We Have A Meeting

Madonna changed the lights, the seating and her outfit before the cameras rolled. Ben Shephard won her over with one question.
That’s the skill behind 26 years in broadcasting. He’s presented This Morning and Tipping Point and done film junkets where he had four minutes to get a Hollywood star to open up. He calls himself a frustrated professional sportsman who never made the Ryder Cup, so he became a communicator instead. Now, at 51, he’s a founder. He co-founded For Skin, a men’s skincare brand, with Joel Dommett. He also helped set up Sweetspot, a venture studio that builds businesses celebrities actually own.
Ben joins hosts Jack Frimston and Zac Thompson at Ideas Fest. They talk about purpose, gratitude and why being interested beats being interesting every time. He explains why a quiz show still matters, and why he gets his dad to text him every night with three things he’s looking forward to tomorrow. He also explains why 80% of men’s skincare is bought by women.
He breaks down how Sweetspot works. Every celebrity goes through a questionnaire on their motivations and passions, and the audience helps build the product. For Skin’s community picked the name, the price point and the packaging. He also explains why he will always ask the stupid question in a meeting about burn rates. And why a skincare brand needs a name people argue about, but products good enough to outlive the famous faces behind it.
Then comes the masterclass in connection: the Simon Cowell name trick he recommends to everyone, and why he forgets most of the pitches he hears unless someone finds a way to connect with him personally.
Along the way you’ll hear about Zac talking to his moisturiser, a 24-hour World’s Toughest Mudder with his two sons, a six-year-old called Greg who taught him a lesson in manners, why golf teaches you that the next shot matters most, and the best advice Tim Campbell ever gave him: if it ain’t broke, break it.
Chapters

00:00:00 Welcome to the Show: Meet Ben Shephard, TV Presenter Turned Entrepreneur
00:02:19 The Purpose Behind the Presenter: Finding Meaning in Entertainment
00:05:15 Smelling the Roses: Gratitude, Mindset, and Making Memories
00:07:56 The Skincare Secret: How Ben Ages Like Fine Wine
00:13:36 Building Foreskin: The Problem We Solve and Why the Name Works
00:16:32 From TV to Business: Learning the Ropes and Asking Stupid Questions
00:23:41 Beyond the Founders: Building a Brand That Outlives the Celebrities
00:26:23 The Tough Mudder Mindset: Achievements, Letting Go, and What Comes Next
00:27:40 The Art of Connection: What Ben Knows Now About Communication
00:31:41 The Madonna Masterclass: Finding Common Ground in Four Minutes
00:37:55 Raising Communicators: Teaching Boys to Ask How Are You
00:41:55 Quickfire Business Wisdom: Nurture the Kernel and Break What Ain't Broke

#BenShephard #ForSkin #JoelDommett #Sweetspot #MensSkincare #Skincare #TippingPoint #ThisMorning #Communication #Curiosity #Connection #BusinessPodcast #UKBusiness #FounderMindset #Entrepreneur #IdeasFest #FundingCircle #BackedByFundingCircle #WeHaveAMeeting
Connect with Ben Shephard:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benshephard
For Skin: https://www.for-skin.co.uk
The Business Men podcast (with Joel Dommett): https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-business-men/id1843664679
Hear more from the hosts: Jack: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-frimston-5010177b
Zac: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zac-thompson-33a9a39b
Brought to you by Funding Circle: business finance that backs you. Learn more at https://www.fundingcircle.com/uk
Subscribe to We Have A Meeting: new episodes every week with founders, sales leaders and entrepreneurs who’ve built it from the ground up.

Your sales team has more AI tools and more data than ever. So why are they doing less with it? And what should you never, ever let an AI agent do for you? Mel Smith has a one-question test for that, and most teams fail it. She also has a rule for her SDRs: book a meeting on a cold call in under five minutes and you'll be getting a message from her.

Mel is VP of Sales Development at Nooks, the AI revenue agent platform for sales teams. She started as an SDR when outbound meant email only. She was a Nooks customer before she was a Nooks employee, after a former rep of hers got laid off, joined Nooks and told her the product was crazy. She bought it for her SDR team, then talked her way into the co-founders' inbox. Two and a half years later she runs the team that sells it. She is, quite literally, her own buyer persona.

