This week, we spoke to Lee Bellwood, owner of Major Tom’s Social in Harrogate.

Tell us in fewer than 30 words what your firm does. 

We make fresh pizza and source some of the best beer you can get in the UK and abroad. We do cocktails as well, and in the next couple of weeks we’ll be starting to do lunches and brunches.

What does it take to be successful in business? 

You need a good team behind you, consistency, and a USP (unique selling point). Ours is that we’re a ‘youth club for grown-ups’. We wanted to create somewhere to go where we felt comfortable, and where you could bring your kids. That’s the ‘social’ side of Major Tom’s Social.

What drives you to do what you do every day? 

Basically, I just want to be in a business where I can enjoy work and not have to answer to anyone else. I like food and I like drink, so this is something I really love doing.

What has been the toughest issue your company has had to deal with over the last 12 months? 

My business partner, Toby Smith, left the business to do something else, so I’ve taken it over from him. Before, I was more hands-on, but now I’m a lot more involved with payroll and VAT returns.

I’ve just opened a new bar in Otley, the Curious Hop Bière Café. It’s a bit tricky at times – it’s going well, but I just have to balance my time between the two.

Which other local firms do you most admire, and why? 

I admire any independent business that can keep its head above water after covid. It was such a difficult time.

Baltzersen’s brought out its bakery just as covid was hitting and did very well out of that.

Stuzzi have done well with their gins, and opening a new site in Leeds.

Paradise Tap & Taco is doing very well too – owners Josh and Ellie were both my old managers for about five years.

Lee Bellwood, owner of Major Tom’s Social in Harrogate.

Who are the most inspiring local leaders? 

I don’t really admire any local leaders, to be honest. I struggle to answer that question.

Anyone, locally or further afield, who works to combat racism and climate change, I take my hat off to.

What could be done locally to boost business? 

Any time there’s a big event going on, I find it difficult to find out about it. I normally find out at the last minute. For example, if there’s a craft fair in the Valley Gardens, I may only find out about it the day before, but businesses like mine need plenty of notice about these things.

There needs to be a really good social media group – on Facebook or Instagram – to share information about these events so we can plan ahead.

Best and worst things about running a business from Harrogate? 

That’s quite hard! The people we get in here are really nice and friendly – our customer base is great. We also get a lot of visitors to the town, which helps us, and it’s also great to work above Steve [Elvidge] in Space [the vintage and retro shop on The Ginnel].

The sense of community between all the independents in Harrogate is really nice: Starling, Paradise, Cold Bath Brewing Co, and Thug Sandwich Company. If I run out of pizza boxes, I can always borrow a load from one of the others, and we all have our staff do’s in each other’s places.

The worst? The parking fees. Also, the amount of licences the council gives out to premises nearby. Since we’ve been here, there have been eight or nine places given alcohol licences within 100 yards of here.

What are your business plans for the future? 

We hope to introduce slightly longer opening hours over the weekends, with brunches and lunches, and we want to use the space as more of an events centre. We already have pop-up painting on Sundays, but I’d like to see more exhibitions and talks as well, giving it a real community feel. I want it to be open to everyone too, so it’ll be quite inclusive.

What do you like to do in your time off? 

I love hiking, paddleboarding, travelling, hanging out with my family – and not eating pizza!

Recently I went paddleboarding on Coniston and that evening we saw the Northern Lights. It was almost like a religious experience: the best day ever!

Best place to eat and drink locally? 

Obviously here. Apart from us, though, Paradise is nice, Stuzzi is good, and Baltzersen’s is good for coffee and cakes.

But my favourite is the Wild Plum Café on Hookstone Road. I go there with my mum and mother-in-law. The food is always interesting, with lots of foraged ingredients, and it’s all tasty and inventive.

This is the latest in a regular series of weekly Business Q&A features. If you’d like to suggest someone in business in the Harrogate district for this feature, drop us a line at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Read more:

• Business Q&A: Tim Brown, Brown Trout
• Business Q&A: Natalie Leworthy, Urban Circus

This week, we spoke to Natalie Leworthy, aerial athlete and business owner of Urban Circus in Harrogate.

Tell us in fewer than 30 words what your firm does. 

We’re offer fitness classes for adults and children. We cover aerial and pole fitness – basically anything off the ground. Anything not too conventional!

