Executing Exceptional Business Ideas with Serial Tech Entrepreneur & CEO at Goodlord, William Reeve #28
It’s been said that no idea is truly original, so bringing value to business is all about an ability to execute those ideas. With an incredible track record to show from his decades as a serial tech entrepreneur & angel investor, there’s no doubt that William Reeve possesses that ability in abundance.
Having run the largest technology consumer research programme in Europe, Co-Founded the UK's leading online DVD rental brand - which eventually became LOVEFiLM - and holding Non-Executive roles in Secret Escapes, Graze and Dunelm, William has no shortage of tales and takeaways from his experiences.
Joining Lee on this week’s Extrology, William recalls the pain points that became progress on his business journey, which now sees him as the CEO of Goodlord.
Lee and WILLIAM discuss:
William’s remarkable portfolio of executive and non-exec roles
Early fascination with technology, and releasing a game during his GCSE years
Finding more value in executing ideas than conceiving them
The oft-overlooked quality of sales as a professional skill
Taking a portfolio approach to business vs having a sole focus
The importance of diverse skill sets and outlooks in any team
Links & references:
Lee Cooper: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leecooperrecruiter/
William Reeve: https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamreeve/
Goodlord: https://www.linkedin.com/company/goodlord/
Get in touch: lee@extrology.com
Episode highlights:
“I found myself actually earning some money professionally as a kid; I wrote a computer game while I was doing my GCSEs. The GCSEs didn't do too well but the computer game got released publicly, and I found myself doing more of that actually during my A-Levels.” - 5:25 - William Reeve
“I wondered ‘How come plumbers are making quite a lot more money than these supposedly well-remunerated business jobs?’. I thought ’It's because it's their own gig, isn't it - it’s their own business’. That started a thought process, which was that at some point in the future, if I want to make some money, that's probably the best way of doing it.” - 16:30 - William Reeve
“Whenever somebody comes up to me with an amazing new business idea, I always say that the idea is really worth nothing. It’s the ability to do stuff with ideas that creates value.” - 21:40 - William Reeve
“I'm thinking more of the lows on the journey but that's unfair, because obviously it was a terrific journey with a lot of highlights. But it was a struggle, and we had a lot of competition in that market.” - 38:30 - William Reeve
“I feel a bit young to be retiring - I'm not the sort of person who's going to hang my boots up and sit on a beach with a sombrero over my head. I think I’m going to end up with fingers in pies as long as I can, realistically.” - 44:05 - William Reeve
“I tended to look at the world in terms of building a leading UK business, and I probably should have been thinking more in terms of building a leading international business. I think the internet and technology has made that challenge more pertinent because it's easier to build multinational global businesses than it was for the 21 year old William Reeve.” - 51:55 - William Reeve
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