Six of South’s business leaders land places in LDC Top 50

LDC, the private equity arm of Lloyds Banking Group, has published its latest list of the UK’s most ambitious business leaders.

Every year, the LDC Top 50 celebrates individuals championing sustainability, making positive change, driving international opportunities and prioritising employee wellbeing.

A handful of leaders from across the South have landed a spot on this year’s list – let’s meet them.

Sam Fenton-Elstone is CEO of Brighton-based creative, tech and media agency Anything is Possible.

Founded in 2018 and now with a headcount of 70, his business aims to be “daring, decisive and prepared to leap into the unknown”, with Tate Galleries, the Natural History Museum and Best Western Hotels among its clients.

The agency opened its first international office last year in Cape Town and is now eyeing expansion in the US and Asia.

“I don’t just want to build another big agency,” Sam told LDC. “I want to build a brilliant one that lives on without me.”

Amy Knight set up Must Have Ideas from her spare room in Kent alongside husband Rob and business partner Chris Finch.

“The idea was to sell exciting, innovative products that you couldn’t find in a supermarket,” she said.

It all began six years ago with a £3,000 investment and 1,000 boxes of Hygiene Hero antibacterial sponges.

Nowadays, Must Have Ideas distributes more than 200 different products and dispatches 7,000 orders a day.

“I want to turn Must Have Ideas into a household name and be a role model to our daughters,” Amy added.

Kate Prince is founder of Sussex wellness brand Ancient + Brave, a certified B Corp where “people and planet are at the heart of the business”.

A former media lawyer, Kate launched the brand from her kitchen table in 2018 and now employs a predominantly female team of 55 – including a team of nutritionists.

“We won’t be sensationalist about our products, ever,” she told LDC.

“That’s the lawyer in me. We want to educate customers.”

Ancient + Brave now sells its range of sustainably sourced collagen, blends and supplements to retailers in 22 countries.

Kate also landed the Growth Award from LDC after achieving 1000 per cent growth over the past three years.

Paul Rogers took up post last year as managing director of Kent’s Ocura Healthcare Furniture, which supplies both the NHS and private hospitals.

He’d joined the business five years prior in 2018, shortly before being diagnosed with throat cancer.

Paul’s battle with cancer showed him first-hand the impact that the right chair, the right equipment and a simple armrest can have on patients, visitors and hospital staff.

“I’ve always wanted to do my best and be the best version of myself,” said Paul, who credits his parents for his work ethic.

“They taught me that it takes a lot of hard work to achieve anything worthwhile in life.”

Sat Sanghera is CEO of IP Integration, ‘digital transformation experts’ headquartered in Reading and with offices in London, Manchester and the Philippines.

After selling his technology firm Datapoint Europe, Sat told LDC he spent the day working on a market stall.

“I was getting too comfortable,” he said. “I used to help on the stalls as a kid and it was the best place to learn communication skills.”

Before long he’d joined IP Integration and a year later he was CEO – since which he’s helped the business double in size and begin developing its own software products.

“We saw a huge opportunity to pivot – instead of just partnering with technology vendors, let’s innovate and develop our own tech,” Sat explained.

Sat also received the People Award from LDC for his dedication to building an outstanding workplace culture.

“We want to create the best possible environment for our people to succeed and lead purposeful lives.”

And finally, Andrew Humphrey heads up Gloucestershire-based IT solutions and services firm Kubus.

In his two years as CEO, Andrew has boosted holiday allowance and pension contributions for staff, reduced their working hours and secured Living Wage Employer accreditation.

He’s even turned the company HQ into a dog-friendly zone.

“We’re professional but we have fun,” he said. “If you treat employees properly, they’ll go the extra mile without being asked.

“I want to become dispensable to the business. I don’t feel threatened when team members are vying for my job – I actively encourage it.”

Kubus recently secured a £9 million investment from BGF, which Andrew added would “allow us to accelerate our global growth plans, innovate faster and deliver even greater value to our customers.”