Dragons Den

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The other week I attended a ‘Dragons Den / Shark tank’ style meeting in the city of London.
One of the major banks Natwest, along with NEDonboard had hosted this meeting for the seventh year in a row.

Young entrepreneurs  pitched their company ideas to a room of NEDs in 60 seconds, then in small round table discussions
with 4 or 5 seasoned execs looking for the support, advice, guidance they needed to go to the next stage.

Most were too early to have a board of directors, yet the experience of that board was exactly what they needed.

It was so encouraging to hear such enthusiasm from the presenters. They had a diverse range of great business ideas. 

It must have been daunting sitting in a room of experienced, long in the tooth executives giving constructive criticism.

One young lady stood out. She had created something really special, however, our table of four asked if she had an exit strategy, as selling her creation was the best thing to do.
She was rather put out. Almost a bit sad. 'But I’ve only just created the company' she said.

It reminded me of the article I published a couple of months back asking is your company your baby. To her this was her first baby, it was special, she wanted to bring it up, see it mature and become successful. But as the dragons and sharks knew, it would be unlikely to happen due to the strength and wealth of the companies she would have been up against.

To her, selling out was failing, and we tried to tell her that was not the case.

I stumbled across this little story which I hope she reads. Thanks to Visionary Minds for posting it on Instagram.

In 2009, the actor, Steve Carell made one of the most un-Hollywood purchases imaginable.
He spent $575k on a struggling little store that had been around since 1853.
It wasn’t a business move. It was something deeper.

The Marshfield Hills General store was on the verge of closing. No buyer, no plan, just a century and a half of history fading away.

Carell grew up in Marshfield, met his wife there.
To him, the store wasn’t an asset, it was a memory worth preserving.

He restored the building but kept the old soul intact.
He asked his sister – in – law, a local who understood the town, to run it.
For 14 years the store did what it always did best.
Be a meeting place, a thread of local heritage.

Then in 2003 he sold it!

Not because it failed or lost purpose, but because true preservation isn’t about keeping things forever, it’s about knowing when to pass them on.

This is where many small business owners struggle, and this was certainly the case of our young entrepreneur in the den.

They mix up legacy with ownership.
They assume stepping away means giving up.

But that’s not how legacy works.

Legacy isn’t about how long you hold on.
It’s defined by what you leave behind.

The Marshfield Hills General store didn’t lose its meaning when Carell sold it.

It continued serving the town, just under new hands.

Founders who feel guilty about wanting to exit.
They worry about their employees. They fear the business will crumble.

They think selling equals surrender.

None of it is true.

A well-timed exit protects what you have built.
Waiting until burnout destroys it.

Carell understood that.

He rescued the store, ran it with care, and handed it over when the moment was right,
No burnout, no breakdown, no guilt.

The takeaway: Exits aren’t failures, they’re transitions
And transitions done right, that’s how you preserve what truly matters.

That’s the real meaning of legacy.

@Visionaryyminds