As 2024 gradually draws to a close and we find ourselves well into the new millennium, British-Asian businesses are undeniably flourishing: this is the positive truth. However, the cultural zeitgeist does not always reflect such success where there are still comparatively less British-Asian-owned businesses at the top. This reciprocally fuels an ongoing insecurity among budding young minority entrepreneurs who have all the ambition but not necessarily a strong sense of public support. Ultimately, there is an undermining negative impact. Here, Amardeep, co-founder of Bae HQ, seeks to bilaterally bridge the social gap. His rising platform, British-Asian entrepreneurs HQ, is a collective space for building underrepresented business and passionately proactive in its quest too.
***
“There are a few aspects of the enterprise,” Amar shared, “such as media, events and active guidance that aim to help British-Asians do better by working together: we do podcasts that share British-Asian business success stories and coverage of up-and-coming startups too called BAEWatch! When you see others who are like you thriving, it becomes more of a reality: first within and hopefully as a result more in the world. On the events side, we have partnered with organizations such as Amazon, Google and HSBC so that our members have access to influential people who see and believe in them. Finally, on the educational and opportunities side, we have school talks and mentors that can really take people to the next level: from connecting to the right leaders to learning about business and start-ups, the tech involved and scaling up.” Going beyond simply networking then Bae HQ focuses on mutually affirmative commercial growth. Indeed, inclusivity is a value that Amar decidedly drives. He stated: “signing up is completely free and we welcome people of all backgrounds. In this way, our tutorship gives young people from disadvantaged backgrounds more of a chance e.g. if you come from a richer household, you would automatically have a step up – those who are not so lucky benefit from the extra resource. We offer general help for companies to get funding too, including the opportunity to find Angel investors. There is a genuine move towards fostering interconnectedness.”
One of Bae HQ’s favorite stories is Dimple Patel’s: she grew up on a council estate in Leeds and has sold two companies and is now CEO of NatureMetrics with £50 million raised. The good-natured businessman elaborated on his ethos: “Often entrepreneurial British-Asians are competing with one another rather than forming solidarity, but ultimately we face the same adversity: we are essentially the same. That is why we are open to any entrepreneur from a minority background – shared passion and building connections with other communities is key.” Amar began the innovative cosmopolitan hub following a feeling of disconnection he experienced first-hand during the height of his career prior which was centred on rapid creator growth. Born in Ilford, Amar would later go on to complete a degree in Economics at the University of Bath, including one year with the Bank of England, and become a tech consultant: “I pursued the route of a reputable job that guaranteed security,” he commented, “ but in the meantime, I was always experimenting with work on the side. Eventually, with the support of my dad, I swapped careers entirely to become a ghost-writer for some very big names. Many of my clients were from Silicon Valley. This led to more typically creative work altogether – doing podcasts with different interesting entrepreneurs such as the founders of Netflix and Twitter! However, I noticed that many of the people I was interviewing were older white men – I wanted to make professional entrepreneurial friends in the UK, but my days were being spent on the phone to Americans in LA while my friends at home all had day jobs. That’s where my idea to create an accessible empowering network started to grow. Another catalyst was the passing away of my dad in 2022. He had been so emotionally supportive of my taking risks and was also someone who helped a lot of people. He could have focussed more on high-profile clients but he would welcome everybody with all sorts of problems.”
Indeed, Amar cites both his parents as a constant source of inspiration: “my mother was a pivotal figure in my life too. She was always there for me personally and encouraged me to think independently. If I didn’t have that familial warmth, I’m not sure I would have arrived at where I am today. It was huge.” Other role models for Amar include the creator of the Washing Machine Project, Navjot Sawhney, who “wanted to give people their dignity back, inventing a washing machine that could be used by refugees in warzones.” Another is Radha Vyas “who lost £20 million with her travel company during the pandemic but had the resilience to get back to where she is today!” In terms of what Amar learned most from his professional trajectory, he told us: “when working with influential people, from senators to CEOs, you realise that everybody is just human and struggling with similar problems – we shouldn’t put people on a pedestal. We all have the same fears and insecurities underneath. It is the courage to push forward and believe that you can do well that differentiates you so don’t be afraid to put yourself out there!” To conclude, Amar left us with some parting advice on how to achieve rapid entrepreneurial expansion: “both in terms of generating revenue for a start-up or boosting your social media, think about how you fit an audience – do you understand the people you are serving? A lot of the time, people build according to what they believe is cool, but does it necessarily speak to your consumer? Business-wise, think of addressing the problems that people actually need solving; content-wise, they might want a certain type of entertainment or a workable approach to a challenge that they don’t know how to deal with themselves – can you give them a solution that helps?” Finally, Amar reveals a wider overarching principle: the more we connect to those around us, the stronger the version is of ourselves. Although existing individually, people are also social beings who require anchoring in their environment to feel truly whole. Amar aptly commented: “building confidence alone isn’t the objective– you’ve got to give people faith and the tangible tools to collaborate.” In this way, the external landscape can restoratively elevate an inner one.
