ClusterCast

If you’ve been following @TheClusterOx on Instagram, you might think Lorraine and I are doing a solid Scott and Charlene impression - we do spend a slightly alarming amount of time together. (No wedding planned. Calm down.)But in all seriousness, Lorraine Berkshire-Roe is one of those rare people you meet in business, someone with a completely different skillset, a similarly chaotic brain (with just a touch more order than mine), and a genuine passion for what she creates.And what she creates is pretty special.Lorraine is an outrageously talented illustrator who has quite literally penned the history of The Cluster, turning ideas, stories and moments into something visual, memorable and genuinely beautiful. My artistic peak was a questionable stick man - Lorraine, on the other hand, makes a living from what’s in her head. People aren’t just buying a service, they’re buying a piece of her creative brain, her perspective, and her ability to bring something to life in a way words often can’t.In this episode, we talk about her journey - from college to hop picking to teaching, to illustrating part-time, and eventually making the leap into doing it full-time. It’s a slightly different kind of business to many we’ve featured - built not around a model or system, but around talent, craft, and trusting your own creative instincts.And as they say, a picture tells a thousand words, so do yourself a favour and check out her work at www.lorraineberkshire-roe.co.uk. Just a small warning: you will be impressed.Subscribe to @TheClusterOx on YouTube for more relaxed chats with brilliant Oxfordshire indie businesses. And if you’re feeling generous, a rating and review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen) really helps other lovely humans find the show.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster, a co-working and event space in Oxford. Find out more at clusteroxford.co.uk.Recorded and produced by The Pod Collective, the team behind the PodBox OX podcast studio at The Cluster.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster Co-Working and Event Space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If you ever needed proof that resilience, great food, and a bit of spice can get you through anything… this is it. In this episode of The ClusterCast, I sit down with Roshni Ray, co-founder of Tikka and Tadka, a catering company serving up seriously authentic Indian cuisine across Oxfordshire.Now, most people launching a food business just as the world shuts down might… panic, cry, or eat all their own stock. Roshni and her husband? Absolutely not. They pivoted and started delivering homemade curry boxes, giving people something genuinely joyful to look forward to during Lockdown (and frankly saving us all from another sad beige microwave dinner).We talk about how the business began, Roshni’s fascinating career journey, and how her family heritage, and her mum’s cooking, runs through everything she does. And yes, I can personally confirm: I was on the receiving end of a care package and it was delicious.We also get into why spices aren’t just ingredients, they’re a way of life, plus some brilliant advice for anyone starting out. My favourite?“Start smaller than you think you can… and consistency is key.”Simple. Annoyingly wise. Very effective.Also, Roshni fully validates the way I speak to Google like it’s my unpaid personal assistant, which frankly is the kind of support I need in my life.Subscribe to @TheClusterOx on YouTube for more relaxed chats with brilliant Oxfordshire indie businesses. And if you’re feeling generous, a rating and review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen) really helps other lovely humans find the show.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster, a co-working and event space in Oxford. Find out more at clusteroxford.co.uk.Recorded and produced by The Pod Collective, the team behind the PodBox OX podcast studio at The ClusterThis episode is brought to you by The Cluster Co-Working and Event Space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode of The ClusterCast, I’m joined by Ellie Ruddock, who looked at her already overflowing CV and thought, "music therapist, musician, lecturer, mentor, mother, wife... maybe there's room for one more" so she's added small business owner to the mix. Ellie has created and runs Scale Up Development, delivering training and coaching for professionals in healthcare and education. Join us as we talk about the highs, the lows and everything in between of starting a business and why just starting, finding support from peers and learning from people who’ve been there, done that and walked away with the scars of success and failure (because yes, they all teach us lessons) is the real way to survive and thrive.We also uncover Ellie’s slightly wilder side: disappearing off into the great outdoors to reset, recharge, and remember she’s a human being. Plus, we chat about vision boards, dream boards, manifesting… call it what you like. At the very least, it’s a way of turning vague hopes into something you can actually point at. Think wholesome graffiti… but for your future self.And because I’m a great friend (and she told me to remind you), I should mention Ellie has extended the special offer on Scale Up’s 'Service Audit Course' until the beginning of May. So if you’ve been circling it… consider this your sign.Subscribe to @TheClusterOx on YouTube for more relaxed chats with brilliant Oxfordshire indie businesses. And if you’re feeling generous, a rating and review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen) really helps other lovely humans find the show.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster, a co-working and event space in Oxford. Find out more at clusteroxford.co.uk.Recorded and produced by The Pod Collective, the team behind the PodBox OX podcast studio at The Cluster.