2d ago

Dee Omole on turning nostalgia-inspired bakes into a thriving confectionery business

Welcome to Small Business Sessions, brought to you by Enterprise Nation as part of Powering Local Businesses, our collaboration with EDF Small Business and Square. In this series, we're speaking to founders and entrepreneurs about the real stories behind starting, growing and rebuilding small businesses. Expect honest conversations, practical lessons and first-hand insight from people who have built businesses with purpose. In this episode of the series, we're joined by Dee Omole, founder of Dee's Basement, a confectionery studio specialising in nostalgia-inspired cakes and desserts. Dee shares how a final-year university project at the University of Westminster became the foundation for Dee's Basement. She turned a pandemic‑lost pastry job into a thriving, community‑driven DIY cookie and dessert brand by leveraging affordable pop‑up spaces, relentless social‑media engagement, and small‑batch creativity to grow sustainably while maintaining personal control over her work. What began as postal cookies and hand-painted madeleines has grown into a business that counts Pinterest and Liberty London among its brand partners. Dee talks about building a loyal community on social media, learning to spot brands that want free work in exchange for "exposure," expanding from a home kitchen to a commercial kitchen, and writing her first cookbook with Quadrille, an imprint of Penguin. Topics discussed in the episode: How Dee built an online following, partly through the extra visibility black-owned businesses gained during the Black Lives Matter movementWinning brand partnerships with the likes of Pinterest and Liberty London by pitching ideas rather than simply offering catering Learning to spot brands offering "exposure" instead of payment while going viral with 12 million TikTok views from a video of her washing a fake display cakeRunning sold-out pop-up cafés in a neighbouring unit borrowed from her sister, and hosting small, intimate cake-decorating workshopsWriting and publishing her cookbook, A Little of What You Fancy, with Quadrille, which was built around small-batch recipes designed to reduce waste for beginner bakersLearning to say no and protecting her wellbeing----- Powering Local Businesses We're helping small businesses thrive on the high street – through expert support, smart energy advice and practical tools to grow sustainably. Get free support now

Aug 5

Usman Khalid on refugee entrepreneurs and changing narratives through coffee

Welcome to Small Business Sessions, brought to you by Enterprise Nation as part of Powering Local Businesses, our collaboration with EDF Small Business and Square. In this series, we're speaking to founders and entrepreneurs about the real stories behind starting, growing and rebuilding small businesses. Expect honest conversations, practical lessons and first-hand insight from people who have built businesses with purpose. In this episode of the series, we're joined by Usman Khalid, founder of Haven Coffee, an organic coffee brand and social enterprise with a mission to challenge false narratives about refugees in the UK. Usman shares how his own experience as a refugee, his work with Counterpoints Arts and support from The Entrepreneurial Refugee Network helped him develop the idea for Haven Coffee. He talks about building a business with no previous experience, starting with weekend market stalls, opening a small coffee shop and using coffee, barista training, comedy and visual art to create opportunities for refugees and asylum seekers. Topics discussed in the episode: How Usman's experience of gaining refugee status in 2015 shaped the idea behind Haven CoffeeWhy Haven Coffee is a business first, not a charity, even though social impact is central to its purposeStarting with weekend market stalls and coffee sales at events before opening a physical shopThe reality of running a very small physical coffee shop and the challenge of trying to grow when income is limitedHow Usman created Laff-Uccino, a comedy event that trains refugees and asylum seekers in stand-up comedyWorking with high-profile comedians including Nish Kumar and Ed Gamble to bring audiences to the eventsProviding barista training for refugees and asylum seekers so they can build practical skills for employmentThe role of supportive people, artists, comedians and local networks in helping Haven Coffee keep going----- Powering Local Businesses We're helping small businesses thrive on the high street – through expert support, smart energy advice and practical tools to grow sustainably. Get free support now