Mel joins hosts Jack Frimston and Zac Thompson to unpack where AI agents genuinely save sales teams time, where they quietly destroy trust, and why cold calling still beats email and LinkedIn for pipeline.

This is a working masterclass in AI for sales development. Mel breaks down the automate, augment, human model, where AI agents take 80% of a task and the rep owns the last 20%. She shows how agent-led account research cuts a properly personalised email from 45 to 60 minutes down to 15 or 20, and why that saved time belongs on the stuff that doesn't scale. As a customer, Nooks took her team from an hour to make 50 cold calls down to eight minutes. Her qualified cold calls run 12 to 18 minutes, built on permission-based openers, bucket questions and three yeses, and nobody gives up before three nos. New SDRs hear 100 to 200 peer calls on the virtual sales floor in their first two weeks, and the data says the reps who spend the most time there ramp fastest.

Along the way: the Tony Robbins AI agent claim that didn't survive a fact-check, how to sell a whole platform on a cold call without sounding like everyone else, the spreadsheet interview test where not reaching for AI is now a red flag, the "it was December" excuse that tells her everything about a candidate, why entry-level reps should check a company's current SDRs before applying, the theatre tickets that get unreachable leaders to take a meeting, and the inside jokes on her LinkedIn that only one prospect has ever noticed.

Chapters
Chapters

00:00:00 Welcome to the Show: Meet Mel Smith, VP of Sales Development at Nooks
00:01:56 The AI Data Paradox: Why Sales Teams Have Everything But Do Nothing
00:03:39 The Simplest AI Win: Account Research That Actually Works
00:04:32 What AI Should Never Touch: The Trust-Bearing Moments in Sales
00:09:06 AI Agents Explained: Spider Webs of Decision-Making
00:12:36 The 45-Minute to 15-Minute Email: Real AI Use Cases That Save Time
00:16:02 Personalization That Cuts Through: Business Context Beats High School Facts
00:18:51 Selling a Platform Not a Product: Solution and Persona-Based Messaging
00:21:10 Finding the Problems That Matter: Talking to Your Target Personas
00:25:12 The 12 to 18 Minute Cold Call: Running Discovery on Every Dial
00:27:18 Hiring SDRs in the AI Era: Characteristics Over Skills Every Time
00:36:46 The Sales Floor Effect: Why Top Performers Spend the Most Time There
00:38:03 Breaking Into Sales: Do the Research Before You Prospect
00:40:09 The Future of Sales: Leaner Teams, Same Human Connections

Hashtags
#WeHaveAMeeting #Nooks #MelSmith #AIAgents #AIinSales #SalesDevelopment #SDR #ColdCalling #OutboundSales #PipelineGeneration #SalesLeadership #RevOps #SalesAutomation #SalesHiring #B2BSales #SalesTraining #SalesPodcast

Connect with Mel:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melanie-smith-4118564b/
Email: melanie.smith@nooks.in (mailto:melanie.smith@nooks.in)
Nooks: https://www.nooks.ai/wehaveameeting

Hear more from the hosts:
Jack: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-frimston-5010177b
Zac: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zac-thompson-33a9a39b

Brought to you by Nooks: the AI-powered platform helping teams automate outbound sales and book more qualified meetings. Learn more at https://www.nooks.ai/wehaveameeting

Subscribe to We Have A Meeting: new episodes every week with founders, sales leaders and entrepreneurs who've built it from the ground up.

Spencer Matthews has changed since his Made In Chelsea Days.

He was a terrible employee. Hotels, nightclubs, bars, a stint as a forward foreign exchange broker in the City. None of it stuck. Then he got sober, found nothing worth drinking between a gin and tonic and a sparkling water, and built CleanCo to fill the gap. Today he runs CleanCo and the Untapped podcast, is a three-time world record holder, and has run 30 marathons in 30 days and seven Ironmans on seven continents in 21 days. He is also, by his own admission, a little bit ashamed of Made in Chelsea.

