Let's Get Down to Business: Andrew Stephens, Goodstuff Communications

ANDREW STEPHENS, 51, is co-founder of media agency Goodstuff Communications. Originally from Somerset, he has lived in Henley Park with his wife and three children since 2011 and commutes daily to London.

Describe your business

We are a media planning and buying business that was recently acquired by Stagwell, an American technology company. We help our clients by modelling the likely financial return of investment in advertising and then advise on understanding their audiences and prioritisation of their media channels.

How many people does it employ?

About 150.

What did you do before you started this business?

I worked for Omnicom running Virgin and before that for Saatchi & Saatchi.

When did you start your business?

In 2004.

What was your objective?

To create a media brand that was meaningfully distinct from the commoditised offering of the legacy global media networks.

Who or what influenced you?

James Kydd and Alison Corfield, both senior marketing experts advising Richard Branson on his 20+ Virgin-affiliated businesses in the early 2000s. It was their idea to approach me and my business partner Ben Hayes with the idea in 2003.

Do you have a mentor or role model?

Ben is an absolute tower of strength to me.

What would you do differently if you could start again?

I am not sure I’d change anything and don’t think it’s overly healthy to regret things.

What impact did the coronavirus pandemic have on your business?

Pretty significant. Advertising is, wrongly, one of the first things businesses cut during tough economic times. We felt this soon after lockdown but have recovered and readjusted.

How is your business doing compared with last year?

Our profits will be up single digits against last year.

How do you market your business?

We put a lot of time and energy into positioning ourselves as the challenger brand in the industry so this involves regular PR and events. We also spend time with industry intermediaries who act as dating agents for clients and agencies.

What’s the best thing about running your own business?

You can apply your own personal principles to how you treat other people.

What’s the most challenging aspect?

Knowing where work starts and stops. Employing nearly 150 people during the pandemic and now a recession was and is emotionally difficult as we try to support and care for our “Good-stuffers”

Where is your business headed?

Having been acquired recently, we are starting the next chapter and will use the new global resources of Stagwell to help accelerate our growth.

How important are online sales?

None of our sales is generated online but the majority of our clients’ sales are (e.g. Cazoo, HelloFresh, Harry’s and OntheBeach)

Do you set any goals for your business at the start of a new financial year?

Yes, at all levels — financial, brand, quality of product and internal culture and wellbeing.

What’s the most valuable thing you’ve learned?

If you work hard enough and are decent in the way you do business, things generally work out.

What would you advise someone starting a business?

Find a partner. Having two of you helps no end. It means every decision has been challenged and refined. It means every success is shared and every challenge is shared. It means you own less equity but it’s better to have a smaller bit of something successful than all of a failure.

What three qualities are most important to success?

Be laser-focused on what makes you better, work hard and be decent.

What’s the secret of your success?

Doing it with a partner, believing in your own vision for a distinct offering and sticking to it when the easy road is to compromise and do what everyone else does.

What’s the biggest mistake you’ve made?

I’ve made plenty of mistakes but I honestly don’t think we’ve made a big one. In any case, we look forward, not back.

How organised are you?

Not very.

How do you dress for work each day?

It depends on the occasion. The only important thing is that you feel comfortable and yourself.

What can’t you be without every day?

A short flat from Puccino’s at Twyford station.

Lunch at your desk or going out?

Both but increasingly out with clients or media owners.

Do you continue to study?

Not really, I need to work on this.

What do you read?

Not that much. I’d rather spend time solving client challenges than reading other people’s stories.

How are you planning for retirement?

I’m not. I’m planning to grow the business.