LATYMERIAN ENTREPRENEURS
The Latymer Connection Taymoor ATIGHETCHI (2007), founder of personalised stationer, Papier, and Adam BALON (1990), co-founder of Innocent Drinks, spoke to Latymer about their success as entrepreneurs. Adam also set up JamJar Investments, a venture capital firm supporting consumer brands, which counts Taymoor’s Papier amongst its varied portfolio. How does it feel to be back at Latymer? Adam: Walking through these corridors brings back happy memories. It’s funny because some things are completely new, other bits haven’t changed at all. I find that…reassuring. Taymoor: Coming back here feels like a second home. What I’ve seen so far hasn’t changed; the Main Hall is the same which is nice, but I’m excited to see the new parts of the School. Who was your favourite teacher and why? A: Mr Mower, my Mathematics teacher, who sadly passed away. His total passion for maths got me excited about it. I remember those lessons very fondly. T: Mr Orme. He was the main reason I went on to read History of Art at Cambridge, and why I still love art. He had a charisma that made everyone want to learn more about the subject. Where did your drive to be an entrepreneur come from? A: I got to a stage where I needed to start making more money. I tried my hand at gardening but thought, “Wow, this is quite hard work!” Then I realised I could teach my sister’s friends GCSE Physics and get paid reasonably well for less work. T: My dad is an antiques dealer and he inspired me to learn the trade, so I set up a stall on the Portobello Road selling art and antiques. I also did the Young Enterprise scheme at Latymer, which I really enjoyed. It drew me to the concept of doing your own thing.
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How so? T: Latymer is quite entrepreneurial in its ethos. It nurtures your talents, whether that’s sport, theatre or drama. It’s about reaching your full potential, which is what entrepreneurship is. I did a lot of public speaking and debating, all of which comes in handy when you’re selling.
How did your business relationship come about? T: I remember going to one of Adam’s careers talks when I was a student at Latymer. Years later we were reintroduced and I mentioned his talk. That’s the point at which we realised there was an opportunity to collaborate through Papier and JamJar. A: It’s always a great introduction when someone says they went to Latymer! What advice would you give to budding entrepreneurs? A: Get very clear on what you’re trying to do. What is the product? Why is it different to anything else? Where is the market? Then surround yourself with a great team. It’s rare to find someone who can do everything. Know your weaknesses and find people who can help you on those things. T: Just get out there and do it. Everyone has ideas, but what ultimately differentiates an entrepreneur is they take a risk. If you overthink it, you’ll kill the idea. The first leap is always the hardest one. What’s in store in 2019? T: Internationalisation is probably my biggest focus area. Last year, we launched Papier in the US and it’s grown incredibly well and quickly. A: With JamJar, we want to get better at finding brilliant young teams that will grow the famous consumer brands of the future. Whilst the UK political situation might be rather depressing, great businesses start under all sorts of circumstances, so we don’t worry too much about the short term and keep looking for those teams that are looking to solve consumers’ problems over the next 10-15 years.