Scale To Win with Dominic Monkhouse

We will soon trust AI more than people with their own agendas. In 50 years, we'll realise 50%+ tax was madness when 20% could have worked. Digital voting will let people vote on issues, not political parties, and we'll have an executive of 40 people (like Singapore) instead of 1,000 MPs arguing endlessly. And Brexit will be remembered as the best thing that happened—because this entrepreneurial little island will reinvent how to govern, and the rest of the world will copy us as they've done throughout history. Simon Woodroffe, founder of Yo! Sushi and YoTel, original Dragon on Dragons' Den, performer at Edinburgh Festival, recording artist with the Blockheads, and now published author of "Yo Man," has built businesses across multiple industries starting at age 45—and he's got radical ideas about politics, taxation, and why megalomaniac control at the beginning is the right way to start any business.

In this episode from Thailand (where Simon now lives with his Thai wife after being brought up in old Singapore), he reveals how he started YoSushi after a Japanese TV producer said "conveyor belt sushi bar with girls in black PVC miniskirts," flew to Japan when it was expensive and difficult (Japan was the last great mystery of the East 30 years ago), found 2,500 conveyor belt sushi bars nobody in the UK knew about, and opened Poland Street with everything he had in the world—only to have nobody come for the first two weeks. Then the second Saturday, there was a 100-yard queue down the block because they'd done something so completely different. He shares why he was nicknamed "the steamroller," why megalomaniac control is perfect at the beginning but you must let go after three years, how he hired Robin Rowland who closed all the Yo Below bars much to Simon's chagrin (but was absolutely right), and why he's earned roughly 1% of YoTel turnover every quarter for years—which has funded everything since and probably saved him from going broke.

Book recommendations:

How to Get Rich - Felix Dennis - https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Get-Rich-Felix-Dennis/dp/0091927447

Yo Man - Simon Woodroffe - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Yo-Man-Simon-Woodroffe/dp/1398616761

About the Guest:

Simon Woodroffe is the founder of YoSushi (celebrating 30 years in January) and YoTel (now over 30 hotels worldwide, much bigger business than YoSushi), original Dragon on Dragons' Den (series 1-3), performer at Edinburgh Festival where he did a one-man show, recording artist with the Blockheads, and published author of "Yo Man" (his second book—the first was his autobiography). He's done a few things. He's 77 years old, was brought up in old Singapore, has lived all over the world, and now lives in Thailand with his Thai wife. His home base is Thailand because it's the best place he's found after searching everywhere.

Simon started YoSushi at age 45 after a long, hard life that hasn't always been good. He's now a licensor of both YoSushi and YoTel, broadcasting on social media, and trying to give something back to the world to improve it—whether politically or directly helping one person at a time. He always said that when he was knocking on other people's doors, if he was ever the one whose door was knocked on (which is the situation he finds himself in now), he would always try to respond to everybody. And he does.

Connect with Simon Woodroffe - https://www.linkedin.com/in/yosimonwoodroffe/

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Chapters:

00:00 Introduction
01:01 Introduction to Simon Woodroffe's journey and achievements
02:37 Simon on world improvements and his life in Thailand
03:47 Predictions on digital voting and government change
06:37 A small executive model for better governance
10:00 Reducing taxes by changing government spending
12:00 Trusting AI over human biases for balanced insights
14:06 Launch of Simon's book, Yo Man, and the ATM story
16:57 Bringing conveyor belt sushi to London
20:05 Transition from steamroller to delegator in business
21:36 Successful expansion under Robin Rowland's leadership
24:10 Involvement in Yotel and its global success
28:59 Importance of theatre and 'ziz' in business branding
30:07 Letting go of control for business growth
31:28 Transition to TV and participation in Dragon's Den
35:14 Enjoying Dragon's Den and investments made
38:08 Overcoming challenges during Yo Sushi's opening weeks
42:29 Creative 'yo' brand extensions and their impacts
45:01 Making tough business decisions swiftly and confidently

Conflict is not a dirty word. You don't need a trigger warning; you need to know the trigger better. Don't rush to solve the problem. And when you're negotiating, remember it's not about you. Scott Walker is a kidnap-for-ransom and extortion negotiator who's spent 20 years with a ringside seat into what makes human beings think, feel, and act—particularly in times of stress, overwhelm, challenge, and conflict. Over 300 cases across every major continent, and touch wood, every single person came back. That's a 100% success rate in an industry where the average is 93% (better than the All Blacks' win rate), and all those lessons apply directly to everyday business and life.

