PP023 | James Tossell | Discover how a small business loan kickstarted this young entrepreneur's sound and trucking business
James Tossell
The year’s off to a good start for us on Planner’s Pod! This week we are joined by our good friend James Tossell, the sole proprietor of two complimentary companies that serve important key roles in the events industry.The first one is Entertec, a professional audio company that provides speakers, mixing desks, P. A. systems, and everything associated to making people nice and loud in venues and events. Second is a trucking company called J.T. Event Truck which makes sure that the equipment gets there safely and provide the logistics and transport for the events industry.James is quite an entrepreneur and he’s done some pretty staggering stuff over the years. In this episode, he shares his experiences on how he entered the sound engineering industry at a very early age, and how he paved the way to where he is now.
IN THIS EPISODE YOU'LL DISCOVER
How to start up your events business with your own close network of associates
Starting to learn early is how to get great professional experience
How to deal with bad decisions and how to learn from them
How working and getting paid for what you love is the key to happiness
Links
MEDIA
SHOW NOTES
0:40 - Opening words with Toby and James
3:13 - Interview with James Tossell
3:24 - James sees himself as the sole proprietor of J.T. and Entertec
3:56 - Why did James choose to set up his own company rather than getting a job or going freelance?
4:29 - What does Entertec stand for?
5:43 - Does the right amount of education count in getting into the events industry?
6:33 - Hear how James took an interest in Sound Engineering from an early age.
9:00 - How did James go about setting the business up? How did he a start company like Entertec with his close connections?
10:39 - How James learned from his mentor and how he took the reigns.
14:20 - Hear about the non-glamorous lifestyle of touring.
17:13 - How did James get into the logistics business with J.T. Trucks.?
18:44 - Hear how much J.T. Trucks have grown over the years.
20:23 - Starting a business with the people you know, or have a niche need to be provided.
21:17 - Catering to clients cordially and offering them the services that they need is key to a stronger business.
23:50 - What does a guy like James look for in his employees/possible freelance contractors?
26:08 - Communication is very important across all parts of the industry, and transport element is the same.
26:27 - It's as important to be good with people as a truck driver as it is as among side AV Technicians.
27:33 - You have to accept every part of the job is as important as the other parts.
27:40 - Hear about some of the challenges James has gone through with some of his contractors.
31:37 - What is a "service company"?
34:14 - The risks of using a slightly cheaper, less well established company to your customers.
36:31 - Hear about the bad business decision Entertec has made in the past
37:28 - What is 'cross-hire'?
39:14 - Companies like Entertec and J.T. Trucks isn't designed to be a threat to service turnkey production providers
42:28 - "That was a mistake, we need to not make that mistake again."
43:44 - What sort of investments have they done through 10 years of growth?
44:24 - Why choose Entertec and J.T. Trucks and why is it going to be a success?
45:06 - Communication and reliability and trust has to be built right from the start.
46:56 - You've got to feel like you're talking to a company that cares and the only way to do that is by having people that are genuinely passionate about what they're doing.
49:02 - You can only learn how to improve and how to learn the nuances of sound engineering by working with the gear.
51:23 - What are the big tips for those people having a really successful career in the Events Industry?
53:46 - How to get in touch with James T.
54:30 - “What can I go and do as a 15, 16, 18 year old to gain some experience?”
55:21 - Closing comments from Toby and James
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