He’s a co-founder and director of Falmouth marketing and design agency Eight Wire where he has helped more than 1,000 small and medium-sized businesses to grow through digital marketing and communications strategy and delivery. Having played a key role in running and developing this high-growth enterprise, Jamie has first-hand experience in the challenges that face growing businesses.

In 2015 he managed the SPARKTANK business accelerator programme for Northumbria University. This was a three-month incubator programme that helped 12 businesses to measure their ideas using the lean start-up methodology and test the market. Also an experienced journalist, Jamie loves finding new ways of communicating business development techniques to enable people to build businesses. He is constantly creating new tools and is particularly interested in value proposition and minimum viable product. For Jamie, there is nothing more rewarding than seeing a business succeed or grow more quickly having been through one of our support programmes.

Jamie, tell us about your role:

I co-manage the Breakthrough programme with Debs Horner. Within that I co-ordinate workshop planning and delivery. Debs and I have a great balance of skills. She’s a great organiser while I tend to want to get deep into the content of what we deliver and am happiest when helping a client to address a particular issue around nurturing of their business.

What do you most enjoy about working with businesses?

I love it when something I’ve done, or something one of our team has done, makes a big difference to a business owner. I know the pain we’ve saved them and the pure joy that comes with the business success that they’re closer to. Running a business has the potential to bring huge happiness as much as it does difficulty and heartache. Our job is to help people find more of the former.

How do you stay inspired?

I am always thinking about business and how to understand and explain core concepts better. I’m always reading a new business book, normally about customer psychology, and checking out new blogs and podcasts. In a team such as us, where colleagues have such a range of experience and expertise, I am literally inspired every day.

What was your first job?

During my teens I worked the summers as a ‘butt marker’. No smirking. OK… the ‘butts’ are the end of an outdoor rifle range where the targets are. My dad shot for the RAF and I got the job of pulling down the targets during summer competitions. The task was hauling the huge target down, marking the shot and putting it back up. To top it off, people were shooting at you all day. It was a miserable way to earn £15 a day. Later I was promoted to range officer and got to be at the other end. Happy days.

Who is your top superhero?

Probably Roger Irrelevant from Viz. Sorry.

If you have £1 left, how do you spend it?

I’d get two 50p coins as seed funding and challenge someone to beat me to turning it into £100!