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Achieving Growth  -  Analysis

The final frontier

Destination infinity

In business, some people really do reach for the stars. Simon Cook, chief executive of venture capital firm DFJ Esprit, explores what happens when an entrepreneur's ambition is truly limitless.

Search funds

The secret of search funds 

There can’t be many asset classes that boast an average IRR of 52 per cent. Search funds, in which an inexperienced entrepreneur is backed by angel investors to search for and acquire a business, have this enviable distinction.

Building a business on the cheap

It may seem out of character for a venture capitalist to say this, but you don't need investment to create a great business.

Books and business theories

Smart thinking

No matter how charismatic and driven you are, everybody needs a little inspiration now and then. Entrepreneurs tell Kathleen Hall which books and business theories have made a lasting impression

Urie calls the shots at Metrodome

Some people are suited to early retirement. Peter Urie, CEO of independent film distributor Metrodome, is not one of them.

Styles of leadership

Every team needs the right mix of intelligence and assertiveness. Chris Ingram looks at the different personality types found in every office and how best to manage and motivate them.

Does location matter in business?

We’ve all heard the old estate agent saying, ‘location, location, location’. But does the same principle apply to business? Gill Hunt, MD of online consultant marketplace Skillfair, argues that being out of town does not mean being out on a limb.

Rising star: Glassesdirect.co.uk

James Murray Wells started online spectacles retailer Glassesdirect.co.uk with the last £1,000 of his student loan. With the help of VCs he is now aiming to turn it into a £1 billion company. He tells GrowthBusiness his story.

Rising Star: Pharmacy 2U

Daniel Lee is the MD of Pharmacy 2U, the first mail-order and online pharmacy retailer in the UK. With turnover of £12 million, the company is seeking greater heights in the year ahead, as Lee tells GrowthBusiness.

Rising star: Ethical Superstore

Ethical Superstore, an online retailer of fair trade, organic and eco-friendly goods, is forecasting turnover of £2.2 million this year (up from £800,000 last year). We talk to co-founder Andy Redfern

My best business decision: Nick Craven

Nick Craven, chief executive of Weatherbys Ventures, says his best business decision was to widen the company's offerings from its traditional remit of horseracing while using skills it already had in-house.

How Video Arts broke into China

A producer of training DVDs in English seems a business unlikely to succeed in China. But Video Arts, co-founded by comedian John Cleese in 1972, now counts the nation as its fourth-largest export market.

Imran Hakim and the iTeddy

Entrepreneur Imran Hakim secured £140,000 from Peter Jones and Theo Paphitis when he showcased the iTeddy on the BBC's Dragon's Den. This curious bear-cyborg hybrid is described as an educational toy that helps pre-school children learn as they play.

Rising Star: Apatech

Apatech, a manufacturer of artificial bone-graft material, has grown sales to £3.1 million from £270,000 in 2005. We talk to CEO Simon Cartmell

My best business decision: Matthew Crook

Matthew Crook, CEO of software developer SalesCentric explains how partnership, especially with powerful players in your sector, can pay dividends when it comes to sales.

Research

  • What should an AIM company pay its CEO or FD?
    What should a non-executive director or chairman expect to be paid?
    What benchmarks should AIM remuneration committee members be using when
    setting pay?

VCT Special Report 2009

This reports principle aim is to provide business owners seeking funding with information about the amount of funds that VCTs have to invest.

Cash Shells Special Report 2009

A comprehensive overview of cash shells on AIM and PLUS, companies that have become a significant feature on the market landscape.

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Store

AIM Guide 2009/2010

The 2009/2010 AIM Guide contains essential information for anyone interested in the Alternative Investment Market.

Business XL

Business XL is written by leaders for leaders. The magazine is a fountain of inside information and knowledge, which can only be delivered by people who have started, bought and grown their own business.

M&A Magazine

M&A Magazine is the leading mid-market monthly corporate finance publication in the UK.

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Poll

What should Alistair Darling deliver in the Budget?




Have your vote on current issues

Videos

Punch above your weight

Jos White, who sold his company MessageLabs for $695 million, on why it's so important to act like a bigger business than you really are.

John Cleese, Video Arts

Meeting menaces: The Waffler

More tips from John Cleese, who reveals how to stop a waffler in full flow.

Ian Cheshire, B&Q

Reducing energy usage

Ian Cheshire, chairman of B&Q, explains how the store has saved 10,000 tonnes of carbon emissions.

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Events Calendar

The Media Magnate Awards 2009

26th March, Vinopolis, London

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Achieving Growth

Reports, case studies and guides focused on the subject of achieving business growth. Gearing, investment, managing growth for business owners and CEOs.