesProduction co-ordinator: Katie Morrison and Rosie Strawbridge

  • Copyright law has been around since 1710. Back then it only applied to books. Now, it covers music, sport, film, television, video games, anything really.

    It was also much easier to enforce in the days when people couldn't reproduce things all the time. That all started to change with the introduction of the humble music cassette tape. Now, we can all copy things and publish them to social media whenever we like.

    Devices which can circumvent geographical barriers have meant that streaming services have had to rethink their business models. And no-one knows quite yet the potential AI has to change things.

    So is it time that copyright law had a reboot?

    Evan Davis is joined by:Lisa Ormrod, copyright lawyer and Associate Director at Springbird Law Nathalie Curtis Lethbridge, Founder of Atonik Digital which advises on streamed content and monetisation strategyJohn McVay, Chief Executive of PACT, the trade body for independents working in the UK screen industry

    PRODUCTION TEAM:Producers: Alex Lewis, Drew Hyndman and Miriam QuayyumEditor: Matt WillisSound: James Beard and Neil ChurchillProduction co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

  • Millions of employees in the UK are now able to work flexibly – fitting their job around their home life. Many in office jobs, can finish early on a Friday, and are allowed, even encouraged, to routinely work from home.

    But, at the same time, we’re told that the levels of overwork, stress, and burnout in this country are on the rise. More than 17 million working days were lost to work-related stress, depression and anxiety in the last year for which we have data. So what’s going on?

    Evan Davis and guests discuss whether work is really making employees feel burnt out and what's the best way to tackle it.

    Evan is joined by:

    Jane Gratton: Head of People Policy at the British Chambers of CommerceRiannon Palmer: Founder and CEO, Lem-uhn Catherine Allen: People Director at THIS!

    PRODUCTION TEAM:

    Producers: Simon Tulett, Drew Hyndman and Miriam QuayyumEditor: Matt WillisSound: Robin Warren and Rod FarquharProduction co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

  • Every brand wants attention, to be seen as a must-have, but how do some manage stratospheric levels of popularity? It might happen organically, perhaps even by accident, but it’s also true that many brands engineer it.

    Evan Davis and guest discuss the tricks of the trade, from social media influencers to artificial scarcity, and the potential pitfalls when a product is so popular that it's almost impossible to get hold of.

    Plus, what is it that compels people to queue several hours for a sandwich, or pay ten times the usual price for a bottle of energy drink - we explore the consumer psychology behind the hype.

    Evan is joined by:

    Ellis Gilbert, founder of Soho Yacht Club and Talk Nice Studios;Rory Sutherland, vice chair of Ogilvy UK;Dr Cathrine Jansson-Boyd, reader in psychology at Anglia Ruskin University;and Sian Evans, founder of Chatsworth Bakehouse.

    PRODUCTION TEAM:

    Producer: Simon TulettResearcher: Drew HyndmanEditor: Matt WillisSound: Neil Churchill and Donald MacDonaldProduction co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

    (Picture: A customer jumps in the air as he leaves an iPhone store in London, after being the first person to buy the brand's latest phone. Credit: Ben A. Pruchnie/Getty Images)

  • China produces more than half the world's electric vehicles and is scaling up exports, but there are concerns its manufacturers would have an unfair advantage in the UK, which could spell disaster for domestic firms.

    Evan Davis and guests discuss the UK's dilemma around Chinese EVs - do we open our doors to the competition, which might mean cheaper electric cars for consumers and a quicker transition to net zero, or should the government follow the USA and EU in considering import restrictions to protect domestic car-makers?

    Plus, do buyers really care where their EV is made, and will 100% of new car sales be electric by 2035?

