Tej Lalvani

Vitabiotics Ltd

Vitabiotics has manufactured innovative health care products for over 40 years; a British company committed to human health and research. Based in London, Vitabiotics has created a unique portfolio of products at the forefront of scientific developments in key sectors, including nutrition and women's health.

Designed to provide maximum efficacy by supporting the human body in its own natural processes, each product is developed using the latest research available, and produced to the highest pharmaceutical standards.

Innovation is the key to Vitabiotics' success. This means keeping at the leading edge of international research on the one hand, while remaining sensitive to specific consumer needs on the other.

Vitabiotics has a profound commitment to translating the latest scientific advancements into effective products, which are fully integrated with modern consumer lifestyles. Vitabiotics' brand portfolio includes some of the fastest growing supplements in the UK and numerous brand leaders.

For over 40 years Vitabiotics has been pioneering developments and innovation in vitamin and mineral supplements. With a mission of "Empowering people to improve their health through innovation in nutritional health care" we have created a leading portfolio of trusted, effective brands.

Chief Executive Officer

NitNOT

NitNot aims to revolutionise head lice treatments and transform unhealthy attitudes, bringing safe, environmentally friendly, non-toxic solutions that genuinely work!

It's proud to be the first-ever certified eco-friendly head lice, egg and nit treatment on the market. Leading the way with environmentally friendly packaging.

Their mission is to eliminate the "Blame and Shame" culture that parents face when dealing with the last taboo at the school gate - head lice and nits. And with a 100% success rate, you can trust that it's a mission they are completing.

Investor

MATCHSTICK MONKEY LIMITED

Matchstick Monkey is a baby brand, focused on making teething trouble a thing of the past. It offers fun, ergonomically-designed teethers, which help provide comfort and relief at every stage of teething.

The UK-based brand was founded by mum-of-three Katie Windridge. While struggling to massage her daughter’s gums without getting badly bitten, she decided to invent a solution of her own, and Matchstick Monkey was born. The core teething product is safe and easy to hold, and babies love it. This has led to a rise from humble beginnings to becoming a multi-million-pound, award-winning global brand.

Splento

Splento is the ‘Uber for photography’ - opening up professional photography and videography to be as easy as hailing a cab. They help businesses to sell more with great visual content and create the memories and stories that humanity remembers. 

In just 4 years they have grown exponentially and have attracted many significant corporate clients such as Google, Visa, Facebook, Investec and Gucci to name just a few.

From conferences and weddings to start-up team photos and marketing photography, Splento is the easiest way for businesses and individuals to get their professional photos and videos done and delivered.

ASYSTEM

ASYSTEM is a health and wellbeing brand designed for men, with a product range spanning supplements, vitamins and personal care, with a focus on skincare. They use the best natural products, backed up by the latest science, to help men look, feel and perform at their best.

The California-based brand was founded by Josh LeVine and Oliver Walsh. Observing that men were underserved in the wellness and skincare space, they built a brand for men that’s modern, inclusive and aspirational. The core product is a subscription service that delivers daily nutrition pills and skincare products.

Hanna Sillitoe Limited

Hanna Sillitoe is a health brand, focused on providing exceptional skincare. It offers botanical skin and hair care, wellbeing retreats and online coaching. 

The company was inspired by Hanna’s own struggles with effective skincare. Since the age of 15, she had struggled with severe acne, eczema and psoriasis. After being offered a chemotherapy suppressant drug by her doctor, she dramatically changed her diet and lifestyle and began to see rapid improvements in her skin. Through Hanna Sillitoe, she wants to help customers take charge of their skincare, and to help educate people about the importance of the products we put on (and into) our bodies.

TEA+ Vitamin Infused Teas

A range of super teas containing functional herbs, natural fruit flavours and vitamins, T-Plus is a new generation of vitamin super tea. The brand combines green tea with herbs, fruit flavours and nine essentials for detox, immunity and energy.

Look After My Bills (Y Combinator W18)

Look After My Bills is a free service that cuts your gas and electricity bills without you having to do a thing. A two minute sign up then you're automatically moved to the best deal from a decent supplier. When that deal ends you are automatically switched to another deal so you are always saving.

