EP 59 - Building and Dominating a Niche Market, From Fear to Discipline & Resilience w/Emma April
In this episode of The 1% Better Recruitment Podcast, I’m joined by Emma April, Founder of HuntStart Consulting, a specialist recruitment firm working with FX brokers and fintech companies across Cyprus, the UAE, and beyond. We dig into Emma’s journey from HR in Cyprus to recruitment in London, the fear that held her back from starting her own agency, and the huge personal challenges she faced along the way — including a miscarriage and the loss of her father just weeks after resigning to launch her business. From building out the Cyprus desk at her previous firm to now dominating her niche market, Emma shares raw lessons every recruiter and founder needs to hear. We also dive into how she built her reputation in a competitive industry, why discipline and time management are the real differentiators, and what it truly takes to dominate your ICP as a recruiter. This is a practical and inspiring conversation about resilience, consistency, and building a recruitment business that lasts. We cover: ✅ How to build a desk from scratch in a new market ✅ Why specialising in your ICP beats being a generalist ✅ Time management & consistency as recruiter superpowers ✅ The role of mentors in early career success ✅ Grit, resilience & discipline as the real differentiators ✅ Shifting from personal brand to company brand ✅ Why mistakes are part of building any business ✅ What makes a truly great recruiter in 2025 Whether you’re a recruiter trying to build your market, or a founder scaling through adversity, this episode is packed with lessons you won’t hear in most recruitment podcasts. Timestamps: 00:00 – Intro & welcome 01:20 – Emma’s background in HR & move from Cyprus to London 07:00 – Early career in FX & fintech recruitment 13:30 – Quitting on day one and rebuilding from scratch 18:30 – Building out the Cyprus desk and finding her niche 24:00 – Facing the fear of starting her own agency 29:00 – Leaving comfort vs betting on yourself 36:30 – The investor who gave her the push to launch 39:30 – Personal challenges: miscarriage & losing her father 45:00 – Starting Hunt Stop properly in August 2024 48:00 – How to build and dominate a niche market 52:00 – The 3 keys to building a desk: consistency, time management, mentors 58:00 – Why discipline matters more than hacks 01:04:00 – Listening to your gut as a founder 01:08:00 – Mistakes, resilience & founder lessons 01:09:30 – Emma’s 1% Better tip Connect with Emma April 🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emma-april/ Connect with Charles Kyriakou 🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charleskyriakou1/ 🔗 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@charles.kyriakou 🔗 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/1-better-recruitment-podcast/id1775201502 🔗 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/46LjJfwLJ5MxzTQWqogOBN 🔗 LinkedIn Newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7244346543967731712
