7. Andew Currie, Ian Currie,
Michael Taylor, Melanie Hird
8. Starter for ten
9. Melanie Hird
10. Richard Matthewman
11. Norman Molyneux
12. Ian Currie
Ian Currie: We want to get to a point
where we become involved in a business
and we can put our brand on it and
get an immediate uplift from doing so.
We still come back to the basic ethos
that we try and find value in situations
and advise accordingly. That could be
as an investor, an adviser, whatever.
Having these funds is like the carrot;
people will come knocking on our
door all day long because we’re
seen to manage a lot of money. The
opportunity base is going to increase
dramatically.
Norman Molyneux: We’re able to talk
to people and offer them a range of
products, but we’ve been able to
introduce them to wider opportunities.
It’s just fantastic and I think people
will become very sticky with Seneca,
which is a good thing.
MT: Where are the other
opportunities to invest in businesses
in the current market?
MH: Many of the businesses we
see are stressed because they don’t
strategically look at the business and
think about where they are going.
We all know the economic climate has
been tough, but they hit a strategic
brick wall. We have a few different
things in our favour. For a start,
we’re prepared to take risks. We give
advice, we provide support, we set
targets. After that, a business should
be much better than their competitors,
providing we can get them over the
hurdles. If a business is stressed and
you can turn it around, you should
also be able to make a business grow
that’s growing already. So with that
extra support and bringing other people
in from the team, it opens a lot more
opportunity.
IC: I was just going to say that the
whole key is we’re not just offering
money. It is advice and assistance as
well. That’s what it’s all about.
Norman Molyneux: So, don’t
underestimate the extent of what we
offer now. We can be incredibly flexible
and we can fund lots and lots of
different situations and at different
points in the life cycle of a business.
No one else out there that can do that.
The value of experience
MT: Can I pick up on a point that
Mel made about the help we can
draw on from the investor base and
whether the entrepreneurs here today
see opportunities in sectors where
you’ve had direct experience. Are you
actually more likely to get involved
and take a role in a business in a
sector you know? Or can you at least
offer a unique view when there’s an
investment opportunity there.
Chris Hopkinson: If you’ve been in
business you tend to be a curious
person who is interested in talking to
business people and trying to work out
what their model is; asking why it works
or why it’s not working. Certainly from
my personal point of view I like talking
to people who are involved in business.
I want to understand things and I’m
always happy to offer my advice if any
one will take any notice of me.
Entrepreneurs tend to get excited
about things. Most of the people I know
who have been involved in running their
own show; once they come out of it,
they do suffer withdrawal. They get used
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