Maddy Alexander-Grout, CEO and Founder, My VIP Rewards
Maddy Alexander-Grout is a multi-award-winning entrepreneur passionate about helping business owners engage with their people. She founded My VIP Card in 2017 to help people shop locally and support their community.
Four years on and newly renamed My VIP Rewards has grown to a National brand helping thousands of people save money on their everyday lives, helping charities and business owners be more involved with their teams and their local community.
Maddy is also in the process of launching business number two, a social media app for parents called Parenthood App.
What is your favourite social media platform, and why?
LinkedIn is my favourite, and I love educating people on employee engagement! But I am a bit of an Instagram fanatic too.
Tell us about you and your current role or area of interest.
As CEO of My VIP Rewards, my main role is to educate people on the benefits of people. Your people are the heart of your organisation, and looking after them is really important. We are not a normal employee benefits company.
We work with employers to make sure their staff have tailored offers they will love and that the business is supporting local independent businesses and charities. We also help businesses with their onboarding strategy and offer new starter boxes to welcome new employees.
What do you like about your career or area of focus?
I am hugely passionate about helping people. I have created an ecosystem that helps everyone involved, and it’s incredibly rewarding. Not only does it help employers to retain and recognise their staff, but it also helps to keep money flowing locally and helps small businesses to stay afloat.
What is the best advice you have ever received?
Do one thing every day to push your business forward.
What inspires you, motivates you, or helps you to move forward?
Knowing that I am helping people. I love it when a business tells me that their staff love my product or when a small business gets a customer from us.
What are you proud of in your life so far?
I raised 84k through Crowdcube earlier this year in an equity crowdfunding campaign, and it was the hardest thing I have ever done.
What is your preferred way to meet new people/network?
LinkedIn is great for making new business buddies, but I also regularly network, and I do a clubhouse room called the UK business owners lounge every weekday morning.
What skills or qualities do you feel have helped you?
I am an empath, and I really feel what other people are going through; I have had a tough journey myself, so I really feel like I can understand others. In addition, I am a specialist in my field, and I have a great deal of experience in recruitment and HR. So, I am confident I can help people with their processes.
What do you wish you had known when you started out?
How much money does building a tech product needs 😂 it’s hard being a female founder and getting investment.
Who do you most admire in business, academic or creative circles and why?
Will Shu, the founder of Deliveroo, I really want our consumer side to take off like that.
Outside of your professional/work area, what hobbies or interests do you have or what other areas of your life are of real importance to you?
I have two kids, and I love taking them out and spending time with them. I am a huge live music fan; I regularly to go festivals and gigs. I love reading and dancing too.
Has the pandemic had a positive or a negative effect on you and/or your business, and how have you managed it?
It’s really hard to say, a bit of both. We had a product that was pretty useless during the pandemic, you couldn’t use over half of our offers, but we bought everything online and made it covid accessible. I pushed so hard to refine the business model, and I stayed visible. We completely remodelled the business and took a different direction. It was really hard, and I haven’t stopped in a year and a half, but I think overall, even though we had a terrible year of sales, it helped us to grow.
Do you have a mentor, or have you ever mentored anyone?
I have Barclay’s mentor through my co-working space. I mentor people quite frequently for free, and it’s part of the service we offer to people who advertise with us.
What advice would you have for someone looking to get into the same area of work or interests?
Find investors early on, and it’s much harder when you are established.
What do you feel is the most common reason for people failing or giving up?
Losing interest in what they are doing, or not feeling successful. I think success is really down to mindset.
Is there a phrase, quote or a saying that you really like?
“Stay in your own lane.”
What companies, brands, or institutions do you like or do you think are getting it right?
I’m really impressed by Cinch, and they seem to be everywhere at the moment.
How do you define success, and what lessons have you learned so far that you could share with our audience/readership?
It’s weird other people always tell me I’m smashing it, and I don’t always see it. But then I look at the adversity I have faced and feel proud that I haven’t given up. It’s been a tough few years. But, I do something every day to push myself forward, and it really makes a difference. My biggest advice is to be visible, say yes to things even if you are not sure. All it takes is for the right person to read that blog or listen to that podcast!