As of November 2018, Look After My Bills is the largest auto-switching service in the country with over 85,000 people signed up since its launch in January 2018. It has already saved the British public £10 million on their energy bills and moved over £50 million in energy custom. On average people are saving £253 per year. 10% are saving over £450.

Air Agents

Air Agents is a London-based short-lets management company, managing properties on behalf of corporate clients and individual owners, offering an exceptional service for both owners and guests.

The company was founded in October 2015 by friends Fran Milsom and Mark Hudson after both had travelled South America, staying in holiday rentals and noticing a lack of consistency and quality in the accommodation. Whilst loving the Airbnb ethos and experience, they recognised a need for management companies to increase standards, provide consistency to consumers and further create amazing experiences for guests, hence Air Agents was born.

The company has experienced rapid growth since it began and now manages nearly 650 properties throughout London with plans to increase this to 1,500 by the end of 2018.

quip.

quip is the oral care company designing and delivering products, advice and professional services to make oral health more simple, accessible, and enjoyable — starting with a better electric toothbrush.

I’m the CEO of Vitabiotics - the UK’s leading vitamin company - a Dragon on the BBC’s Dragons’ Den (2017-2021), and a 2020 LinkedIn Top Voice!

I’m passionate about using science to improve the quality of peoples’ lives, through a combination of the right diet, lifestyle and supplements.

I am also an avid investor in both businesses and properties. If you want to pitch a business idea, please get in touch via my website: https://www.tejlalvani.com/contact.

I want to make a profit, but I want to make it honestly. I don’t want to stab someone in the back to get what I want.

In business, integrity is non-negotiable. Success built on honesty and fairness stands the test of time. 

Work towards your goals with integrity and respect for others. 

If your friend has started a business, do NOT ask for a discount.

Pay full price.
Tip where appropriate.
Offer your support wherever you’re useful.

In the early days of any business, every penny is precious.

If your friendship is worth anything, it’s worth giving them your business.

Freelancers are a quick and convenient way to cover unexpectedly busy periods, fill occasional skill gaps in your team, or just to get a fresh perspective on a project. But they also:

Have bills to pay
Have families to feed
Have complex lives and anxieties

If you make use of freelancers, treat them as you would any other member of your team.

Pay them what you owe them, on time and in full. Nothing more, nothing less.

This shouldn’t be a particularly controversial statement.

There’s no shame in working in retail.
There’s no shame in working freelance.
There’s no shame in working in the service industry.

Job shaming, to me, is a sign of insecurity and a serious undervaluing of the work that keeps everything we value as a society moving forward.

Those who look down on these jobs have forgotten that.

In my eyes, that’s a serious failing.

Every story needs a beginning. Plenty of people find theirs in ‘less glamorous’ jobs.

My own began in a McDonald’s.

And I’ll always be proud of the skills I gained there that formed the foundation of the businessman I am today.

Do your best, and be proud of it wherever it takes you. 
A job’s worth is not based on how shiny the building is.

When you become a leader, you forfeit your ability to take no action.

Your lack of action in any situation becomes an intentional choice, endorsing the status quo.

If an employee comes to you with an issue:

Make it clear what you plan to do.
Do it, as soon as possible.

In an ideal world, achievements would be recognised and progression would be given freely to those who deserved it, as soon as they deserved it.

If you work in a good company with an attentive leader, the reality will be pretty close. But even then, things can be overlooked. It happens.

Don’t let this impact your career.

No one is better equipped to track, present and demonstrate your skills, development and achievements than you.

Be proactive. Take the initiative. Don’t get complacent.

Waiting for progression to be handed to you is guaranteed to be slower than you deserve, even with a well-meaning manager.

Keep your foot on the gas.

Leaders, if the UK is to retain its entrepreneurial spirit, we have a responsibility.

I truly believe that entrepreneurship is the key to revitalising the economic situation we find ourselves in, but only if we stoke that fire.

Leaving it to chance that young people stumble across the skills and opportunities they’ll need to create their own success is not enough – we need to pay our own successes forward.

Mentorship, apprenticeship, whatever form it takes – established leaders need to take every chance to pass on the skills and knowledge we’ve built up and give the next generation of changemakers and wealth generators the leg up they need to make it in this uncertain landscape.

