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Simon Woodroffe
London Entrepreneur of the Year (1999), Simon Woodroffe OBE is the founder and creative driving force behind YO! The brand includes YO! Sushi, the chain of internationally famous conveyor belt sushi bars and YOTEL, the world’s most radical hotel: luxury in just 10sq metres. In June 1999 Simon was named the Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year in recognition of his success. Simon is a charismatic and engaging speaker with a very personal story on how he has built up YO! and the future for businesses in the next century.
Motivational Speaker
Simon Woodroffe has an energising presence. He is an outstanding motivational speaker and is warmly received wherever he speaks. On certain engagements he can be accompanied by the YO! roadshow which brings the delights of sushi to conferences and seminars. And occasionally, he can even be persuaded to sing!
Speaking Topics
- Business Development and Innovation
- Can I?: Constant And Never Ending Innovation
- Stop Doing What You’re Not Good At
- Successful People Fail
- You Are What You Think
- There Are No Rules
- Being Outrageous
- Stop Planning
- If You’re Not On The Edge You’re Not Living
- Everybody Is An Entrepreneur
- Enterprise / Creativity / Motivation
- Thinking / Action / Change
The Early Years
After leaving school at sixteen, Simon spent almost thirty years in the entertainment business. Through the 1970s and 1980s his production companies, based in London and Los Angeles, designed rock 'n' roll stages for artistes like Rod Stewart, The Moody Blues and Stevie Wonder, and events like Live Aid.
A natural progression led Simon into television at the start of the 1990s. He spearheaded the development of television deals to show huge international rock concerts worldwide, organising the financing and distribution of the Nelson Mandela concerts, shows for Amnesty International and the Prince's Trust concerts. His television production deals included Japan's number one pop show, Hit Studio International.
Simon believes that a divorce at the beginning of the 90s opened his eyes to the character defects that had held him back. This allowed him to develop personally and to lead a team using many of the tools he learnt in that development.
The Yo! Story
YO! Sushi was born out of Simon's feel for entertainment. YO! is developing as a lifestyle brand and has grown naturally out of the initial restaurant concept. Simon's focus is now on the international market and there are various developments taking place to promote the YO! brand across Europe and into the United States. YO! intends to be a brand in multiple market sectors delivering luxurious concepts at accessible prices.
Dragon's Den
Together with Doug Richard, Duncan Bannatyne and Rachel Elnaugh, Simon Woodroffe was one of the Dragons in the first series of BBC2's Dragon's Den.
Awards for Simon & Yo! Sushi
Simon won a 1999 Entrepreneur of the Year Award (Ernst & Young) and is a part of the CBI / BCC Ambassador of Entrepreneurism campaign. He was a finalist in the Real Business Awards Entrepreneur of the Year 1999. For YO! Sushi he has received awards from Design Week (Best Restaurant) Marketing Week 1998 - Design Effectiveness Awards 1998 and Best Web Site for Hospitality Solutions 1999. For his services to the hospitality industry, he was an awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours 2006.
The Yo! Literature
- Yo! Sushi