It’s loosely rooted in the circus tradition, but I’m not – I’m a fitness instructor. I started with the pole, then went on to the aerial hoop (or lyra), aerial silk and hammock.

What does it take to be successful in business? 

Good question – when somebody answers that for you, tell me!

We’ve been around for over a decade and we’ve survived entirely through word-of-mouth. If you have a good product and a safe environment, it sells itself.

Having a passion for whatever it is you do is very important. Also, when you’ve been doing something for a while, it’s very easy to think ‘I’m the master of this now’, but that’s not how it goes in any business. It’s always evolving. So I’ve scoured the internet over the years to find courses to learn more, and I’ve grown with my industry. It’s important to keep up with the times.

Natalie (centre) with her instruction team at Urban Circus.

What drives you to do what you do every day? 

I really, really enjoy it. Not many people are excited to go to work, but I am.

I also love the impact what we do has on people who do it. Women often walk in here so self-conscious and embarrassed, but within a few weeks they come in wearing fewer clothes so they can grip the pole better, and they’re just generally more confident and sociable.

I have two daughters, and I love the fact that here they can be in a really positive, female, empowered environment.

What has been the toughest issue your company has had to deal with over the last 12 months? 

Keeping up with inflation. Our electricity bill has gone up by 500% over the last year – it’s crazy.

My biggest struggle, though, is being a mum at the same time as trying to be a businessperson. Finding that balance is very challenging!

Which other local firms do you most admire, and why? 

There’s a business near me in Claro Court Business Centre called Atlas Fitness – it used to be called Schofield Fitness. They try to change people mentally as well as physically, so they grow in confidence. I like their ethos.

Who are the most inspiring local leaders? 

One person I find super-inspiring is Tim Broad, headteacher at Western Primary School in Harrogate. Nobody works harder than him.

Both my nephews have autism and one has ADHD, but they’re both thriving there, and that’s due in large part to the effort Mr Broad and his staff put in.

I’ll also mention a teacher, Miss Ward, who has gone above and beyond, doing research in her own time to learn more and put in place better systems to help the boys. She doesn’t have to, but she makes a huge effort.

Training on the pole builds up strength, fitness, flexibility and confidence.

What could be done locally to boost business? 

There could be easier access to support for small businesses. I got in touch with North Yorkshire Council about grants for leisure businesses but I didn’t hear anything. I was bounced around different departments but I’m still waiting!

Best and worst things about running a business from Harrogate? 

For me, the worst is that I’d like to expand the business, but I can’t find suitable premises. There are lots of offices and large industrial units, but not many light industrial units in between. Every so often I’ll see one, but every time it turns out it’s been bought by a developer to turn into something else.

The best thing is that I like the community in Harrogate. I’m terrible at social media, so my business survives on word-of-mouth. Everybody in Harrogate and Knaresborough seems to know everybody else in Harrogate and Knaresborough, so once you put something out there, people talk and tend to find out about it.

What are your business plans for the future? 

I’d love to expand. We offer children’s classes and birthday parties, but we don’t have the space to accommodate them all. I also want to get into primary schools, doing taster days. We did  it last year, introducing children at Grove Road Primary School to the pole, hoop, hammock and ground skills, and they loved it.

I think it’s really important that children learn that exercise isn’t just about changing your body – you should also do it because it’s fun and it’s good to move.

What do you like to do in your time off? 

What’s ‘time off’?! I like to run around after my children, and when I’m not doing that, I’m really very boring – I like doing DIY or training.

Then again, if there’s any chance in hell I can get to a spa, I’m gone – you won’t see me for dust!

Best place to eat and drink locally? 

Thug Sandwich Company is the best place in North Yorkshire, if not the country. Everything seems to taste amazing – I don’t know how they do it. I’m a picky eater, but they mix different flavours together that you would think would work, but they do. I also like how cheeky the owners are.

Another good place is Tilly Peppers on Cold Bath Road – it’s really nice to be able to take a toddler in without fear of upsetting anyone!

This is the latest in a regular series of weekly Business Q&A features. If you’d like to suggest someone in business in the Harrogate district for this feature, drop us a line at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Read more:

• Business Q&A: Andrew North, Alexanders Prestige
• Business Q&A: Tim Brown, Brown Trout
• Business Q&A: Hazel Barry, H2K

This is the latest in a regular series of Business Q&A features published weekly.   