Jul 29

Charlie Duckworth on scaling a not-for-profit sauna movement

Welcome to Small Business Sessions, brought to you by Enterprise Nation as part of Powering Local Businesses, our collaboration with EDF Small Business and Square. In this series, we're speaking to founders and entrepreneurs about the real stories behind starting, growing and rebuilding small businesses. Expect honest conversations, practical lessons and first-hand insight from people who have built businesses with purpose. In this episode of the series, we're joined by Charlie Duckworth, founder of Community Sauna Baths, the not-for-profit social enterprise making sauna and cold plunge more affordable and accessible across London. Charlie shares how the idea came together after the pandemic, why he wanted to create a regular, community-focused sauna experience outside of expensive gyms and spas, and how the business grew from a low-cost garden site into a five-site operation. He also talks about operating as a community interest company, working with local authorities, funding outreach sessions and building a wider movement through the Community Sauna Network. Topics discussed in the episode: Why Charlie wanted to create a regular sauna experience that focused on heat, cold and social connectionSetting up as a community interest company and why the not-for-profit model mattered from the startFinding a landlord willing to take a chance on the idea and starting in a low-fi garden spaceFunding new sites through pre-sale tickets, discounted sessions, small loans and reinvested incomeHow Community Sauna Baths uses paid tickets to fund outreach, free sessions and local community workWorking with the NHS through social prescribing and bringing people into sauna through GP referralsCharlie's ambition to bring community sauna facilities to every London borough by 2030----- Powering Local Businesses We're helping small businesses thrive on the high street – through expert support, smart energy advice and practical tools to grow sustainably. Get free support now

Jul 22

Jade Georgiou on community dog grooming and building a business with heart

Welcome to Small Business Sessions, brought to you by Enterprise Nation as part of Powering Local Businesses, our collaboration with EDF Small Business and Square. In this series, we're speaking to founders and entrepreneurs about the real stories behind starting, growing and rebuilding small businesses. Expect honest conversations, practical lessons and first-hand insight from people who have built businesses with purpose. In this episode, we're joined by Jade Georgiou, co-founder of Hackney Barkers, the dog grooming business built around community, care and ethical products. Jade shares how she left her job as a receptionist to train as a dog groomer, later opening her own salon in Hackney after spotting what felt like the perfect sign – an Irish Terrier in the window of the premises. She talks about the realities of running a physical business, learning to set boundaries with customers, supporting other local dog businesses and building a salon where dogs, owners and staff feel properly looked after. Topics discussed in the episode: Why growing up in an entrepreneurial family made opening a salon feel like a natural next stepBuilding the shop with family help and putting personal money, pride and energy into the spaceThe early challenge of saying yes to every customer and learning to set proper business rules Taking on the first employee and realising the business needed stronger processesWhy community is central to Hackney Barkers, from referrals to sharing local businesses' servicesOffering free grooming for unhoused people's dogs and why Jade wants the business to help beyond paying customersHow Jade chooses local and ethical suppliers that align with Hackney Barkers' ethos----- Powering Local Businesses We're helping small businesses thrive on the high street – through expert support, smart energy advice and practical tools to grow sustainably. Get free support now

Jul 15

The Dusty Knuckle's Max Tobias on baking bread and changing lives

Welcome to Small Business Sessions, brought to you by Enterprise Nation as part of Powering Local Businesses, our collaboration with EDF Small Business and Square. In this series, we're speaking to founders and entrepreneurs about the real stories behind starting, growing and rebuilding small businesses. Expect honest conversations, practical lessons and first-hand insight from people who have built businesses with purpose. In this episode, we're joined by Max Tobias, co-founder of The Dusty Knuckle, one of London's best-known bakery businesses. Max shares how his experience working with young people in the youth justice system led to the idea for a bakery that could create real opportunities for people facing barriers to employment. He talks about starting small, growing from a shipping container and building a business whose product has to stand on its own while the social impact sits at the heart of the company. Topics discussed in the episode: How Max's background in youth intervention and youth justice shaped the idea for his businessUsing a local restaurant's pizza oven early in the morning to test the product and build demandHow The Dusty Knuckle's youth employment programme supports young people coming from custody, care, insecure housing and other difficult circumstancesTraining the wider team to support young people without making the programme feel separate from the businessWhat it's like running a bakery business in 2026, including rising costs, early starts and the pressure on hospitalityWhy Max wants the business to become a London community asset people genuinely care about----- Powering Local Businesses We're helping small businesses thrive on the high street – through expert support, smart energy advice and practical tools to grow sustainably. Get free support now

