Anyone Can Do It: Building Coffee Republic from Our Kitchen Table - 57 Real-Life Laws on Entrepreneurship - Softcover

Hashemi, Sahar; Hashemi, Bobby

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1841125792 ISBN 13: 9781841125794

Publisher: Capstone, 2004

Synopsis

Anyone Can Do It chronicles the start and evolution of a successful business dream. Beginning with the Hashemi siblings' first conversations (when the seed of the idea was planted) it follows the progress of Coffee Republic from business plan to the present day. Coffee Republic is now worth around £50m with 90 outlets around the UK.

This is a start-up business book for real people. Sahar and Bobby take the reader step by step through every aspect of starting and growing a business from asking 'why?' and writing the plan to hiring staff and letting go. The book is illustrated throughout with inspirational anecdotes from their own experience. It is a very personal story of dreaming, acting and succeeding offering a myriad of lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs and blowing apart the myth that only 'special' people start successful businesses.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

Thinking about starting the business of your dreams? So what's holding you back? Is it the fear of the unknown? If you are even contemplating starting a business of your own, perhaps you feel 'stuck' where you are now? But even being 'stuck' can seem better than facing that fear. That fear of the unknown, of leaving that comfort zone. Entrepreneurship is like an uncharted ocean. But ask yourself this question: Do you have the will and determination to leave dry land and navigate the choppy and sometimes daunting waters that lie before you?

If so, then Anyone Can Do It can help you tackle some of those fears, to answer some of the elusive questions about what an entrepreneur must face when making the decision to go for (what can sometimes seem like) that unattainable dream. Authors Sahar and Bobby Hashemi are the dynamic brother and sister team who started one of the most recognizable and high-profile brands in the United Kingdom today - Coffee Republic.

Sahar and Bobby had to leave their comfort zones too, leaving secure jobs to take the plunge. But this is not a business memoir nor mere corporate history. This is a personal story about two ordinary people who 'did it', and who got it right. Anyone Can Do It is an inspirational book that chronicles the start and evolution of a genuine success story. Sahar and Bobby take you through their first conversations (when the seed of the idea was planted), to writing the business plan, finding a name, raising money, opening the first store, taking the company public and to the present day when Coffee Republic turns over millions, employs thousands of individuals and has over 100 outlets around the United Kingdom.

Anyone Can Do It offers a myriad of lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs and blows apart the myth that only 'special' people start successful businesses. It's written in an informal style and packed with tips, advice and quotes. Throughout the text are copies of original business plans, early brainstorms and the cruel and duly ignored bank rejection letters.

Sahar and Bobby take the reader step by step through every aspect of starting a business. The process for them wasn't always easy but one thing is for sure, it was the most rewarding journey either of them has taken.

From the Back Cover:

"The story of [Sahar's] trip to New York and subsequent cravings for skinny lattes is the stuff of coffee shop legend." The Sunday Times

[Sahar is] the Lawyer who put the cream in our coffee." The Guardian

"A business book charting her experience from the kitchen table to the boardroom table." The Financial Times

"The vitality of our economy depends on encouraging more people to start and grow a business.  I welcome this refreshingly honest and insightful book which lifts the lid on what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur, and explains what it's like to tke a dream to market." Martin Wyn Griffith, Chief Executive of DTI's Small Business Service

"Coffee Republic has been a great success story and an inspirational role model for entrepreneurs in all business sectors.  Being an entrepreneur can be lonely position and books such as this illustrate the 'nuts and bolts' of entrepreneurialism, but also give invaluable access to the experience for others." Andrew Main Wilson, Chief Executive of Institute of Directors Enterprises.

"An exhilarating brew! All the ingredients are here - just bring your own passion and commitment." John Bates, Foundation of Entrepreneurial Management, London Business School

About this edition

• Publisher: Capstone
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 1841125792
• ISBN 13: 9781841125794
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 218