Member Article

Innocent founder Richard Reed issues entrepreneur rallying cry amid rising populism

One of the co-founders of Innocent Drinks has called on the UK’s entrepreneurs to redouble their efforts in the face of the rising tide of populism around the world, and claimed they should view the current political chaos as an opportunity to innovate.

Speaking at Chivas Regal’s social enterprise event last night (March 16) in London, Richard Reed, who along with Jon Wright and Adam Balon founded Innocent in 1998, claimed that the world needs entrepreneurs ‘now more than ever before’ following the election of Donald Trump in the US and the Brexit vote last June.

Taking aim at the political class on the day the Prime Minister’s Article 50 bill was given royal assent, Reed said: “We’re going to need you entrepreneurs more now than ever before. Politicians don’t start businesses. It’s only entrepreneurs that ever start businesses, creating jobs, wealth and opportunities.”

Flanked by the Chief Executive Officer at London’s Belu Water, Karen Lynch, and the co-founder of Kent lifestyle brand Elvis & Kresse, Kresse Wesling MBE, Reed’s comments were part of Chivas’ ‘Make Society Great Again’ event at the Impact Hub in Westminster.

The event brought together 30 of the world’s most-promising social enterprise startups, who are taking part in an accelerator programme at the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford established by the Scotch whisky brand in partnership with the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship.

Now in its third year, the Chivas Venture competition supports and promotes startups that offer social and societal returns, with this year’s UK representative, surplus food sharing app OLIO, set to vye for a share of the $1m fund on offer at the final in Los Angeles.