From Sporting Dinners to Sustainable Office Solutions – The Entrepreneurial Journey of Karl Ward
Welcome to the very first episode of Founder Diaries, a brand-new RecTalk podcast hosted by Nitin Sharma. In this launch episode, Nitin sits down with Karl Ward, Managing Director of Office Recycling Solutions, to explore a remarkable entrepreneurial journey that spans from organising corporate sporting dinners with legends like George Best and Jack Charlton, to building one of the UK’s most respected office furniture recycling businesses. Karl shares how rugby shaped his values, why people buy from people they like, and how spotting an opportunity in the waiting list for a local sporting club led him to create a thriving events business. After selling that company, he took a leap into the world of sustainable office furniture—buying a struggling business in 2009 and transforming it into a multi-million-pound operation with a strong focus on quality, customer trust, and environmental responsibility. We dive into: * How rugby instilled leadership, respect, and teamwork that shaped Karl’s business style * Building a corporate events empire from scratch and rubbing shoulders with sporting heroes * The decision to sell and the challenges of “what next?” as a young entrepreneur * Buying a failing office furniture company and scaling it into a profitable £6M+ business * The balance between traditional sales, showrooms, and cutting-edge digital marketing (SEO, PPC, Meta campaigns) * The role of resilience through the pandemic and the importance of empowering a younger, digital-savvy workforce * Why sustainability and re-use in office furniture is smarter for businesses, budgets, and the planet Karl’s philosophy is simple: do what you love, surround yourself with great people, treat everyone with respect, and success will follow. Who this episode is for: * Recruitment and business leaders looking for inspiration on resilience and growth * Entrepreneurs navigating career pivots or exploring new industries * Founders wanting to balance tradition with digital-first strategies * Anyone curious about how sustainability and business can thrive together 🔗 Connect with Karl Ward LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karlaward/ Office Recycling Solutions: https://ors-recycle.co.uk/ 🔗 Connect with Nitin Sharma LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/ Rectools.io: https://www.rectools.io/ Find out about the Recruitment Curry Club: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/ RecTalk will return soon! New episodes drop every Wednesday and Friday. Founder Diaries is planned to be a weekly series, with new episodes every Monday.
