Words of wisdom from Julian Mountford

Working for yourself is great! Sure, it's a roller coaster ride and the lows are hard but the highs really are something else. There's no better satisfaction than when it's going your way, nobody can steal your glory and you reap all the benefits. I only wish I had started sooner.

Personally I love a challenge - I guess that's why we are in this line of business - and some of the strengths of Nitro Ventures have been our creativity, innovation and willingness to take risks in the face of difficult decisions. On the other hand we have always controlled the finances and ensured we understood the downside - and the combination of these skills has enabled us to achieve and exceed expectations.

From the varied background of my management experience with Whitbread and Pepsico, through to challenging technical roles I really appreciate how important people are in any business. Of all the management mantras the expression "aces for places" is the one that comes to mind most often and when Nitro and our partnership companies have been successful it is always because we are working with the right people, in the right role and have built the best teams.

So what areas are we looking at to start new businesses? In truth, if you've got an idea, any idea, then come along and tell us about it and we'll mull it over. We're always on the look out for exciting projects - especially in new and developing markets.

Obviously technology based businesses suit our background more and allow us to get the idea to hit the ground running quicker, but essentially every business has the same base elements of people, finance, sales and marketing. Ideally you will already be a specialist in the area you are proposing and between us we will have most if not all of the skill sets required to build a successful partnership.

The Nitro philosophy we created when we first started, still underpins everything we do. The most important element from it for NitroKickStart is that age-old idea of "Nothing ventured nothing gained". We believe in investing assets into a great idea with a clear path to operational profitability. And we believe in doing this often.

My aim for Nitro as a partner to a diverse portfolio of successful and profitable companies is developing more and more each day. So, if you have an idea that you'd really like to turn into a successful business, why don't you contact me on 0870 445 5443 or email me and we'll take it from there.

As I've said, working for yourself is the only way to truly enjoy and make the most of life - so get writing that business plan. I look forward to hearing from you.

Julian Mountford
Founder & Director