In this episode, Scott reveals why 80% of his time on a kidnapping case was spent dealing with the crisis within the crisis (internal politics, egos, competing demands, silo thinking—not the kidnappers), why the conflict call with bad guys is essential (managing expectations when they want £10M but you're offering £250K), and the immediate action drill he learned after threatening grieving parents in his first case. He shares why most leaders spend their time dealing with internal politics rather than customers, why feeling seen-heard-understood is the only thing people want in a negotiation, and why resilience isn't something you hashtag on a mug—it only comes from doing hard things and being uncomfortable. Plus: how he went from Scotland Yard detective inspector avoiding paper cuts to three live kidnaps in his first week in the private sector, and why the All Blacks' motto "don't be a dick" is actually brilliant negotiation advice.

What you'll learn:

⚔️ Why conflict is essential (embrace difficult conversations without being belligerent)

🎯 The empathy loop: demonstrate understanding first, it's not about you

⏸️ The immediate action drill: interrupt pattern, ride the 90-second cortisol wave, ask better questions

🧠 Why you don't need trigger warnings (develop skills to handle anything, don't control others)

🚫 Why rushing to solve problems is dangerous (buy time, find the real issue)

👂 How to listen at level five (not for gist or to argue, but for what's really being said)

💡 Why 60% of sales don't close (people think it's too risky for them personally, not the company)

📊 The crisis within the crisis (80% of time spent on internal politics, not the bad guys)

Book recommendations:

Legacy - James Kerr - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Legacy-All-Blacks-James-Kerr/dp/1472103536

Awaken the Giant Within - Tony Robbins - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Awaken-Giant-Within-Immediate-Emotional/dp/0671791540

How to Win Friends and Influence People - Dale Carnegie - https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Win-Friends-Influence-People/dp/0091906814

About the Guest:

Scott Walker is a kidnap-for-ransom and extortion negotiator who's spent the best part of 20 years having a ringside seat into what makes human beings think, feel, and act—particularly in times of stress, overwhelm, challenge, and conflict. Over 300-plus cases (including piracy and extortion) across every major continent, and touch wood, every single person came back. That's a 100% personal success rate in an industry where the global average over 50 years is 93%—better than the All Blacks' win rate at roughly 90%, and vastly better than most salespeople's 30% close rate.

Connect with Scott Walker - https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottaw/

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Follow Dominic on LinkedIn:

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Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to negotiation and life skills
03:09 Personal anecdotes about family and negotiation
14:08 Aligning with clients to uncover real issues
21:11 Developing resilience and managing emotions
25:37 Techniques for emotional control and effective questioning
29:12 Journey from the police to a negotiation career
36:54 Handling difficult workplace conversations
40:25 Book recommendations and learning influence skills
44:44 Final thoughts and closing remarks

Failure is a better business school than an MBA. Most agencies will never scale because their founder is the product. Minority investment beats full acquisition. And self-doubt isn't a weakness to overcome—it's the edge that separates high performers from those who are growing. Luke Tobin, entrepreneur, investor, and founder of Unusual Group, has built and sold three companies in three different industries over 20 years (the largest being Digital Ethos with an eight-figure exit in late 2022), and he's learned that the people we look up to the most—the ones who seem to have it all figured out—are often the ones who struggle with doubt the most. The difference? They find a way to move anyway.

In this episode, he reveals why imposter syndrome appears when you're stepping outside your comfort zone (which means you're doing something productive), why he's writing a book about doubt after interviewing 30 high performers from ex-SBS commandos to actors, and why doubt is actually the cost of admission to the next level. He also shares hard lessons from scaling to 90 people before his exit, hiring 5-6 people per month without proper vetting, and making the mistake of being the eye of the storm instead of creating mini-storms with good people.

