In this week’s episode of 40 Minute Mentor, host James Mitra is joined by Angel Investor and Co-Founder of 10×10, Andy Davis.
From early employment as a presenter on Nickelodeon to being named one of Business Insider’s 100 People Transforming Business, Andy’s career is an inspirational one, which has seen him enjoying success as both a founder and an investor.
Speaking about the inspiration behind his strong humility in business, Andy shares his early career experience as a presenter at Nickelodeon: “I did some TV presenting for Nickelodeon for a few years and I got to spend a lot of time with the likes of Tia and Tameera, Kenan and Kel, and Sabrina the Teenage Witch.
“From that experience, I learnt not to idolise celebrities growing up, because I was quite used to them being around. It taught me to always just be humble and accessible and that no one is above anybody for better or worse.”
Interestingly, Andy doesn’t see himself as an entrepreneur, but as a “problem solver” – whether that be in the form of his own start-ups or in helping first-time black founders find investment, he says: “I’ve never gone and pursued an entrepreneurial venture because I’ve wanted to be an entrepreneur. I’ve always had a problem in front of me and got to solve it.
“When I thought it was big enough or if I thought it was a big enough problem for a lot of people, I’ve then gone to solve it for more people, and thus those things became start-ups or businesses.”
Last year, Andy announced the ‘Black Report’ on behalf of 10×10, which was the first report on pre-seed Black founders in the UK, in partnership with Google Start-ups UK. He says he created the report because every founder feels alone in their journey but there are many other people that are going through the same experiences. “The purpose was to have realistic insights as to who black founders are, and perspectives for current and future black founders,” he adds.
40 Minute Mentor is available on Apple, Spotify, Soundcloud, and all major podcast platforms.