    Evan is joined by:

    Ginny Buckley, editor-in-chief and founder, electrifying.com;Victor Zhang, UK country director of Omoda and Jaecoo (made by Chery);James Taylor, UK managing director, Vauxhall;Fraser Brown, managing director, MotorVise

    PRODUCTION TEAM:

    Producer: Simon TulettResearcher: Drew HyndmanEditor: Matt WillisSound: Neil ChurchillProduction co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

  • With the entrepreneur, philanthropist and author. The Decisions That Made Me A Leader is a mini-series from The Bottom Line. It features one-on-one interviews with entrepreneurs and business leaders, including Duncan Bannatyne, Martha Lane Fox, and the boss of Depop, Simon Beckerman. All of these episodes are available on BBC Sounds and you can also watch them on BBC iPlayer. To find the series, just search: The Decisions That Made Me A Leader. Host: Evan DavisProducers: Paige Neal-Holder and Farhana HaiderAssistant Editor: Matthew Willis Senior News Editor: Sam BonhamCommissioning Editor: Hugh Levinson

  • Krisi Smith started Bird and Blend Tea company with business partner Mike knowing very little about tea or running a business. She drew up their mission statement in the pub whilst working as a ski instructor in Canada.

    They started up working in her mums back bedroom to now running 20 retail stores across the UK.

    Before starting the company she had more than 30 jobs and that’s just by the age of 24. For her, putting people are the forefront is what business is about.

    Krisi talks about the challenges of opening a business with your partner in life as well as business. ‘Got married, got divorced, and we're now just business partners.’

    Evan asks about the key personal and business-related decisions that got her to where she is today.

    The Decisions That Made Me A Leader is a mini-series from The Bottom Line. It features one-on-one interviews with entrepreneurs and business leaders, including Duncan Bannatyne, Martha Lane Fox, and the boss of Depop, Simon Beckerman. All of these episodes are available on BBC Sounds and you can also watch them on BBC iPlayer. To find the series, just search: The Decisions That Made Me A Leader. You can also watch the series on BBC iPlayer. To find the series, just search: The Decisions That Made Me A Leader.

    Host: Evan DavisProducers: Paige Neal-Holder and Farhana HaiderAssistant Editor: Matt WillisSenior News Editor: Sam BonhamCommissioning Editor: Hugh Levinson

    A BBC News Long Form Audio production.

  • Simon Beckerman is the founder of Depop, a platform where people can buy and sell pre-loved fashion, it currently has around 35 million registered users. He sold the company to Etsy for £1.25 billion in 2021.

    Simon grew up in Italy to British and Italian parents who he describes as rebels in their own way and even as a teenager he knew he had to build his own business because ‘I was unemployable’

    His latest business, is DELLI a food app connecting independent retailers with consumers. Evan asks about the key personal and business-related decisions that got him to where he is today.

    The Decisions That Made Me A Leader is a mini-series from The Bottom Line. It features one-on-one interviews with entrepreneurs and business leaders, including Duncan Bannatyne, Martha Lane Fox, and the boss of Depop, Simon Beckerman. All of these episodes are available on BBC Sounds and you can also watch them on BBC iPlayer. To find the series, just search: The Decisions That Made Me A Leader. You can also watch the series on BBC iPlayer. To find the series, just search: The Decisions That Made Me A Leader.

    Host: Evan DavisProducers: Paige Neal-Holder and Farhana HaiderAssistant Editor: Matt WillisSenior News Editor: Sam BonhamCommissioning Editor: Hugh Levinson

    A BBC News Long Form Audio production.

  • Martha Lane Fox was first catapulted into the public eye during the dot.com boom as co-founder of lastminute.com the online agency she set up with Brent Hoberman in the late 1990s.

    It was valued at three quarters of a billion pounds when it floated on the London stock exchange in 2000.

    She then experienced a life change road accident while on holiday in Morocco when she was thrown from the passenger seat of an open-top car. She says she very nearly died. ‘They rank you in trauma I was a 37, 39 is dead’

    Her career has ranged from launching karaoke chain Lucky Voice to serving as the government’s digital champion and being on the board of twitter, during one its most complex times. She is currently the President of the British Chamber of Commerce

    Evan asks about the key personal and business-related decisions that got her to where she is today.

