"Having started on a graduate training programme with Allied Domecq in 1991, running pubs in East London and Soho (in London’s West End), I was asked to leave the company as I was too much of maverick. I then joined a start up called Waterfall Holdings which had a great idea around American Pool Bars - but failed miserably on execution. After a year with Waterfall Holdings and many failed interviews, I ended up at Wizard Inns which was a pub and bar start up backed by British Venture Capitalist, Guy Hands. With the help of his financial support, we built the business up from nothing to a 65 strong pub and bar company which we sold to Marston’s Pub Co for £90million in 2004.
Nadat ik de smaak van het ondernemerschap te pakken had gekregen, ging ik samenwerken met Charlie Mowat en hielp ik bij de ontwikkeling van The Cleanspace Partnership. Daarnaast heb ik Coolerking Resources opgericht, een commercieel adviesbureau dat gespecialiseerd is in het verkrijgen van de best mogelijke inkoopdeals voor kleine en middelgrote pubbedrijven.
Met dit alles op de achtergrond voelde ik nog steeds de behoefte om mezelf te bewijzen in de bedrijfswereld, dus ging ik werken bij een groot pubbedrijf genaamd Laurel Pub Co, gesteund door Robert Tchenguiz. Op de eerste dag wist ik al dat het niet bij mij paste, maar ik ben blij dat ik doorgezet heb, want hier werd het idee voor Serve Legal geplant.
In een paar weken tijd werden minstens 2 of 3 licenties van Laurel Pub Co geschorst vanwege alcoholgebruik door minderjarigen, waardoor mogelijk miljoenen ponden aan inkomsten en winst verloren gingen. We moesten iemand vinden die ons kon helpen om te voorkomen dat de locaties permanent gesloten zouden worden of dat er strenge beperkingen aan hun vergunningen gesteld zouden worden als ze weer open zouden gaan. Het enige wat we konden vinden was een gepensioneerde politieagent die veel te veel rekende. De bars heropenden met strenge beperkingen en rampzalige inkomsten. Ikzelf en mijn toekomstige zakenpartner, Julian Sargeson, werden niet lang daarna gevraagd om de zaak te verlaten en terwijl we nadachten over de toekomst, herinnerden we ons onze problemen rond de sluiting van de bars en het feit dat we niemand konden vinden om ons te helpen. We identificeerden een probleem en zochten naar een oplossing. Serve Legal was geboren.
Serve Legal set out to offer a service that offered retailers a chance to demonstrate due diligence and responsible retailing when selling age related products such as alcohol, knives, vapes, tobacco, lottery and gambling products, pharma products and on line services. The business has now grown to be valued at £30 million and has no debt. Not bad considering we started the business in our bedrooms!! More importantly, over 18 years the business has given work opportunities to over 40,000 18/19 yr olds some of whom are now part of the Senior Management Team. Proudly, one became my Sales and Marketing Director at 26 years old - whilst over half of the overall team are former auditors. I am now the oldest person remaining as my business partner has retired. The company is now very young with most of the team under 30 which gives me incredible insights into how they approach work and how they interact with their colleagues. Gone has the cynical mistrust and assumptions about colleagues which I was used to, now to be replaced by a far more positive and consensual working environment which looks to involve everyone in the business. As a result Serve Legal is a far more robust organisation which is ready to expand rapidly in 25/26."
Ed Heaver, Co-Founder of Serve Legal
'Ed spoke to our Lower Sixth students and was engaging throughout. His story from university to becoming an entrepreneur had them captivated from start to finish. He shared honestly, both the successes but also the challenges and failures that he has faced in his business and life. Their enthusiasm in the Q and A at the end showed how much they had got form his talk. I can wholeheartedly recommend Ed as a speaker for young people.'
David Doran, Wimbledon College.
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