Partner Article

Getting to know... Shak Asghar

We know you as the founder of various businesses, such as Like Us & BIOME, and a member of the Entrepreneurs' Forum, but who is the person behind the title? Tell us a little about what makes you tick…
I'm a family guy at heart; that's the foundation everything else is built upon. Beyond that, I'm a complete petrol head. Cars, motorcycles, motorsport, if it has an engine and goes fast, I'm interested. F1 is my first love (Team LH44, the G.O.A.T.), but I'm equally happy watching WEC, Rally or MotoGP. When I can carve out some time, I'm on my sim rig racing with friends.

I'm also endlessly curious. I spend a lot of time learning about new things, understanding how systems work, why things fail, and how they could be better. That curiosity is probably what has driven most of my career. I've always been drawn to complex problems that don't have obvious solutions. I think it’s because my mind works differently; it helps me see the problem differently, and identify solutions others just don’t see.

Did you always want to work in your industry?
Not at all. I started in the creative industries, doing music and performance. The pivot came through a chance encounter. I bumped into my former mentor, friend and basketball coach, the late Tony Hanson, in the street one day. We reconnected, and he persuaded me to help with funded programmes supporting Black and minority communities.

That's where I discovered I had a knack for understanding systems, how funding flows, how programmes actually deliver impact, and where things break down. I started mentoring business owners, then designing programmes, then building the technology to run them properly. Over twenty-plus years, it has evolved into something quite specific: I solve problems and build systems and infrastructure that help governments and institutions deliver economic growth at scale. I've worked across the full spectrum, from advising individual businesses to advising ministers and international sovereign funds. Not many people have operated on both sides of that equation.

What's the best bit about your job? And the worst?
The best bit is solving problems that genuinely matter. Whether it's a government trying to drive regional economic growth, or a business trying to scale, simplify, or get unstuck, I love unpicking complexity and building solutions that actually work. Our platform, BIOME, has now been used to support tens of thousands of businesses and has been used to deliver/manage tens of millions of pounds in programmes. That's not abstract; those are real businesses, real jobs, real communities. Alongside that, I often work directly with business owners and leadership teams who need help navigating growth, strategy or operational challenges. I actively encourage people to get in touch if they think I can help. Some of the most rewarding work comes from those conversations, and I love helping businesses with their transformation work and projects.

The worst bit? I call it the 3Ps: Politics, Procurement and Prejudice. I'm thinking about writing a book or doing a documentary about my experiences navigating all three. It's important to talk about these things openly, not just for me, but so things improve for others coming up behind.

What do you consider to be your greatest achievement?
Being named in the Top 100 inspiring businesses this year was a proud moment. Likewise, building several businesses from zero to seven figures without external investment, and creating BIOME, a globally novel platform, now positioned as a genuine digital infrastructure for governments. With conversations at the international government and ministerial level about what it could enable nationally and internationally, it’s proving that it is possible to do it all from the North East, without VC backing or a London postcode. It’s something that truly matters to me, as I love to prove the haters and naysayers totally wrong.

But when I actually sit down and reflect, the achievements I'm most proud of are the human ones. Giving chances to people who'd normally be overlooked, because they don't fit what society thinks is "normal" or acceptable. I think it’s because I have often experienced that myself, so I like to create opportunities and spaces for others like me. Over the past few years, we've created jobs for over 50 people and opened up supply chain opportunities for businesses that wouldn't otherwise have had a look-in. That spans the UK, the EU, Asia, the Middle East and the US. When I think about what I've actually built, that's what stands out. I have to shout out my friend Paul Warwick for recently helping me to see that.

How do you relax outside of work?
Honestly? I usually have to be told off by my partner first! She's the one who reminds me I need to actually sit down, get on the sim rig, or, when the weather's decent, take a motorcycle out or have a blast in one of my cars. I also love sharing good food with friends and family, and I'm always partial to chilling on the sofa with a good film when the moment's right.

What makes the North East such a great place to live and work?
The people. There's a real entrepreneurial spirit and grit here that you don't find everywhere. When someone says they'll do something or help you, they mean it, and they follow through. And practically, I can have serious conversations with government departments about national infrastructure, or a business about an AI transformation project, then be at the coast within half an hour. You don't have to choose between ambition and quality of life. That matters!

Tell us something about you we didn't know…
Before any of this, I was a DJ. I worked with and met a lot of big artists over the years, but my number one moment has to be performing with Snoop Dogg. He was a genuinely nice guy, which I've learned through time, isn't always the case in that industry, like many others. It's a long way from developing governments or building technology, but life takes you on interesting journeys. You just have to take time to appreciate the ride, I guess.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Entrepreneurs' Forum .