TV celebrities Jamie Laing, founder of Candy Kittens and Jampot Productions, and Deborah Meaden, business leader and author, discuss the failures and successes of setting up a business and investment in a fireside chat at the 2025 Guernsey Private Wealth Forum in London.

“Failure happens all the time. We have to fail in order to succeed,” Jamie Laing (pictured left), founder of confectionary business Candy Kittens and former TV celebrity, said at the Guernsey Private Wealth Forum 2025 in London this autumn.

His views were echoed at the London event by Deborah Meaden (pictured right), investor on the business programme Dragon’s Den for almost 20 years. She is also author of the bestselling books Why Money Matters, a guide for six to nine-year-olds and Talks Money a money guide for 11 to 16-year-olds. “If I don’t fail, I am not trying,” she said. “My first business failed,” she continued. “I followed my ex-boyfriend to Italy when I was 19 but ran out of money.” She set up a glass and ceramics export agency, which sold products to UK retailers like Harvey Nichols, but the company failed after 18 months. “I didn’t have much money at that time so it was hard for me to challenge it,” she added. 

“My next business came out of the clothing store Stefanel. I saw it and wanted to be a franchisee and was one of the first,” she continued. She sold out two years later to her partner for £10,000 ($13,200).  

Meaden went on to build up Weststar Holidays a family holiday park operator based in Devon, which sold for £83 million. “I was sad about selling it but it was the right time to do it. We were within a week of a crash which could have halved our value,” she said. 

Laing highlighted how the TV world made him become a master of improvising which helps in his business. Being on TV also helped him to become self-aware. “As a founder, you have to be self-aware and know what you are bad at,” he said. 

His views were echoed by co-host Meaden at the event. “Founders of businesses try to do everything. You have to know what you are good and bad at and what the business needs to succeed,” she said. “Starting a business is like having a small child. In the startup phase, it’s full of fun and creative people. I am about to go into the 21st series of Dragons Den. I love business. It’s a very energising thing,” she said. 

Meaden also focuses her time on fair and ethical business practices, as well as being a representative for many wildlife charities, including the WWF and the Marine Conservation Society. “My aim is to make sure my money is well spent and helps support the changes for the better in the world that I want to see,” she said.

Wealth management experts also explored at the event how the industry is evolving to meet the needs of a new generation of entrepreneur. Emerging sectors such as technology, sport, social media and entertainment are driving demand for more tailored and innovative solutions. "The thing that needs to be solved is actually an issue of communication more so than products and approach. We have a huge amount of expertise and value to provide – but it requires thinking about how we package it, how we communicate it. The world is changing, but the core principles of growing, preserving, and passing on wealth haven’t," Alexander Joshi, head of behavioural finance at Barclays Private Bank, said.

The younger generation – and women in particular – stand to benefit from this approach. Alice Russell, portfolio manager at Cazenove Capital, said women are projected to hold 60 per cent of wealth in the UK by the end of this year, emphasising that fostering a sense of curiosity and confidence will be essential in empowering these demographics to shape their own investment journeys.

Helen McGhee, partner at Joseph Hage Aaronson & Bremen, also underlined Guernsey’s appeal as a jurisdiction. She noted that this reputation is underpinned by the island’s stability, expertise and pragmatic regulation. “What we try to do as a regulator is calibrate the regulatory framework to the investors’ needs and requirements.

“We’re opening up, making it easier, reducing some of the regulatory themes associated and modifying some of the regulatory requirements, because we’re very conscious of the target market," Gillian Browning, deputy director general for the Guernsey Financial Services Commission, added.

“We believe these kinds of advancements to be a vital aspect of preserving wealth for the future, empowering the next generation to take a vested interest," chief executive of Guernsey Finance, Rupert Pleasant, said. “Guernsey’s trust and fiduciary expertise and talent for innovation offer the ideal environment through which to manage wealth and investments.”

The forum was organised by Guernsey Finance, a joint government and industry initiative whose remit is promoting and connecting Guernsey as an international financial centre. See more about Guernsey Finance here.