Shell LiveWIRE Advisory Panel
New for 2011, the Shell LiveWIRE Advisory Panel is a recently-formed group of members who have been called upon to offer feedback on our programme, website and future developments.
The panel currently comprises;
- Emily Smoor (Fantoush)
- Melissa Hamilton (RiseTV1 / Bright Videos)
- Robert Bence (Rescue My Pension)
- Nathan Ghann (1st Class Advice)
- Naomi Kibble (ROCKTAILS)
- Nathanael Stedman (Amazing20)
- Ryan Williams (Sopux)
Emily Smoor (Fantoush)
Emily Smoor is the Edinburgh-based Director of Fantoush, a fledgling company she founded at the end of 2010 when she saw a niche in the market for affordable, yet completely unique interiors and furnishings.
Fantoush specialises in sourcing unwanted or older pieces of furniture from sustainable sources and upcycling them, using decorative painting and upholstery techniques.
Before founding Fantoush, Emily worked for the television and multimedia company, One-Eyed-Dog Scotland, where she worked as a Creative Developer on a wide range of broadcast television and internet social-networking projects. Emily also works as a freelance Consultant for Pergali Commercial Transformation – a business consultancy dedicated to bringing new technologies to market where she specialises in helping companies re-design their websites and improving their online visibility.
As part of the panel, Emily hopes to help assess the usability of the Shell LiveWIRE website and working with the team to improve the overall online experience.
Melissa Hamilton (RiseTV1)
Melissa Hamilton is the founder of RiseTV1, an online channel which brings weekly technology and business news. The channel places the spotlight light on individual businesses that are on the rise and highlights technology events that are happening in the UK and Europe. If running an online channel was not enough she is also the founder of Bright Videos, an internet video production company. Her model of actively using newly qualified graduates allows her to provide internet videos at a low cost and gives graduates an opportunity to gain paid work experience. Bright Videos specialise in event coverage and promotional videos. Melissa is very proud to be a part of the Shell LiveWIRE Advisory Board where she hopes to participate in the shaping of the website in order to help future users. Robert Bence is the Founder of Rescue my Pension, a company that specialises in advising clients who wish to plan for their future through property investment. He says, "I am known as a bit of an outspoken critic of the major pension companies and regularly blog on the pension crisis. I have been in the industry for six years and although Rescue my Pension is relatively new we have major expansion plans for the next three years." "I consider Rescue my Pension already to be the country’s leading property Pension Company. As more people become aware of the pension crisis facing the UK, they’re beginning to look for real alternatives. We help by putting together a property pension strategy to enable clients to provide for their future. There’s a massive need for what we do as everyone needs to retire but traditional pensions no longer work." "I’m really looking forward to working on the Shell LiveWIRE panel. Shell LiveWIRE offers a fantastic service for young entrepreneurs passing on invaluable advice but it’s great to see they are always looking to improve. As someone who is building a business I am able to offer direct advice and feedback to Shell LiveWIRE." Nathan Ghann started his first business at 19 whilst still at University. Upon graduation, he was selected at the House of Lords as one of the Top Ten Most Outstanding Graduates in the UK. He holds a double first class in Economics and Marketing and is a board advisor and co-founder of the University of Hertfordshire Entrepreneurs which to date is one of the fastest growing entrepreneurial societies in the UK with over 2,000 enterprising student members. He recently founded 1st Class Advice, a social enterprise where first class graduates help underachieving students achieve in education. Passionate about the 'millennial generation' and enterprise, Nathan hopes to offer his insight into millennial entrepreneurship to enhance the Shell LiveWIRE experience. Naomi Kibble studied Business Management at Cardiff University. It was here that she embarked on her first business venture, Two Distribute, selling ONEWater throughout South Wales. She later went on to work for a FTSE 250 business before escaping the corporate world to setup up MK Rock Ltd (trading as ROCKTAILS), a business launching a range of frozen cocktails into the drinks industry. MK Rock Ltd, whose offices are based in South Wales, was founded in September 2010. They quickly secured funding from the Welsh Assembly to aid development costs and in December went on to win a Shell LiveWIRE Grand Ideas Award. The ROCKTAILS are a 10% ABV, premixed cocktail, targeted at 20-35 year old urban professionals, and is positioned at the mass-premium market. Nathanael Stedman studied Law & Philosophy at Oxford Brookes University and was involved in hospitality and events for many years. He says, "I’m an ideas person and passionate about innovation. My experience of starting-up has taught me to research thoroughly, follow my instincts, know my strengths and weaknesses, discuss my ideas with friends, family, business advisers and potential customers as much as possible but most of all to believe in myself!" Nathanael's latest venture, Amazing20, is an "ambitious web-based start-up based in Cardiff that aims to make a huge range of high quality mobile events, group activities, workshops and experiences much easier to choose and organise." Ryan Williams is a 20yr old entrepreneur with a background in IT, customer service and customer experience who is heavily involved in social media marketing and management. Projects he has been involved with in the past have included creating an online presence for existing brands, advising those already using social media on how to develop and engage more with their customers, and clients like Royal Bank of Scotland on how to improve the overall customer experience of their website. He recently started and established a software house, which is limited under the name Sopux, created with a view on developing small to medium enterprise, business productivity software. This includes cloud-based solutions aimed at the education sector. Ryan says, "Technology is moving at such a speed there is no time whatsoever to sit on ideas. My biggest advice would be to network, the vast amount of knowledge and resource you can have surrounding you is priceless. Web 2.0 is my passion and Shell LiveWIRE is such a great community. I am excited to be given the opportunity to put something back into the programme by offering my expertise, knowledge, creative input and ideas."
Robert Bence (Rescue My Pension)
Nathan Ghann (1st Class Advice)
Naomi Kibble (ROCKTAILS)
Nathanael Stedman (Amazing20)
"There are a great many free tools & resources, wonderfully helpful people and organisations, and of course opportunities in a growing global economy. I believe there has never been a better time for anyone to start working on ideas and get them to market."
"If you’re booking an event our technology will - give you more choice; make planning & organisation easier by cutting research and quote times; save you the cost of an event planner; and if you book a mobile event, could help reduce your carbon footprint!"Ryan Williams (Sopux)
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