Episode #480 - Building A Gym Business Where Everyone Finally Feels At Home - with Louise Williams
Release Date: 05/14/2025
Episode #502 - 500 Episodes - Celebrating the Journey
ScaleUp Radio
In this episode Kevin Brent looks back on 500 episodes of ScaleUp Radio, taking a moment to reflect on the invaluable lessons, insights, and stories gathered from hundreds of conversations with ambitious entrepreneurs and business leaders. With its mission rooted in making the scale-up journey easier by learning from others' experiences, ScaleUp Radio has consistently highlighted what it truly takes to build a valuable and scalable business. 💡 Core Takeaways from 500 Episodes Scaling vs. Growth: Real scale comes from optimising systems—not just adding more resources. Greg Baldwin's use...
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Episode #501 - Revolutionising Pet Care With the Dental Wand - with Victor Carpio
ScaleUp Radio
In this episode of ScaleUp Radio, Kevin Brent sits down with Victor Carpio, the innovative founder of Inventor Smart Care, to discuss how a passion for solving a common pet health problem led to the creation of a world-first product: the Dental Wand – a toothbrush designed specifically to let cats control their own dental care. Victor shares the journey of launching a startup in a niche but high-potential market, including the challenges of developing a product for animals, bootstrapping through multiple prototypes, and preparing for national TV exposure on Dragons' Den. He also dives into...
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Episode #500 - Sustainability Isn’t a Side Hustle, It’s the Future of Businesses making a Local Impacts - with Emma Burlow
ScaleUp Radio
Hi, I’m Granger Forson – find me at or connect with me on LinkedIn. On this edition of ScaleUp Radio, I’m joined by Emma Burlow, founder of Lighthouse Sustainability and a leading voice in the world of circular economy and sustainable business. Emma’s journey spans over 25 years in sustainability – and she’s not just talking the talk. From her early days in waste management to becoming head of circular economy at Resource Futures and founding her own business, she’s been on the front line helping organisations make a genuine, lasting impact....
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Episode #499 - A Mission to Reinvent Fleet Security Through Camaraderie and Code - with Kevin Pope
ScaleUp Radio
Hi, I’m Granger Forson – find me at or connect with me on LinkedIn. In this episode of ScaleUp Radio, I’m joined by Kevin Pope, the dynamic Managing Director of Protrack Solutions and Biostart Security. Kevin’s story begins with a military mindset and a knack for spotting opportunity. After leaving the army, he entered the world of telematics and soon saw a gap he just had to fill. That leap of faith led to Protrack – a vehicle and fleet tracking business that’s now an innovation leader in compliance apps and software integration for businesses across...
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Episode #498 - Building Meaningful Business Communities Online – with James West
ScaleUp Radio
In this episode of ScaleUp Radio, we dive into the world of business networking with James West, the co-founder of Onle Networking – a platform that’s reimagining how small businesses connect, collaborate and grow through a fully online model. Founded on the belief that great business relationships are built on authenticity and community rather than pressure and rules, Onle has grown impressively to 360 members across 25 UK groups, with recent expansion into Ireland and the US. Unlike traditional models, Onle operates entirely online and uses a flexible monthly subscription model designed...
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Episode #497 - Authenticity & Real Stories Are The Superpower Of The Small Business - with Guy Hayward
ScaleUp Radio
In this episode of ScaleUp Radio, we're joined by Guy Hayward, founder of Local Heroes Marketing – a business born from a mission to help independent companies compete against much larger rivals. With over 30 years of experience in global advertising for brands like Nike, Adidas, Microsoft, and Coca-Cola, Guy brings a wealth of insight into how small and medium enterprises (SMEs) can level the playing field through smarter, more authentic marketing. Local Heroes Marketing, launched just over a year ago, is all about enabling SMEs to “punch above their weight.” In our conversation, Guy...
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Episode #496 - Putting People First in HR - with Claire Loftus
ScaleUp Radio
In this episode of ScaleUp Radio, Kevin Brent is joined by Claire Loftus, the dynamic founder of Evolve, a people-first HR consultancy operating across Northern Ireland, Great Britain, and the Republic of Ireland. Claire shares her journey from working in HR and navigating personal health challenges to founding Evolve in 2017. With a team of nine working remotely, Evolve offers flexible, pragmatic HR support tailored to a diverse range of clients – from startups to large corporates – across multiple jurisdictions. 🔍 Episode Highlights: The Evolve Ethos: A refreshingly human approach to...
