There's an old chestnut that asks whether an entrepreneur is born or made and I think it's a combination of both. You need the talent; without the talent you can't do it.

One of the things I preach to all my staff is never be frightened to make a decision.

The thing I preach constantly is do your research; build your knowledge base. Don't just go into business on a whim or a prayer - and don't think 'I'm an entrepreneur so I have to take risks'. Entrepreneurs don't take risks. They take calculated risks; only the good ones.

You can have a worldwide shop from your bedroom. You can do things that weren't even dreamed of when I started off in business. It's why technology is the most wonderful thing for small businesses.

The Internet means everything to everybody and it's growing by the day. You can't survive as a business, especially a small business, without having some form of good Internet presence; whether you're a shop or it's a showcase or just a way to talk to your customers.

There's not much difference between a fantasist and a visionary. We all have dreams and without dreams in business, I don't believe you can be successful. The trick is to turn them into reality.

The Internet is where we all go to for the first stop of information. It's not the library any more, it's the Internet and if I want to find out about Kate Russell, what do I do? I Google Kate Russell. Simple as that.