How salon boss launched skincare range; succession planning and impact measurement tips from award winning "neo-liberal stormtrooper" of social enterprise

Louisa Ashforth has run a beauty salon for 17 years. She's seen her clients being bombarded by miraculous claims from the beauty industry. Four years ago she became so fed-up of the hype around skincare products, she decided to launch her own range. It's now stocked in the UK and internationally.

Award-winning social enterprise consultant Adrian Ashton has been described as a "thorn in the side" of national organisations, a "neo-liberal stormtrooper" and a "social media whore." Listen to his advice about how to embed values in your start-up so they are locked-in, even if you leave; succession planning; social media and measuring your social impact and value.

• 0 - 1:24 introductions,
• 1:24 Louisa Ashforth started in the beauty industry aged 22 and by 24 owned her own salon. 4 years ago she launched her LA Skincare range of products - why?
• 3:10 how did Louisa get her skincare range stocked across the UK and used by celebrities?
• 6:10 to whom are Louisa's products marketed to and used by?
• 7:57 the products are vegan, fair-trade, not tested on animals and paraben free. Why is this important?
• 10:35 listeners may be used to hearing pseudo-scientific terms and "too good to be true" claims from the beauty industry. How does Louisa demonstrate her products do what she says they do?
• 13:25 how much did it cost to develop each of the 6 products in the range?
• 15:00 Louisa's aspirations to help other salon owners,
• 16:15 how systems and processes have helped Louisa to develop her salon business,
• 16:50 the biggest challenges in developing the LA Skincare range and how Louisa addressed them,
• 18:00 social media has been especially effective for Louisa. She describes which channels have generated sales,
• 19:00 how to get in touch and wrapping up with Louisa,
• 19:19 introduction to Adrian Ashton,
• 19:51 Adrian is a "thorn in the side" of national bodies, an award-winning social enterprise consultant, and a LinkedIn addict,
• 21:05 LinkedIn's new feature, reaction emojis. Is this a positive development?
• 24:00 "I'm a social media whore," says Adrian. Why does he use it? How does social media work for him? Does he generate work through it?
• 26:50 Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook: key differences in how they work,
• 29:40 Pubs: a catalyst for community activity,
• 30:10 if you're setting up a business or social enterprise when should you start thinking about succession planning?
• 32:05 what is "founder syndrome" and what are the risks to your business from it?
• 33:20 thinking through what will happen when you leave the venture you've started - what must you consider?
• 35:30 power, control, decision-making, and money. What needs to be locked-in? How?
• 36:35 amending your governing documents to embed values to endure for the long-term.
• 38:57 creating a "notional sweat-equity" mechanism into a social enterprise - why and how?
• 40:30 why grants are the riskiest type of funding and what the "clawback clause" is.
• 42:40 how to measure impact,
• 43:45 one of the earliest examples of a set of financial accounts,
• 44:30 we've only been doing social accounting for 150 years or so, and a jamboree has sprung up around it,
• 46:30 with no agreed global definitions around impact, it's all a bit like Alice in Wonderland,
• 48:50 start from "why" when it comes to measurement (and so much else),
• 49:30 Adrian publishes his own social value and impact report. Why does he do it, what does he measure, and what actions does it lead to?
• 51:30 accountability helps to avoid bad habits; benchmarking is a key element,
• 53:20 where are the priorities for Adrian to improve?
• 54:45 Adrian's call to action to Social Enterprise UK,
• 55:20 getting in touch with Adrian.