Spencer Matthews joins hosts Jack Frimston and Zac Thompson at Ideas Fest for one of the most honest conversations we've had about fame, failure and quitting. He explains why he thinks Made in Chelsea makes business harder, not easier, why he doesn't like the persona, the accent, the drinking or the way he treated people on it, and why his wife assumed the worst before she met him.

He breaks down the mistakes behind CleanCo: rebrands, products released before they were ready, recalls, and launching into 44 US states it couldn't afford before pulling back to five. He explains why being a naive founder is a superpower, why he gets bored when the numbers are being hit, and why he delegates everything, including the dishwasher to his children.

Then the bit he didn't have to share. The 10K he bailed on. A heart rate of 140 on the start line, 3:08 pace for the first 400 metres, a big panini and a lot of vomit. He didn't stop because he had to. He stopped because he wasn't going to break 37 minutes. The man who kept going through moments in Antarctica that felt life threatening quit a park 10K, and he explains exactly why that still bothers him.

Along the way: one beer a week rationed across 30 desert marathons, waking at 3:30am ready to run a 31st, sleeping 18 hours on a mess hall floor in Antarctica because his team left him there, why he thinks finishing at all costs is verging on moronic, what Mo Farah told him about effort, the 2:45 he's chasing in Valencia, why he follows exactly three accounts, his brother passing on Uber, and his contingency plan if nature calls at 30km.

Chapters

00:00:00 Welcome to the Show: Meet Spencer Matthews, From Made in Chelsea to Clean Co Founder
00:01:30 The Problem We Solve: Sophisticated Alcohol-Free Options and Inspiring Human Potential
00:02:55 From Crap Employee to Entrepreneur: Why Spencer Had to Work for Himself
00:06:27 Don't Be Afraid to Fail: Why Reputation Damage Doesn't Scare Spencer
00:07:52 The Made in Chelsea Baggage: Being a Rich Privileged Wanker in Business
00:11:41 Building Clean Co: Mistakes, Product Recalls, and Learning the Hard Way
00:14:50 The Art of Delegation: From Business to Getting Kids to Do Chores
00:17:20 The 10K That Broke Him: Vomiting, Quitting, and Feeling Like a Bitch
00:22:30 Life-Threatening Ironmans vs Park Run Failures: The Mental Game of Endurance
00:29:24 Chasing 2:45 in Valencia: The Hardest Thing Spencer's Ever Attempted
00:34:55 Backyard Ultras and Max Effort: Why Perceived Effort Is All That Matters
00:38:34 Best Business Advice: If a Deal Is Too Good to Be True, It Probably Is
00:39:47 Winning Your First Customer: Go on Made in Chelsea or Just Be Authentic
00:40:54 Closing Thoughts: Business Finance That Backs You with Funding Circle

#SpencerMatthews #CleanCo #Untapped #MadeInChelsea #Sobriety #AlcoholFree #EnduranceMindset #MarathonTraining #Ironman #BusinessPodcast #UKBusiness #FounderMindset #Delegation #Entrepreneur #IdeasFest #FundingCircle #BackedByFundingCircle #WeHaveAMeeting

Connect with Spencer Matthews:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spencermatthews

CleanCo: https://clean.co

Untapped podcast: https://thehighperformancepodcast.com/untapped

Untapped on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1788474884

Hear more from the hosts: Jack: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-frimston-5010177b

Zac: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zac-thompson-33a9a39b

Brought to you by Funding Circle: business finance that backs you. Learn more at https://www.fundingcircle.com/uk

Subscribe to We Have A Meeting: new episodes every week with founders, sales leaders and entrepreneurs who've built it from the ground up.

Sammie Ellard-King cleared £24k of debt in his twenties, then built one of the UK's biggest money education brands. He launched Up The Gains in 2021 and has racked up more than 500 million views, 510,000+ social followers and 750,000+ podcast downloads. He was named Best Money Content Creator at the 2024 British Bank Awards. In June 2026 he launched Gains App, a free personal finance app combining budgeting, cashback and AI money support, to a waiting list of over 15,000 people.