Jul 8

Nik Southern on rule-breaking floristry and running a high-street business

Welcome to Small Business Sessions, brought to you by Enterprise Nation as part of Powering Local Businesses, our collaboration with EDF Small Business and Square. In this series, we're speaking to founders and entrepreneurs about the real stories behind starting, growing and rebuilding small businesses. Expect honest conversations, practical lessons and first-hand insight from people who have built businesses with purpose. In this episode, we're joined by Nik Southern, founder of Grace & Thorn, the floristry business known for its wild, natural and rule-breaking approach to flowers and plants. Nik shares how she moved from recruitment into floristry, built the business from her living room and grew it into one of London's best-known independent florists. Topics discussed in the episode: Why Nik left recruitment after 13 years and retrained as a florist in her mid-30sStarting Grace & Thorn from her living room and selling flowers through friends, pubs and word of mouth Moving from a small basement studio to a Hackney Road shop as the business started to growThe challenges of running a high-street shop, from service charges to safety and rising pressureWhy Nik closed the shop and moved to a more manageable studio modelHow Grace & Thorn built strong roots in Hackney's creative small business communityThe burnout, guilt and pressure that can come with running a creative business for nearly 15 years----- Powering Local Businesses We're helping small businesses thrive on the high street – through expert support, smart energy advice and practical tools to grow sustainably. Get free support now

Jul 1

Rob Wilson on turning surplus bread into sustainable beer

Welcome to Small Business Sessions, brought to you by Enterprise Nation as part of Powering Local Businesses, our collaboration with EDF Small Business and Square. This series explores the practical steps small businesses can take to grow and thrive – from improving energy efficiency and embracing sustainability to creating a lasting impact in their local communities. In this episode, we're joined by Rob Wilson, co-founder of Toast Brewing, a brewery that makes craft beer using surplus bread. Rob shares how Toast Brewing began as a project to raise awareness of food waste, why the team turned surplus bread into beer, and how the business has grown into a mission-led brand stocked by major retailers. Topics discussed in the episode: Why food waste is one of the biggest environmental issues the planet is facingHow getting hold of surplus bread is, as Rob puts it, "depressingly easy"Why Toast donates 1% of revenue or 100% of profits to environmental charitiesAttracting investors including National Geographic and Heineken InternationalBecoming a B Corp and why the process helped Toast improve its internal cultureExpanding internationally through licensing, collaboration and local brewing partnershipsWhy Rob believes purpose-led businesses still need to focus hard on product quality----- Powering Local Businesses We're helping small businesses thrive on the high street – through expert support, smart energy advice and practical tools to grow sustainably. Get free support now

Jun 24

Renée Elliott on Planet Organic, values-led retail and rescuing a business

Welcome to Small Business Sessions, brought to you by Enterprise Nation as part of Powering Local Businesses, our collaboration with EDF Small Business and Square. This series explores the practical steps small businesses can take to grow and thrive – from improving energy efficiency and embracing sustainability to creating a lasting impact in their local communities. In this first episode of the series, we're joined by Renée Elliott, founder of Planet Organic, the UK's first fully certified organic supermarket. Renée shares how she launched Planet Organic in 1995, why values were at the heart of the business from day one and what happened when she returned years later to rescue it from administration. Topics discussed in the episode: Why Renée started the business to do something meaningful, not simply to make moneyThe slow start after opening in November 1995, and why Renée feared the business might not surviveWhat happened when Renée was pushed out of the business and had to reinvent herself as a mentorWhy she returned in 2023 to help rescue Planet Organic from administrationRebuilding the business by reconnecting it with its original values, product standards and communityWhy community events, in-store expertise and team training matter in modern high street retailHow Planet Organic has approached sustainability through core values and evolving, aspirational standards----- Powering Local Businesses We're helping small businesses thrive on the high street – through expert support, smart energy advice and practical tools to grow sustainably. Get free support now

The Small Business Sessions

Dee Omole on turning nostalgia-inspired bakes into a thriving confectionery business

Usman Khalid on refugee entrepreneurs and changing narratives through coffee

Charlie Duckworth on scaling a not-for-profit sauna movement

Jade Georgiou on community dog grooming and building a business with heart

The Dusty Knuckle's Max Tobias on baking bread and changing lives

Nik Southern on rule-breaking floristry and running a high-street business

Rob Wilson on turning surplus bread into sustainable beer

Renée Elliott on Planet Organic, values-led retail and rescuing a business

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The Small Business Sessions

Episodes

Dee Omole on turning nostalgia-inspired bakes into a thriving confectionery business

Usman Khalid on refugee entrepreneurs and changing narratives through coffee

Charlie Duckworth on scaling a not-for-profit sauna movement

Jade Georgiou on community dog grooming and building a business with heart

The Dusty Knuckle's Max Tobias on baking bread and changing lives

Nik Southern on rule-breaking floristry and running a high-street business

Rob Wilson on turning surplus bread into sustainable beer

Renée Elliott on Planet Organic, values-led retail and rescuing a business

About

Information

You Might Also Like