This week, we spoke to Zara Jackson, founder and CEO of Harrogate-based Network Scientific.

Tell us in fewer than 30 words what your firm does. 

We help scientific business grow. We offer recruitment services, sales and marketing, all aimed at helping clients to grow their sales.

What does it require to be successful in business? 

A good work ethic and a thick skin. Being prepared to just get stuck in, no matter what you’re doing.

What drives you to do what you do every day? 

Relentless ambition! I recently found out that I have ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), and one of its features is that you just keep on going. I don’t stop from morning to evening.

I want more – nothing’s ever enough. We’ve achieved at least 20% growth in turnover and profitability each year since Covid, but this year I want to reach 30%.

What has been the toughest issue your company has had to deal with over the last 12 months? 

Recruiting our staff. Hiring good commercial scientists is quite a challenge. That’s why I’ve set up a model of hybrid working where everybody can work from home, so long as they work in the office at least once a week. We employ people based as far afield as Huddersfield and Teesside, and we can’t expect them to come in every day.

Which other local firms do you most admire and why? 

Impression Recruitment – we’ve worked with them from day one and they’ve helped us with our recruitment.

Also Extreme Creations – it’s really inspired me to see how they’ve grown their business.

Cloud Nine‘s growth is very impressive, and I saw they also got voted one of the best places to work in the Sunday Times.

And I can’t forget Artizan – I love that business! I used to do a lot of volunteer work with differently abled people when I was younger (and had more time available!). We need more of those companies that bring inclusivity into the town centre.

Who are the most inspiring local leaders? 

I have no idea. I’m coming up blank!

What could be done locally to boost business? 

I think the council needs to invest more in the high street. It’s struggling, it’s tired, and more investment is required to attract people into the town centre. Harrogate BID is doing a lot, but we need more if I’m to be able to get people to relocate here.

Also, with Viper Rooms closed, there’s no nightlife any more. When I first came to Harrogate in 2006, the nightlife in Harrogate was one of the things that really attracted young people here. But that’s gone now, and people go to Leeds instead – and that makes selling the town to young scientists that much more difficult.

We also need more inclusivity to boost local business. I have two employees who are currently observing Ramadan. We offer a private space for them to use as a prayer room here but we’ll be moving offices soon, and when we do, we won’t have that space. Harrogate Islamic Association are currently fundraising to develop a building in town into Harrogate’s first mosque. We’ll be donating to their efforts during Ramadan this year.

Best and worst things about running a business from Harrogate? 

There’s a good business community in Harrogate that’s really supportive and close-knit. I’m quite cut off from it now that I have young children, but when I was first starting out it was a big help. Harrogate also very picturesque. If I’m having a stressful day, I’ve been known to have a walk round the Valley Gardens – and it helps.

The worst thing is trying to recruit younger employees. It used to be OK, and I’m sure it could be again.

What are your business plans for the future? 

Growth. I’ve never wanted to have any external stakeholders. Network Scientific was launched from my back bedroom and I’ve built it up from there, so I just want to carry on growing it organically. I’ll be happy if we stick to growing at 20% a year, but I want more.

We’re quite well known now in the UK, so we’ll be targeting more European and US work.

What do you like to do on your time off? 

Spending time with my family and getting muddy with my children. Nidd Gorge is brilliant, and in the summer we take our bikes to the greenways and cycle to Ripley.

I’m a footie mum as well. I thought having two girls that I might be spared standing on the sidelines in the rain, but my eight-year-old plays football six times a week!

Best place to eat and drink locally? 

I like the Smith’s Arms at Beckwithshaw. It’s relaxed and the food is good, so we always seem to end up going back there.

I like the Giggling Squid and Lucia too, but that’s closing and reopening soon, so I hope the new restaurant is as good as the old one was.

• If you know someone in business in the Harrogate district and you’d like to suggest them for this feature, drop us a line at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk. 

Read more:

• Business Q&A: Dan Simpson, Harrogate Organics
• Business Q&A: Laura Dudley, Painting Pots
• Business Q&A: Victoria Clark, French Soaps