Build Better, Then Make Noise: Mous

In this live episode of Virgin StartUp Changemakers, Natalie Pearce sits down with Mous co-founder James Griffith to explore how relentless product development and attention-grabbing marketing helped turn an early failure into a global tech accessories brand. From losing their savings on the first version of Mous to moving to China to learn how to build better products, James shares why founders need to get the fundamentals right before chasing growth. He explores crowdfunding, testing marketing ideas, building viral content, delegating to a team you trust and why failure can become an invaluable source of learning when you're prepared to keep going. Whether you're developing a physical product, experimenting with startup marketing or trying to build a team capable of scaling with you, this episode offers practical founder lessons on product development, resilience, testing and creating a brand that gets noticed. In this episode: How dyslexia influenced James's route into entrepreneurship Why founders should build teams around complementary strengths Learning to delegate rather than trying to control everything What went wrong with the first version of Mous Moving to China and getting paid to learn from earlier product mistakes Why product quality needs to come before founder thought leadership Testing products with real customers throughout development Turning crowdfunding into a launchpad for Mous How testing multiple ideas led to Mous's distinctive viral marketing Why founders shouldn't be afraid of looking ridiculous when experimenting Building healthy disagreement into co-founder relationships Developing new products around capabilities rather than chasing unrelated opportunities Changemakers is brought to you by Virgin StartUp, the not-for-profit organisation helping founders start and scale the businesses they're passionate about. Recorded live at Virgin StartUp's Changemakers events, every episode features honest conversations with entrepreneurs, founders and business leaders sharing the lessons, challenges and ideas shaping the future of business. Looking to start or grow your own business? Find out more at virginstartup.org Brought to you in partnership with our friends at Virgin Money - the home of brighter business banking.