This week, we had the pleasure of the CEO of Pivigo on all things big data and data science related, followed by Ryan Kohn, the co-founder of Propercorn covering getting your product stocked and selling over 2m units a month. Here’s what happened:

Dine with the co-founder of Propercorn
Joining Ryan Kohn, co-founder of Propercorn, for dinner at Tom’s Kitchen, St Katharine Docks last night, were fellow entrepreneurs and brand strategists looking to garner Ryan’s knowledge and expertise in building a hugely successful brand and he offered his advice to those starting a business. His 3 key points were:

1. Understanding your ‘why’: I wanted to run my own charity, that’s my desire, that’s what gets me up every day. When you hire people, why should they get behind you?
2. If you’re starting a business, make a list of the top 5 people in your industry who you admire. Learn from them. Take them out for a coffee and pick their brains. E.g. Ryan met with the co-founder of Innocent, they ran through the basics of wholesalers and business fundamentals. Ultimately, meet with as many people as you can!
3. Every time you hire someone, it’s an opportunity to hire someone brilliant. They have to fit your culture and your attitude – it’s not just a job. It’s all about the people you hire. It took Propercorn a year and half to hire their commercial director.

Speaking about Propercorn as a whole, Ryan explained that they consider themselves a lifestyle brand, it’s not just all about popcorn.

We are holistic, we don’t speak badly about competitors. We focus on ourselves. We believe in what we’re doing. Champion your story and your heritage.

Data Science: use data to drive your business
Dining at Piccolino, Broadgate on Monday night, Kim Nilsson and her guests spoke extensively about the growing need to utilise the ever-expanding collection of data that each and every business is accumulating. There are ways and means to use this data to a company’s advantage. Kim gave some great advice on how to start using data for your business, you can find out more here.

Our speakers were joined by: Compare and Share, Chime, Pomelo Brands, Bloom & Wild, Ucanavit, Live Unguilty, Popcorn Kitchen, Hownd, BTL Brands, Marley Coffee and Accenture amongst others.

Special thanks go to our speakers, Kim Nilsson and Ryan Kohn along with our new partner Constant Contact.

Check out the upcoming TableCrowd dinners and see when you’ll be joining us for dinner.