    The Decisions That Made Me A Leader is a mini-series from The Bottom Line. It features one-on-one interviews with entrepreneurs and business leaders, including Duncan Bannatyne, Martha Lane Fox, and the boss of Depop, Simon Beckerman. All of these episodes are available on BBC Sounds and you can also watch them on BBC iPlayer. To find the series, just search: The Decisions That Made Me A Leader. You can also watch the series on BBC iPlayer. To find the series, just search: The Decisions That Made Me A Leader.

    Host: Evan DavisProducers: Paige Neal-Holder and Farhana HaiderAssistant Editor: Matt WillisSenior News Editor: Sam BonhamCommissioning Editor: Hugh Levinson

    A BBC News Long Form Audio production.

  • Evan Davis sits down with Richard Walker the Executive Chairman of Iceland foods a company founded by his father. Richard started at Iceland Foods in 2012 from the bottom up working as a shelf stacker at the start.

    A qualified chartered surveyor he is an entrepreneur in his own right having set-up a property business, Bywater Properties, of which he is still chairman.

    A fan of physical challenges he’s climbed Everest and was running his first London Marathon this year when he collapsed less than two miles from the finish line and says ice saved his life.

    Evan asks about the key personal and business-related decisions that got him to where he is today.

    A Long Form Audio Production for BBC Radio 4.

  • Evan Davis sits down with Timo Armoo, the founder of social media advertising business Fanbytes, which he set up when he was 21 with two friends.

    Aged 27 he sold the company, which connects social media influencers with brands, for an eight-figure sum, saying he can now retire a multi-millionaire.

    Timo was born in Hackney in London but moved to Ghana to live with his grandmother when he was 3 months old. He returned to the UK and grew up on a council estate in south London and says he always had this burning feeling that he was destined for more.

    Evan asks about the key personal and business-related decisions that got him to where he is today.

    The Decisions That Made Me A Leader is a mini-series from The Bottom Line. It features one-on-one interviews with entrepreneurs and business leaders, including Duncan Bannatyne, Martha Lane Fox, and the boss of Depop, Simon Beckerman. All of these episodes are available on BBC Sounds and you can also watch them on BBC iPlayer. To find the series, just search: The Decisions That Made Me A Leader. You can also watch the series on BBC iPlayer. To find the series, just search: The Decisions That Made Me A Leader.

    Host: Evan DavisProducers: Paige Neal-Holder and Farhana HaiderAssistant Editor: Matt WillisSenior News Editor: Sam BonhamCommissioning Editor: Hugh Levinson

    A BBC News Long Form Audio production.

  • Evan Davis makes up crisis management scenarios to see how three CEOs handle a business emergency. To make it more realistic none of the guests know what the predicaments are before speaking to Evan.

    Guests:Kathryn Jacob, CEO of Pearl and DeanDame Inga Beale, former CEO of Lloyd's of LondonJustin King, former CEO of Sainsbury's

    Production Team:Presenter: Evan DavisEditor: Matt WillisProducer: Simon Tulet & Paige Neal-HolderSound: Sarah Hockley & Rod Farquhar

  • A typical career, for many, involves some kind of progression, or at least the expectation of it, until we stop and retire. But is there a better model?

    Evan Davis and guests discuss whether more of us should think about easing into retirement by taking more junior roles, going part time, or switching profession altogether, instead of stepping off a career cliff edge when we reach pension age. Could this expand the number of job opportunities for older workers, whilst also helping younger workers push through the ranks?

    Stepping back isn’t an option open to all, though, and there could be big implications for pensions, so how should older workers begin to calculate if, or when, it might be possible? Evan is joined by:

    Matthew Rideout, founder of Knead & Desire Bakehouse;Sir Howard Davies, chairman of NatWest Group;Zoe Ashdown, head of culture and people engagement at AXA UK and Ireland.

    Thanks also to the listeners who sent in voice notes, and to everyone else who emailed [email protected]

    PRODUCTION TEAM:

    Producers: Simon TulettResearcher: Paige Neal-HolderEditor: Matt WillisSound: James Beard and Rod FarquharProduction co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

    The Bottom Line is produced in partnership with The Open University.

