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| Sam Smith, Founder of finnCap |
Sam Smith is a trailblazing entrepreneur and was the first - and youngest - woman to run a stockbroking firm in the City of London.
At just 33, she led the management buyout of her corporate advisory and brokerage division at JM Finn, which she had been building since 1998. After the MBO in 2007, Sam grew finnCap's revenues to £52 million, before stepping back in 2022 to pursue other interests. Sam still retains her shareholding in the business.
Today, through her new venture, The SuperScalers, Sam is helping other high-growth female founders take their companies beyond the £50 million mark.
We sat down with Sam to hear her reflections on building finnCap, the lessons she’s learned along the way, and the qualities she believes define truly successful entrepreneurs.
Where did entrepreneurship start for you?
It started when I didn't even realise it!
One summer when I was young, I helped out my grandparents, who had a bakery in Wales.
For two weeks, I covered the local lunch round, selling and delivering sandwiches to the offices nearby. Every day, I felt a little more confident and got a little better at the role. At the end of the two weeks, I went home and realised that I'd really enjoyed the experience!
A few weeks later, my grandparents told me that I'd doubled the takings for the bakery in the two weeks that I was helping out - I was over the moon.
The experience taught me that small changes make a big difference. Listening to people, understanding their likes and dislikes, and being adaptable were key takeaways for me, even from such a young age.
When I qualified as an accountant from KPMG, I had the same desire to make small changes and improve the systems around me.
Unfortunately, in a big company, this can be challenging, so I decided to move to a role in a smaller company (JM Finn) where I could make improvements to support business growth. I subsequently set up a new internal division, which later became finnCap. This role meant that I could build in my own way, which suited me.
Talk us through the founding and building of finnCap and what led you to do the management buy-out of the company.
I always wanted to grow the corporate advisory and broker division at JM Finn, and we got to a point where the next stage of our journey involved a big investment of £500k.
We decided that we needed equity funding, not just reinvestment of the funds from our cash flow. To invest this much, we wanted some equity.
At the time, the company wouldn't give us any, so we started a second option of buying the business out as an MBO, which eventually they agreed to.
How did you find the experience of raising capital, and what advice would you give to others who may be on a similar journey?
Raising money is always hard.
As one of my clients used to say, it feels like 'living in the land of no' for much of the time!
So, being inventive, persistent and committed to the big vision is important. You have to be prepared to pivot, and bringing your 'A' game is vital. You have to be passionate about your vision, and ambitious too, as you're your own biggest advocate. Knowing the details around your numbers is important, too.
You will also hear a lot of no's before you hear a yes, and this is very normal and part of the process.
It can be tough, but if you want to succeed, you need to push through the challenges and have unwavering belief in your business.
I think it's also important to always be in 'raising mode' so that you have interested parties lined up when you need them. People prefer to chat when a topic is not time sensitive, and you're not in need of an immediate response.
You’ve now started the SuperScalers! What sparked the idea of creating this community for female founders?
The idea started to form following my exit from finnCap, as I was approached by a number of different people to support female founders in getting PE backing and reaching IPO.
I was happy to support others who were on the same journey as I had been, and I thought that female founders and leaders with £50m revenue businesses were where I could add most value.
The biggest question was... who are the women running these companies, so I can go and speak with them?
After doing some research (as it turns out, no one had a list), I found that there were 80 women in the UK who have built a business past £50m in revenue.
I have always wanted to see more representation at the top of all institutions, and the SuperScalers seemed the perfect way to drive that.
More big businesses built by different founders, especially women, is a way to get your voice heard and make better and fairer decisions across the board.
The SuperScalers was born in September 2022, and we have been building ever since. Our vision is to be the largest community of underrepresented founders in the world.
Throughout your career, you’ve seen a lot of leaders in action. What qualities have you seen that set successful leaders apart?
Empathy and quiet power.
It's these qualities that create a kind of trust that makes people want to work with you.
Great leaders also have a vision for the future of the business, and they are able to inspire those around them.
They are fair, open to new ideas, and calm, but can be decisive when needed.
What key trends and changes do you think we can expect to see emerging from the start-up landscape over the next 12-18 months?
The entrepreneur of the future is coming from all sorts of places - over 50s and 60s, young people starting a side hustle, women, and other traditionally underrepresented groups. The ecosystem of inclusive entrepreneurship is building at a pace, and I think it's about to reach a point of exponential growth.
AI is also on everyone's agenda at the moment. It's a highly disruptive force for many industries, so lots of new start-ups are using this tech, which is exciting.
There is a vast amount of talent in our start-up ecosystem. Is there a female founder that you think is 'one to watch'?
There are so many incredible women building businesses at the moment, but one that stands out for me is Anna Maxwell at Maxwellia.
Anna has created a game-changing way to treat health problems by making prescription medicines more easily accessible by transforming them into over-the-counter brands.
Anna has a big dream and ambitions for the company, which is amazing to see. One of her best qualities is that she can take the knock-backs and keep building. A superstar in the making.
I'd like to thank Sam for sharing her inspiring story of starting and scaling finnCap, and I wish her all the best with the SuperScalers!
Author: Ella Bramhall and Guest Interviewee, Sam Smith
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this post are solely my own and do not necessarily reflect the views of any company, organisation, or individual I am affiliated with.