What made you come up with the idea for the mobile business Bus?
I spent a weekend on a tour bus - and wished people could have that much fun at work - so I started wondering what a business tour bus would look like. When I started joking about getting "a business coach" it made people smile - and then ask when I was doing it.
How did you make it a reality? Did you need funding etc and where did you go for help?
I emailed a few trusted friends for feedback on the idea and to ask if they were interested in putting their money in. I asked mainly to see what they really thought: "You should do it" is very different to "Here's a cheque so I can be part of it"! Of the six people I emailed, one wanted to invest. With that and all the positive feedback I decided to go for it. The next challenge was finding the right bus - I looked at ten different buses across the country before finding "the one". I then designed about ten different layouts to find the one which really worked - features which got edited out were a serving bar, a reception area and a shower!
What were the greatest challenges/set-backs in setting the business up?
Everything took longer and cost more than I expected. Which is always true to some extent - but working on a bus is a lot more challenging than I first realised. Every part of a bus is curved or special in some way. The biggest challenges were getting a working toilet (not a chemical one!) with more pumps, tanks and pipes than I could have imagined. And getting some of the handmade pieces right - like the boardroom table and the screens behind the mirrors in the bar - was challenging.
How did you bring the concept to market and raise awareness/interest?
It seems to be one of those ideas which people enjoy talking about. Seth Godin talks about ideas which are "remarkable" - literally ideas which people want to talk about. So far it has spread via word of mouth - and I keep being introduced as "that chap with the bus"!
Where are you finding greatest demand?
Roadtrips and awaydays! Roadtrips taking a team of people around the country working while they travel and having a boardroom when they get there - and making the most of team away days: a lot of people spend half their life in a meeting room and really value being able to work while they travel.
Any high profile supporters? I hear Peter Jones is a fan!
Peter Jones did indeed use it as his mobile boardroom supporting the Sport Relief bike ride. Seven celebrities including David Walliams, Fearne Cotton and Davina McCall cycled from John O'Groats to Lands End - and we gave them a lift back from Lands End at the end. They all certainly seemed to enjoy it - but you'd have to ask them if they're officially fans now!
Do you have any exciting plans for the future?
I have quite a few ideas for other related ideas - all around "productive fun". I love combining these two things - which often get treated as opposites - getting more done but having more fun at the same time. I'm trying to be very restrained and understand how people would like to work outside of the office and create vehicles to meet those needs.
What would be your advice to someone wanting to set up a new to market concept, as it must be challenging both from an investor and customer point of view when bringing something totally new to the table?
I think there's a fundamental choice - something that already exists, but with an original twist, or something fundamentally new. Taking on an established market with a subtle, valuable twist is the much safer option - but despite the higher risks I love creating something truly new. Either way, I believe in talking about ideas a lot - seeing what people connect with, what they value, how they would use it. For me that "innovation through conversation" is the most valuable part of what is now called networking. With a new idea, an elevator pitch isn't just a sales pitch - it's the core of the strategy. The sooner you can get that right, the better.
What's the strangest trip the bus has done?
Well Lands End was quite unusual - but at the other end of the spectrum we were at the Civil Service show in Olympia. They used it as a boardroom for discussions right in the middle of Olympia. The bus only just fitted inside by millimetres - and had to be parked there two days beforehand with the rest of the show built around it!
And finally, where would you most like to see the bus?
I would love to see larger companies using it to get out of head office and on the road, where most of the work happens. Head offices can become this huge centre of gravity with their own culture - I love the idea of people getting back out to the action, without wasting days in cars.