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster Co-Working and Event Space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I had the absolute pleasure of sitting down with Shaek Zaman from The Meet Point Coffee in this episode of The ClusterCast.We’re usually like two ships in the night (he runs a café so is always up early and I hate mornings) also we are rarely both sitting still long enough to have a proper chat, so this one was well overdue… and, thankfully, well caffeinated!I first met Shaek when The Cluster was barely The Cluster. We had no name, scaffolding everywhere, and what felt like a metric tonne of paint waiting to go up on the walls. Where others saw an old gatehouse that had very much seen better days, Shaek saw my slightly wild dream of a café that would become legendary amongst the local community. And here we are, 15 months later and it’s officially the top-rated café in North Oxford on Google and we are so chuffed to have The Meet Point Coffee fuelling our Clustomers here at The Cluster. Shaek and his brilliant team built their first proper branch of The Meet Point Coffee here at The Cluster from scratch. In this episode, we dig a bit deeper into how they made it happen, what drives him (apart from coffee), and why his natural chai and Bengali street food should probably come with a warning label: highly addictive. I’ve also had the joy of getting to know Shaek’s family and I proudly appointed myself Chief Taster of his mum’s Bengali street food recipes (a role I take extremely seriously, purely in the interests of quality control, obviously). Shaek has seen The Cluster grow. He’s seen my highs and lows, endured my optimistic visionary phases and my slightly grumpy “why is nothing simple?” moments and he’s still here. It’s a cracking conversation about belief, graft, community, family, and what happens when two slightly stubborn dreamers decide to back themselves and their brands. Have a listen, oh and do yourself a favour, come and see what happens when ridiculously good coffee and scarily delicious food meets a genuinely brilliant co-working space. Start your morning at The Meet Point Coffee, book your desk at The Cluster and let the caffeine, community and creative buzz do their thing.Subscribe to @TheClusterOx on YouTube for more relaxed chats with brilliant Oxfordshire indie businesses. And if you’re feeling generous, a rating and review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen) really helps other lovely humans find the show.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster, a co-working and event space in Oxford. Find out more at clusteroxford.co.uk.Recorded and produced by The Pod Collective, the team behind the PodBox OX podcast studio at The Cluster.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster Co-Working and Event Space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It may be Winter Olympic season as I write this, and as we all know, you get absolutely nothing for seventh place in the Olympics. No medal. No flowers. Not even a commemorative tea towel.But here in the 'ClusterCast Games' we do things a little differently… and Beth is absolutely getting a medal. She brings the skills, the know-how and the quiet mastery of that mysterious dark art otherwise known as LinkedIn.Let’s be honest. For many of us, LinkedIn is either:A) the place we panic-visit when we need a joborB) the digital peacock enclosure where we politely announce we’ve been “honoured and humbled” to speak somewhere that involved a lanyard and a slightly dry pastry.But in this episode, Beth goes way beyond the humblebrag. She shares genuinely useful tips on how to tame the LinkedIn lion, how to show up with confidence, how to avoid sounding like a corporate robot, and how to make it actually work for your business instead of just feeding the algorithm and hoping for crumbs.As ever, The ClusterCast is all about discovering how brilliant indie businesses across Oxfordshire started, how the human behind the business makes it all happen. It’s real advice, genuine experiences, and proper conversation. No buzzwords required.Beth steps onto the podium in this one. And very well deserved it is too.Subscribe to @TheClusterOx on YouTube for more relaxed chats with brilliant Oxfordshire indie businesses. And if you’re feeling generous, a rating and review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen) really helps other lovely humans find the show.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster, a co-working and event space in Oxford. Find out more at clusteroxford.co.uk.Recorded and produced by The Pod Collective, the team behind the PodBox OX podcast studio at The Cluster.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster Co-Working and Event Space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode is a little different from our usual chats and in a good way. Slightly less “polished success story” and a bit more dust, graft and genuine magic.This time, I’m sitting down with Samantha Sanders-Clarke, who’s in the early stages of setting up House of Bliss a home dressing and restored furniture business rooted in care, craft, and seeing potential where most of us would politely walk past.House of Bliss is all about rescuing forgotten pieces, honouring the skill beneath the dust, and giving things a new chapter instead of a landfill ending. Armed with patience, serious skill, and an alarming ability to see potential where the rest of us see firewood, Samantha is breathing new life into forgotten furniture and she’s very, very good at it.I’ve actually known Samantha for several years… although I should probably admit I’ve spent most of that time calling her Sam instead of Samantha. Remarkably, she still agreed to come on the podcast.If shellac or patina are your thing (and even if they aren’t and btw that is also my Drag Queen name), this is a warm, funny and inspiring listen with someone launching a business with real drive and passion and I’ve no doubt she’s going to do bloody well.Subscribe to @TheClusterOx on YouTube for more relaxed chats with brilliant Oxfordshire indie businesses. And if you’re feeling generous, a rating and review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen) really helps other lovely humans find the show.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster, a co-working and event space in Oxford. Find out more at clusteroxford.co.uk.Recorded and produced by The Pod Collective, the team behind the PodBox OX podcast studio at The Cluster.