What you'll learn:

🧠 Why self-doubt is the cost of admission to the next level (imposter syndrome = you're expanding, not retracting)
📚 Why failure beats an MBA (founders with scars are shrewder, better, wiser)
🎯 Why most agencies never scale (founder is the product, won't delegate, sits at eye of storm)
👥 How to transition from basketball (50 people, you're on court) to football (100 people, you're off field)
💰 Why minority investment beats majority acquisition (founders lose motivation after 60-70% exit)
📊 The hiring mistake: loyalty vs capability (promoting based on tenure, not experience)
✅ Unique hiring practice: pay candidates for full week in business before offer (non-negotiable for mid-tier+)
🏢 Why remote work is dangerous for junior people (no water cooler conversations, no training)

Book recommendations:

Never Split the Difference - Chris Voss - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Never-Split-Difference-Negotiating-Depended/dp/1847941494

The Psychology of Money - Morgan Housel - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Psychology-Money-Timeless-lessons-happiness/dp/0857197681

The Obstacle is the Way - Ryan Holiday - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Obstacle-Way-Ancient-Adversity-Advantage/dp/1781251492

About the Guest:

Luke Tobin is an entrepreneur, investor, and founder of Unusual Group, a holding company investing in marketing and creative service businesses to help them scale without losing control. He's been building companies for over 20 years with three successful exits in three different industries, each one bigger than the last. The largest was Digital Ethos, a performance marketing agency he sold in late 2022 after scaling to 90 people with an eight-figure exit. He's also a partner in a venture studio in San Diego rolling out consumer goods products, and he has 800,000 followers on social media where he shares success psychology week to week.

Sign up to receive our weekly Curious Leadership newsletter:
https://subscribe.monkhouseandcompany.com

Follow Dominic on LinkedIn:
https://linkedin.com/in/dominicmonkhouse

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction
01:00 Luke's business background
03:14 Debunking common entrepreneurial myths
09:15 Perceptions shaping our reality and decisions
15:43 Biggest business failures and lessons learned
19:46 Preventing businesses from getting stuck due to founder focus
28:32 Transitioning from founder to CEO roles
30:07 Balancing remote and in-office work environments
35:58 Cultivating leadership and curiosity for business growth
40:19 Recommended books for personal and professional development

Most people overcomplicate leadership. They're looking for the next framework, trying to do technical leadership that just doesn't work. Paul Adamson spent 25 years sailing yachts around the world—including two years circumnavigating with Eddie Jordan on an Oyster 885—and he learned that leadership isn't about theory. It's about making decisions without all the information, leading from the front, and remaining calm when the pressure is on. Then he walked into Oyster Yachts (the manufacturer of those luxury yachts) when it went into administration, won it out of admin by deliberately breaking the rules, and rebuilt it from zero to a £200M order book with 700 employees in four years.

In this episode, Paul reveals why great leaders are energy-rich (not uninspiring boring managers), why you can't KPI great leadership, and why the three levers of state management—focus, inner dialogue, and movement—underpin everything in business. He shares his Virgin Atlantic story about blagging a gold card, getting upgraded to upper class by a flight manager who knew when to break the rules, and how copying Richard Branson into an Instagram post led to a phone call that changed everything. He also opens up about being diagnosed with lymphoma two weeks after leaving Oyster, how he applied everything he'd taught for years to his own health challenge, and why that gift led him to help raise £3M for follicular lymphoma research that could unlock cures for pancreatic cancer, leukaemia, and other incurables.

What you'll learn:

⚡ Why great leaders are energy-rich and how to manage your state (focus, inner dialogue, movement)

🎯 The difference between managers (follow rules) and leaders (know when to break them)

🚢 How to lead without all the information (lessons from sailing in high-stakes environments)

💼 How to rebuild a business from administration to £200M order book (earn trust, two words)

🇬🇧 Why UK social conditioning makes it hard to be energy-rich vs American optimism

📊 Why you can't KPI great leadership—it's about being a lighthouse, not hitting metrics

💪 How to find the gift in every challenge (even lymphoma diagnosis)

🎤 Why copying Richard Branson into an Instagram post was the right move

Book recommendations:

Man's Search for Meaning - Viktor Frankl - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/1846041244

Who Moved My Cheese? - Spencer Johnson - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Who-Moved-My-Cheese-Amazing/dp/0091816971

Shine: How to Navigate Life's Curveballs - Paul Adamson (forthcoming)

About the Guest:

Paul Adamson is a leadership and teamwork speaker who spent 25 years as a professional yacht skipper sailing luxury yachts around the world before transitioning into the business world about 15 years ago. His leadership development wasn't theoretical—it was forged at sea where you learn to lead from the front pretty quickly because in high-stakes environments, if you're not leading, you get into issues fast. Leadership at sea means making decisions without perfect information, remaining calm under pressure, and managing your emotional state when lives depend on it.

