Welcome to Work This Way by FOUNDRY, a new business podcast speaking to real people. No wannabe influencers, no nonsense pseudo health advice, just real human stories across the UK. Our members, partners and ambassadors speak to us about their business stories, sharing the ups and downs, the ugly truth about work in the 21st century.
Here's the pitch, 25 minutes of your life, once a week, to learn about an interesting person and business. They could be your future business partner, customer, lover or a friend. I'm Adam your host, and I cannot wait to share these awesome people and their stories with you.
Ambition, Motherhood, and the Hardest Business Decisions
In this episode of Work This Way, Nikola Pottinger shares her journey from driving a Cadbury van to building and ultimately closing her own craft subscription business, Little Miss Sew'n'Sew. With honesty and reflection, Nikola talks about how ambition shaped her early career and the realities of balancing big goals with motherhood.
She explores launching a fabric shop, pivoting into e-commerce, and experiencing rapid growth during the COVID-19 pandemic. But as demand shifted post-pandemic, overstocking and financial pressure led to some of the toughest decisions of her life, including voluntary liquidation.
Nikola opens up about the emotional impact of that chapter, the lessons learned from listening to both heart and head, and how those experiences shaped her next step as an operations manager at FOUNDRY. A candid conversation about resilience, perspective, and starting again.
23 Dec 2025
Finding Stability After a Life at Sea
In this episode of Work This Way by FOUNDRY, we sit down with Hanna Searle, a FOUNDRY team member whose journey has taken her from cruise ship stages to community building in FOUNDRY Eastbourne. Hanna shares what it was like growing up by the coast and spending years travelling the world as a professional singer at sea.
When COVID brought the cruise industry to a halt, Hanna returned home to face a series of personal challenges, including the loss of her father, career uncertainty, and navigating her husband’s complex immigration situation. These experiences forced an unexpected career shift and a complete rethink of her path.
Hanna eventually found her place at FOUNDRY as a Membership Manager, where community and connection are at the heart of her work. This episode is a powerful story of resilience, family, and how life’s detours can lead you exactly where you’re meant to be.
16 Dec 2025
Refundee vs the Scammers: How One Startup Recovered £100 Million
In this episode of Work This Way by FOUNDRY, we sit down with Stuart McFadden, founder of Refundee, recording live from FOUNDRY Wandsworth in London. Stuart shares his career journey from studying law to working in financial services during the 2009 financial crisis, before experiencing the highs and lows of startup life at Monzo.
After a short stint at NatWest, Stuart co-founded Refundee in 2021, bootstrapping the business with minimal funding. Refundee helps victims of financial scams recover money from banks, tackling increasingly complex and modern fraud schemes.
Stuart discusses the ethical responsibility behind the work, the importance of transparency, and building a strong remote-first company culture. With nearly £100 million recovered for clients, Refundee is on a mission to lead the industry while protecting consumers.
Who has been a guest on Work This Way
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Christel Cowdrey
Adam Howie
Pam D’Alessandro
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
YouTube views
502
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Podcast Authority Score: 38 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
50
Social presence
0
YouTube
66
Engagement
0
Contact Work This Way
Guest appearances
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