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster Co-Working and Event Space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 5 of The ClusterCast, I sit down with the utterly lovely Rebecca Galligan from Rebecca’s Home Sort to talk career curveballs, cupboard shame, and why sorting your house can feel oddly… emotional.Rebecca made the bold leap from a very corporate job with a very large toy manufacturer to building a business helping people organise the stuff we all pretend we’ll “get round to one day”. In her words, she helps people fall back in love with their houses again which sounds wholesome because it is… but also surprisingly powerful.Somewhere along the way, she expertly tapped into my not-at-all-embarrassing obsession with Tupperware and QVC (no judgement please, this is a safe space), and shares genuinely brilliant, very doable tips for getting started, actually finishing, and learning how to tell your inner saboteur to pipe down while your inner encourager takes the wheel.It’s a warm, funny, honest chat about stuff, work, confidence, and why sorting a drawer is never just about the drawer.Subscribe to @TheClusterOx on YouTube for more relaxed chats with brilliant Oxfordshire indie businesses. And if you’re feeling generous, a rating and review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen) really helps other lovely humans find the show.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster, a co-working and event space in Oxford. Find out more at clusteroxford.co.uk.Recorded and produced by The Pod Collective, the team behind the PodBox OX podcast studio at The Cluster.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster Co-Working and Event Space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a move that surprises absolutely everyone (including me), this episode features me… talking about cars. Don’t panic, this isn’t a sudden pivot to Top Gear. It’s a relaxed, laugh-filled chat with my ever-patient, genuinely brilliant mechanics who have somehow kept my car alive for over 10 years. A car which, at this point, is less “vehicle” and more paperclip attached to a hairdryer with masking tape. And yet, they remain unfailingly polite about it. Saints.I’m joined by Lindsay Brown from Summertown Garage, a brilliant independent Oxford business that’s been running for 21 years. We talk about how they started, how they got customers through the door in the early days, and what really makes them stand out. Spoiler: it’s not flashy gimmicks - it’s doing the basics brilliantly and genuinely going the extra mile (sorry, terrible pun, couldn’t resist).There’s also a vital business lesson tucked into the banter: always delete your Google search history, especially when starting a business. Because let’s be honest, Google becomes our therapist, guru, PA, and panic-room!Subscribe to @TheClusterOx on YouTube for more relaxed chats with brilliant Oxfordshire indie businesses, and if you’re feeling generous, leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen) it really helps others find the show.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster, co-working and event space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more.Recorded and produced by The Pod Collective, the team behind The PodBox OX podcast studio at The Cluster.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster Co-Working and Event Space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to episode three of the ClusterCast where, tragically, there was no coffee in hand (a rookie error), but there was excellent conversation.This time, I sat down with Lizzie Armitage from Jericho Coffee Traders, one half of the JCT duo. Sadly James isn’t with us, he’s currently in New Zealand, probably drinking very good coffee.In this episode, Lizzie shares the wonderfully unconventional beginnings of Jericho Coffee Traders - starting with a couple of professional musicians, a knock on a door and a a Vespa Piaggio Ape that changed everything. We dig into how the business has grown since then, what expansion really looks like behind the scenes and, crucially what to do when building a product-led business.There’s plenty of practical advice on slowing down, honing your product, and delivering something genuinely brilliant before you launch rather than rushing to market and hoping for the best and yes, we also take a brief but important detour to New Zealand wildlife and learn about a bird called a Pūkeko!Pūkeko (noun):A bold, slightly chaotic New Zealand swamp hen known for its confidence, loud opinions, and tendency to wander into places it probably shouldn’t - much like anyone before their first proper coffee of the day.Warm, honest, and full of caffeine-fuelled wisdom this episode is for anyone building something they care about and wanting to do it properly.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster Co-Working and Event Space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode two of ClusterCast, I sit down with Jason Warner from FyreFly Studios to uncover his rather unorthodox route into photography. Before he ever picked up a camera, Jason was studying for a Learning Disability Nursing degree, before switching gears to build a musical career in a signed band called Fixers. We talk about how swapping stages for lenses shaped the way he sees the world and the people in front of his camera.We also get into his time working in the NHS, and why those experiences turned out to be unexpectedly brilliant preparation for life as a photographer and small business owner.Jason is endlessly positive, refreshingly honest, and full of practical advice for anyone thinking about setting up their own business, without the usual fluff or faux-guru nonsense. It’s a funny, thoughtful conversation with someone who clearly loves what he does, and I came away both inspired and smiling.Have a listen, you’ll want a notebook… and maybe make yourself a B-52 cocktail (we are!)This episode is brought to you by The Cluster Co-Working and Event Space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this first episode in the ClusterCast podcast series, I am joined by Hannah from Mederi Wellness, who still thinks she offended me the first time we met - she didn’t, but it’s fun to pretend! We talk about how she built her business from a loft conversion, the stranger things that’ve happened at the float centre, and her genuinely useful, no-nonsense advice for anyone starting out.Hannah also explains why most of us are breathing wrong, and how correcting it can transform our physical and mental wellbeing. And as we chat, we’re reminded that as entrepreneurs and independent business owners, we are our own HR department, so should give ourselves the time and space to recover. Book yourself a massage, a sauna, or a float session at Mederi Wellness. I’ve been, and I can’t recommend it enough.A fun, floaty, slightly salty episode with real business wisdom woven through.This episode is brought to you by The Cluster Co-Working and Event Space in Oxford. Visit clusteroxford.co.uk to learn more. Subscribe on YouTube and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.