The Bransons and Musks of tomorrow are in need of a wing to be taken under – could that be you?

When we talk about being yourself in the workplace…

It’s not permission to be rude to others.
It’s not permission to lower your standards.
It’s not permission to abandon professional boundaries.

It means feeling comfortable and authentic in the version of yourself that you present professionally.

It just means coming into work, and accepting that both you, and the people around you are whole people – with lives both inside and outside of work.

Anxiety and imposter syndrome can strike anybody, at any level of business.

In fact, I’d argue it becomes more likely the higher up the ladder you climb.

Leaders, when you promote someone, remember to tell them exactly why.
Leave no guesswork, no doubt.
Make sure they know that they earned this, and that they deserve to be where they are.

As the leader of a global organisation, balancing work and life is difficult.

Things are happening at all hours of the day and night, and if I let it, it could completely overtake everything.

The solution is one of discipline:

Leaving my phone in a separate room.
Keeping my home office off-limits during certain times of the day.
Sticking to a strict regular sleep schedule.

We live in a deeply interconnected world where constant accessibility is not only possible, it’s seriously tempting.

Take intentional and non-negotiable steps to make it impossible to slip into bad habits.

Your mind, body, and everyone around you, will thank you.

The main differentiator that I see in successful people vs others…

How long they feel sorry for themselves after a setback.

Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and keep. moving. forward.

As a leader of a global organisation, making difficult decisions does not get any easier whatsoever.

Of course, you get used to the punches and become more resilient with constant firefighting.

But the more you expand and grow, the more livelihoods are at stake. Your employees rely on you, and as a result, their loved ones also rely on the decisions you make. 

That's a mindset that has always kept me humble throughout my career and one that I intend to continue.

In my opinion, it can be quite easy to get too wrapped up in so much external noise, and success can inevitably get over your head, causing us to often forget what keeps our business ticking: the people.

How being a father has made me a better leader 👇

👉 Talking toddlers down from tantrums has made me an expert in negotiation.

👉 Explaining why we can’t eat ice cream for every meal has taught me how to handle even the most unreasonable of requests in a calm, collected manner.

👉 Dealing with bedtimes has allowed me to master the art of conflict resolution.

Parents – what else would you add?

Leadership, passion, courage, integrity, and resilience – if you possess all five traits, you are likely on the right track to becoming an entrepreneur.

There are plenty of things that money can't put a price on...

And one of them is instilling the belief in your children that they can achieve anything they set their minds to.

Growing up, I often felt quite anxious due to the constant changes in my surroundings. Moving back and forth between India and the UK a few times for one.

I'm not saying this affected my ability to dream big, but it did slightly impact my potential to envision myself achieving great things in one stable environment.

I feel like I turned out fine, but I want to ensure that my children have the luxury of being able to dream big wherever they might find themselves in life.

The real challenge comes in teaching children independence while always inspiring them and teaching them the true meaning of hard work.

Parents, can any of you relate or are you going through the same thing with your little ones? 

There’s something incredibly special about the comforting embrace of family recipes, isn’t there? For me, nothing quite compares to the simplicity of a warm bowl of dal and rice.

Growing up far from my birthplace, dal and rice anchored me to my cultural identity — a connection to my cultural roots, a reminder of home, and a source of comfort during both good times and stressful ones.

After all, there’s nothing quite like the healing power of a home-cooked meal made with love.

It’s amazing how food can bring back memories and make you feel better. Now and then, we need to take a moment to enjoy the comfort and peace it brings.

Sometimes, the simple things are all you need.

International businesses should take notes from bendy skyscrapers 👇

In earthquake-prone areas, tall buildings are designed to bend and flex, allowing the base to move while the structure above stays steady.

This means the vibrations are absorbed and the building remains intact, where a more rigid structure crack and crumble under the stress.

The same applies to a business spread across international borders – flexibility and autonomy is key.

Allow parts of the business to deal with problems where they are without needing to travel all the way to the top.

Once you reach a certain size, you cannot afford for every challenge to be a company-wide one.

Learn to loosen your grip, and trust the foundations.

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