S11: How to future proof our high streets, with James Daunt, founder of Daunt Books

Conversations of Inspiration

Holly Tucker MBE

Education, Society & Culture, Entrepreneurship, Self-improvement, Business, Personal Journals

5.0 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 19 April 2021

⏱️ 60 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This week Holly speaks to James Daunt, founder of Daunt Books and CEO of Waterstones.

James is a passionate champion of independent high streets, so much so, that his reason for joining Waterstones as CEO was to turn the ship at the brink of failure in order to prevent what would have been a devastating loss to British independent book selling.

James’ view is that our high streets were in decline long before the pandemic struck. He is a firm believer that in order to regenerate, it is essential to have an entrepreneurial mindset to bring much needed flair to retail; creating truly immersive experiences that breathe fresh life into what has been before.

Join the conversation to find out how James came to found Daunt Books. Learn what ignited his simple, ingenious idea that reinvented a whole industry - and how you can be inspired to challenge the status quo, observe the masses and do the opposite, to bring entrepreneurial thinking into any aspect of life.

Hailed as the savior of bookstores, this conversation is filled with James’ vision, passion and future thinking as a golden thread throughout.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	What a morning that has been speaking to James Dawn, founder of Dawn Book, CEO of Waterstones
0:05.7	and CEO of Barnes & Noble now in the US. There isn't anything this gentleman doesn't know about
0:12.8	running a bookshop. And I loved hearing the tale, everything from the way that the shells were
0:19.2	directed in his first shop, Dawn Books and Marlabone, to 300 stores and how you cope with waterstones
0:28.0	during a pandemic. But also the rule books he had to rip up in order to help waterstones thrive.
0:36.9	I was so enlightened with his views about how we save our high streets, how we bring
0:43.6	independence back onto the high streets. And absolutely he had very clear views on what the
0:50.0	government has to do in order to support our local shopkeepers. I've learnt so much, I think you're
0:57.1	all going to learn so much for all the bookworms out there, dying out on this one because there
1:02.2	isn't a man I think more qualified to talk about the bookshop than at James Dawn. It was just brilliant.
1:17.4	I'm Holly Tucker and welcome to Conversations of Inspiration. Back in 2006 I founded not on
1:24.4	the high street from my kitchen table and since then I've gone on to launch Holly and Co.
1:30.1	I'm the UK ambassador of Creative Small Businesses and I believe that having a business doing
1:35.7	what you love is the key to a happy fulfilled life. My dream is to help everybody start theirs.
1:42.8	I'm here to offer advice, inspiration, wisdom and encouragement and in my view the best way to do
1:50.1	this is by sharing stories. So I've reached out to my favourite small businesses, entrepreneurs
1:56.9	and those who simply inspire me and ask them to share theirs. With thanks to Dell Technologies
2:03.8	who've helped bring this free podcast to life. Here are my Conversations of Inspiration.
2:10.9	Hello James, it is such an honour to chat to you today. I was just telling you that your face has
2:17.5	been cut out on my podcast wish list for about two years. So I started the morning by making
2:24.8	you blush but that is actually the truth. So welcome to Conversations of Inspiration.
2:29.8	I'm flattered as I'm sure he's intended but thank you.
	...

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