    (Picture: An older man laughing and looking at a laptop with a young woman in a workshop. Credit: Alys Tomlinson/Getty Images)

  • The UK’s biggest nightclub operator recently announced the closure of around half of its venues, and with them almost 500 jobs. REKOM UK, which owns the Atik and Pryzm brands, blamed the cost of living crisis hurting its customers, along with increased operating costs. But is there something else going on?

    According to the industry association the number of nightclubs in the UK has more than halved in the last decade, so have younger people – nightclubs’ core customers – lost interest in drinking and dancing the night away? Are landlords eyeing up healthier returns from these enormous spaces by turning them into flats? And how are the remaining venues evolving to attract these, and sometimes older, customers?

    Evan Davis is joined by:

    Peter Marks, chairman of REKOM UK;Mike Kill, CEO of the Night Time Industries Association;Jo Cox-Brown, CEO of Night Time Economy Solutions.

    PRODUCTION TEAM:

    Producers: Simon Tulett and Nick HollandResearcher: Paige Neal-HolderEditor: Matt WillisSound: Rod FarquharProduction co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

    The Bottom Line is produced in partnership with The Open University.

    (Picture: A crowd of people dancing and waving their arms in the air. Credit: Getty Images)

  • It’s easy for people to say they want to buy a particular product, perhaps in the name of sustainability. But how often do individuals actually follow through with these well-meaning intentions? Academics regularly observe a difference between what consumers say they want to do and what they actually do.The gap can cause problems for businesses when they're trying to figure out how to serve their customers. Evan Davis is joined by a panel of business leaders to discuss how they bridge this divide.

    Guests:Andreas Chatzidakis, professor of marketing in the centre for research into sustainability, Royal Holloway, University of London Jake Pickering, senior manager for agriculture, Waitrose Marsha Smith, deputy CEO, IKEA UK Toby Clark, vice president of insights, Mintel

    Production team:Producers: Simon Tulett, and Nick Holland Researcher: Paige Neal-Holder Editor: Matt Willis Sound: Hal Haines Production co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge The Bottom Line is produced in partnership with The Open University.

  • It's useful to know how you're doing at work, but feedback from managers and colleagues can often be unhelpful, upsetting, or even non-existent. So what's the best way to give and receive it?

    Evan Davis and guests discuss some top techniques, particularly in the tricky area of negative feedback, and the importance of training managers in how to have these conversations. But feedback isn't just about managers - we learn the best ways for employees to receive and act on it.

    Plus, how frequently should an employee's performance be measured - we discuss the pros and cons of the annual appraisal - and whether technology helps or hinders.

    Evan Davis is joined by:

    Catherine Hearn, UK HR director, AmazonKatie Obi, chief people officer, AdvancedMargaret Cheng, HR consultant, executive coach and author of 'Giving Good Feedback'

    PRODUCTION TEAM:

    Producer: Simon TulettResearcher: Paige Neal-HolderEditor: Matt WillisSound: Graham Puddifoot and Hal HainesProduction co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

    The Bottom Line is produced in partnership with The Open University.

    (Picture: A woman and a man talking at a desk. Credit: Vladimir Vladimirov, Getty Images)

  • UK consumers are eating less meat than at any point since records began 50 years ago, according to the latest government figures, so how are farmers, processors and retailers responding?

    The cost of living crisis is part of the reason for a recent drop-off in demand, but warnings about meat's impact on the planet and our health might also play a role, and plant-based alternatives have been eating into meat’s market share in recent years.

    So does the industry feel under attack, or are they adapting their businesses and their products to meet these challenges? And what does it take to get an animal from a field to our plate anyway?

    Evan Davis is joined by:

    Anna Longthorp, of Anna’s Happy Trotters;Phil Hambling, head of CSR at ABP Food Group;Charlotte Mitchell, owner of Charlotte’s Butchery.

    PRODUCTION TEAM:

    Producer: Simon TulettResearcher: Paige Neal-HolderEditor: Matt WillisSound: Rod Farquhar and Neil ChurchillProduction co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

    The Bottom Line is produced in partnership with The Open University.

    (Picture: A butcher arranging meat at store window in Leeds. Credit: Reza Estakhrian/Getty Images)