The Diary Of A CEO by Steven Bartlett

George Heaton (Represent Founder): From My Garden Shed To $100m Business Empire! "Work Life Balance Is Bullshit!", "That Letter Was The End Of Represent!"

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Episode notes

From starting in a shed to aiming to be a billion dollar company, the road to success is a 24/7 mission.

George Heaton is the owner and creative director of the British luxury streetwear brand, Represent.

In this conversation George and Steven discuss topics such as, why a work-life balance is bullshit, changing his life and writing his rules for success, how Represent was almost destroyed, and why he doesn’t believe in motivation.


  • (02:04) What is the mission you're on?
  • (02:14) What made you obsessed with winning?
  • (02:14) What influence did your father have on you?
  • (04:01) What was your brother Mike like?
  • (04:28) What did your parents do for a living?
  • (04:52) Did you always grow up wanting to be in fashion?
  • (05:36) The influence your older brother had on you
  • (06:33) When was the idea of Represent born?
  • (09:02) Where did that chip on your shoulder come from?
  • (09:35) What was his shedding phase like?
  • (11:31) Starting Represent in 2012
  • (14:01) Why don't people start?
  • (16:28) How do you feel now about the old products you used to make in the shed?
  • (17:13) What do you say to people who want to start their business?
  • (17:59) Trying to scale the business
  • (19:12) Hiring people
  • (25:15) How do people get the answers they need to take them to the next level?
  • (26:08) What made you step out of the CEO position and hire a CEO?
  • (28:29) A phase where you didn't like yourself
  • (30:17) How did you know you wanted to change?
  • (33:20) Creating those next steps for the business?
  • (39:53) Creating a solid company culture
  • (40:48) Self-awareness
  • (42:06) Staying in touch with the business side of things as a creative
  • (45:47) The letter that nearly ended Represent
  • (50:02) Company lawsuit
  • (53:03) What his experience of it was at that time
  • (55:19) What makes Represent special?
  • (57:33) What is it about Represent that we don't see?
  • (00:59:32) People stealing Represent's designs
  • (01:02:02) How do you view money now?
  • (01:03:47) What it's been like trying to create a life outside of the business
  • (01:05:03) The brand being linked to your self-esteem and identity
  • (01:08:58) How important is it that you surround yourself with the right people?
  • (01:10:25) Romantic Relationships?
  • (01:15:04) Opinions on work-life balance?
  • (01:19:51) Advice on how to run a clothing line
  • (01:23:37) How to get the motivation to go do the thing
  • (01:24:38) What have you learned from hiring?
  • (01:26:07) What if Michael decided he wanted to stop?
  • (01:29:29) What is next for George?
  • (01:31:01) What is the next goal?
  • (01:32:21) What are you good at?
  • (01:35:30) The next guest's question


You can purchase all Represent products, here: https://bit.ly/3PyaKoX


Follow George:

Twitter - https://bit.ly/4cosMDP

Instagram - https://bit.ly/3xh1crW


Watch the episodes on Youtube - https://g2ul0.app.link/3kxINCANKsb


My new book! 'The 33 Laws Of Business & Life' is out now - https://smarturl.it/DOACbook


Follow me:

https://beacons.ai/diaryofaceo


Sponsors:

Shopify: http://shopify.com/bartlett

Uber: https://p.uber.com/creditsterms


Shop the Conversation Cards: https://thediary.com/products/the-cards 

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