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Episode #495 - The Startup That Refused to Follow the Rules by an Accountant Reinventing Event Finances One Festival at a Time - with Chris Carter
ScaleUp Radio
Hi, I’m Granger Forson – you can find me at or on LinkedIn. In this episode of ScaleUp Radio, I’m joined by Chris Carter, founder of EventWise and long-time accountant behind In The Loop. Chris shares an incredible five-year journey of building a startup in one of the most volatile industries – live events – all while raising a young family, getting married, and self-funding the entire venture. His software, EventWise, was born out of necessity during the Covid-19 pandemic, but it's proving even more vital today. EventWise helps event organisers replace clunky,...
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Episode #494 - ScaleUp Club Exclusive: Building Habits and Processes - with Craig Hellen of Bexmedia
ScaleUp Radio
In this exclusive ScaleUp Club edition of ScaleUp Radio, we’re joined by Craig Hellen, founder of Bexmedia, a video and motion graphics agency with nearly two decades of experience. This intimate discussion explores how Craig has implemented processes and built habits that help a small, creative team stay aligned, accountable, and productive – all while preserving a strong company culture. What You’ll Learn: How building consistent internal systems (like naming conventions and structured meetings) can improve clarity and alignment across the business. Why clearly communicating the...
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Episode #493 - Smart Growth with Smart Lockers – with Ryan Slaney
ScaleUp Radio
Hi there and welcome back to another edition of ScaleUp Radio, the podcast brought to you by Smart90, inspired by the Entrepreneurial ScaleUp System and designed to make navigating our ScaleUp journeys that little bit easier by learning from others' experiences. I’m Kevin Brent, and in today's episode, I’m joined by Ryan Slaney, Founder and Managing Director of iLockerz – a business that’s leading the way in smart locker solutions for a wide range of industries. Our conversation today is structured in three parts: First, we take a look at iLockerz as a business, including its smart...
info_outlineI’m Granger Forson and you can find me at www.bizsmart-gloucestershire.co.uk or connect with me on LinkedIn. Today on ScaleUp Radio, I’m chatting with Louise Williams, co-owner of Solace Gym in Cheltenham and the warm personality behind the Pink Pear Bear blog.
Louise shares her inspiring journey from feeling frustrated by the unrealistic “insta-perfect” images of motherhood to embracing her own ADHD diagnosis and turning her desire to help others into a thriving community-centered gym. She believed wholeheartedly in creating a place where everyone, from teenagers to seniors, could comfortably work out and feel accepted.
Solace Gym’s motto is simple: “Be Yourself.” Whether you’re an avid gym-goer or stepping onto the mat for the very first time, you’ll discover a judgment-free environment that’s not about the most fashionable gear or perfect poses. Instead, it’s about showing up, moving your body, and finding mental clarity through exercise.
Through the highs and lows of launching a new venture, Louise highlights the power of patience, solid teamwork, and a healthy dose of creativity. And of course, she reveals how she balances running a gym without contracts, blogging about ADHD, and caring for her family all at the same time.
If you’ve ever wanted a supportive community to help you feel empowered, both physically and mentally, this is the episode for you. Tune in to be truly inspired by Louise’s drive and discover how breaking the “business as usual” rules can be a game-changer for your own entrepreneurial journey.
To ensure you don’t miss any inspirational future episodes do subscribe to ScaleUp Radio wherever you like to listen to your podcasts.
So, let’s now dive into the inspiring journey of community, wellbeing, and self-discovery with Louise
Scaling up your business isn't easy, and can be a little daunting. Let ScaleUp Radio make it a little easier for you. With guests who have been where you are now, and can offer their thoughts and advice on several aspects of business. ScaleUp Radio is the business podcast you've been waiting for.
If you would like to be a guest on ScaleUp Radio, please click here:
https://bizsmarts.co.uk/scaleupradio/kevin
You can get in touch with Granger here:
Book a call with Granger - 30 minutes value add conversation for Business owners with Staff.
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Kevin's Latest Book Is Available!
Drawing on BizSmart’s own research and experiences of working with hundreds of owner-managers, Kevin Brent explores the key reasons why most organisations do not scale and how the challenges change as they reach different milestones on the ScaleUp Journey. He then details a practical step by step guide to successfully navigate between the milestones in the form of ESUS - a proven system for entrepreneurs to scale up.
More on the Book HERE - https://www.esusgroup.co.uk/
Louise can be found here:
https://www.instagram.com/solacegymchelt/
https://www.facebook.com/solacegymchelt/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/solace-gym/about/
https://www.instagram.com/pinkpearbear
Resources:
ADHD AF podcast - https://www.adhdasfemales.com/
Canva - canva.com