Backed by Funding Circle.

Funding Circle is business finance that backs you. Business loans, a flexible line of credit and a cashback business card for UK businesses, with a decision in as little as an hour. If you are looking for funding to take the next step, check them out here: https://www.fundingcircle.com/uk

Sammie joins hosts Jack Frimston and Zac Thompson at Ideas Fest to explain how he went from £24k in debt to building a money brand millions trust, why he walked away from a six-figure job to go all in on content, and how he turned an audience into a business.

Along the way: [three or four specifics pulled from the episode].

CHAPTERS

#BackedByFundingCircle #FundingCircle #SammieEllardKing #UpTheGains #GainsApp #IdeasFest #PersonalFinance #MoneyTips #SmallBusinessUK #BusinessFinance #FounderStory #Entrepreneur #WeHaveAMeeting #Manchester

Connect with Sammie Ellard-King:

Gains App: https://gainsapp.com

Up The Gains: https://upthegains.co.uk

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/upthegainsmoney

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sammieellardking

X: https://x.com/ellardking

Hear more from the hosts:
Jack: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-frimston-5010177b
Zac: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zac-thompson-33a9a39b

Brought to you by Funding Circle: business finance that backs you. See how they could back your business at https://www.fundingcircle.com/uk

Subscribe to We Have A Meeting: new episodes every week with founders, sales leaders and entrepreneurs who've built it from the ground up.

Luke Tobin has built and sold three businesses. The big one was Digital Ethos, which he took from launch to an eight-figure exit in under five years, making it one of the fastest agency growth-to-exit stories in UK history. He sold to Cadastra, South America's largest independent agency group, in late 2022, then ran EMEA for the combined business. He now invests and operates through Unusual Group, Tobin Capital and Succeed, and won the Great British Entrepreneur Awards in 2020.

Backed by Funding Circle.

Funding Circle is business finance that backs you. Business loans, a flexible line of credit and a cashback business card for UK businesses, with a decision in as little as an hour. If you are looking for funding to take the next step, check them out here: https://www.fundingcircle.com/uk

Luke joins hosts Jack Frimston and Zac Thompson at Ideas Fest to explain how he built an agency buyers wanted, what actually drives an agency's valuation, and why most founders undersell their life's work when they exit.

Along the way: [three or four specifics pulled from the episode].

CHAPTERS
Chapters

00:00:00 Welcome to the Show: Meet Luke Tobin, Marketing Agency Founder Who Scaled to Exit
00:00:26 The Cash Flow Reality Check: Why Managing Runway Makes or Breaks Your Business
00:00:56 The Borrowing Money Philosophy: Get More Than Just Cash and Service Your Debt
00:01:40 Day One of Your Business: Check Market Fit and Talk to Real Customers
00:02:34 The Best Business Advice: Work Your Current Network Better
00:03:15 Ignore the Easy Money Hype: Entrepreneurship Is Graft, Not Rock and Roll
00:03:39 The Most Underrated Skill: Leverage Self-Doubt and Move Through Fear
00:04:20 What Separates Winners from Everyone Else: Take the Chance on Yourself
00:04:50 Winning Your First Customer: Solve Their Pain Points and Speak Directly to Them
00:05:15 Closing Thoughts: Business Finance That Backs You with Funding Circle

#BackedByFundingCircle #FundingCircle #LukeTobin #DigitalEthos #UnusualGroup #IdeasFest #AgencyOwner #SmallBusinessUK #BusinessFinance #FounderStory #Entrepreneur #WeHaveAMeeting #Manchester

Connect with Luke Tobin:

Website: https://www.luketobin.com

Unusual Group: https://www.unusualgroup.com

Tobin Capital: https://www.tobincapital.co.uk

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/luketobin

Hear more from the hosts:
Jack: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-frimston-5010177b
Zac: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zac-thompson-33a9a39b

Brought to you by Funding Circle: business finance that backs you. See how they could back your business at https://www.fundingcircle.com/uk

Subscribe to We Have A Meeting: new episodes every week with founders, sales leaders and entrepreneurs who've built it from the ground up.