Chef: Ian Woodley
Woodley discusses how most founders are often afraid to ask investors for too much money, fearing they will have to give away too much of their business or because they might hear the word 'No'.
Woodley discusses how it's better to have too much than too little- as things will go wrong and you will need a contingency plan.
About Ian Woodley:
Ian Woodley is 'The Finance Guy' who is also a massive Foodie and decided to make a career out of what he knew and what he loved.
Having spent most of his early working life setting up and running early stage Financial Services businesses he learned much about the challenges of start ups and scaling businesses. There then followed a ten-year stint of acting as a financier turning around failing businesses which added the dimension of understanding what can go wrong and how it can be avoided.
Sat at a crossroads in 2015 Ian decided to take a chance on marrying his experience with his passion for Food and launched Finance Kitchen as a vehicle to assist London’s Food Entrepreneurs. He recognised that whilst established businesses could get funding early and growing restaurants had to fend for themselves so there was a real need for the service.
Today he helps fund those looking to transition from Street Food to a first brick and mortar site and then scale up. He works exclusively with the independent sector across all types of cuisine from grab and go through to fine dining. He has built a Foodie investor network and is regularly asked to attend hospitality events as the “Finance Guy”.