Connect with Paul Adamson - https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-adamson

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Sign up to receive our weekly Curious Leadership newsletter:

https://subscribe.monkhouseandcompany.com

Follow Dominic on LinkedIn:

https://linkedin.com/in/dominicmonkhouse

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction
01:03 Transition from yacht skipper to business leadership
07:45 Managing leadership styles through challenging transitions
15:05 Utilising energy richness and state management
19:00 Emphasising focus, inner dialogue and movement
23:00 The importance of rule-breaking for leadership success
27:00 Virgin Atlantic story – making customers raving fans
34:45 Rebuilding Oyster Yachts from administration to success
39:20 Strategic mindset: Earning trust to build a business
43:00 Achievements and challenges at Oyster Yachts
52:00 Transition from Oyster and personal health challenges
56:30 Navigating a lymphoma diagnosis with a leadership mindset
1:05:30 Paul’s book recommendations and personal insights on leadership

Council estate South London to 30 mergers and acquisitions. No capital, no plan, but always knew wealth was what he wanted. Lee Smith went from DJ to jewellers to law firms to web design and IT—then discovered mergers and acquisitions in 2014 and everything changed. Now he's building two sector groups to £10M in profit, buying businesses at 3-4x multiples and exiting at 7-10x, and he's got some contrarian views that'll make you rethink everything about UK business ownership.
In this episode, Lee reveals why buying 100% of a business is almost always the worst deal structure, why you don't need to understand what a business does to own it successfully, and why by the end of this decade the most valuable asset in Britain will be an SME producing profits. He shares his ethical partnership structure that keeps founders and directors aligned, explains how he bought an HVAC company he barely understands and grew it while only being there one day per week, and why he thinks the UK government is waging war on business owners—making it harder to employ people, easier for rogue employees to sue, and creating a clear choice by 2030: own a business with options and spare cash, or be an employee struggling more than ever.

What you'll learn:

🏢 Why you don't need to understand a business to own it (just need right people in right seats)

💰 How to structure deals that keep founders and key directors aligned (20% founder retention + director equity)

📊 What to look for when buying: £2M+ revenue, second-tier management in place, profitability doesn't matter

🎯 The buy-build-sell playbook: buy at 3-4x EBITDA, build to £10M+ profit, exit at 7-10x

⚠️ Why the UK government is anti-business (more taxes, more regulation, easier to sue companies)

Book recommendations:

Who? - Geoff Smart & Randy Street - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Who-Method-Hiring-Geoff-Smart/dp/0345504194

Think and Grow Rich - Napoleon Hill - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Think-Grow-Rich-Napoleon-Hill/dp/9388423526

Die with Zero - Bill Perkins - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Die-Zero-Getting-Your-Money/dp/0358099765

The Fourth Turning - William Strauss & Neil Howe - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fourth-Turning-American-Prophecy-Rendezvous/dp/0767900464

About the Guest:

Lee Smith grew up on a council estate in South London with no capital behind him and no plan to wealth—but he always knew wealth was something he wanted to achieve. His career path was unconventional: DJ, jewellers, law firms, then starting his own web design and IT company. In 2014, he discovered mergers and acquisitions, which "completely flipped the switch" in his life. He's now completed 30 M&A transactions and is building two separate sector groups (HVAC/construction and renewable energy) to £10M in profit.

His key message to business owners: the UK government is waging war on individuals through cost-of-living, energy costs, and employment regulations. By 2030, there will be a clear choice—either own a business and have options and spare cash, or be an employee struggling even more than now. His ideal scenario: buy more businesses, make all employees shareholders through EMI schemes, so when they exit, everyone gets a payday that gets them onto the wealth ladder.

Connect with Lee Smith - https://www.linkedin.com/in/leeantonysmith/

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Sign up to receive our weekly Scale To Win newsletter:

https://subscribe.monkhouseandcompany.com

Follow Dominic on LinkedIn:

https://linkedin.com/in/dominicmonkhouse

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction
02:03 Views on UK government's impact on business
06:58 Why Lee chose to buy into HVAC sector
08:44 Structuring deals with existing management in mind
12:28 Challenges small businesses face in scaling and compliance
14:36 Critique of UK government’s business policies
20:02 Advice for first-time business buyers
25:11 Offering employee share schemes to improve engagement
31:27 Reflection on challenges like contracting with tier one customers
35:27 Recommended books that influenced Lee’s outlook
37:46 The Fourth Turning's impact on Lee's family planning