Episode 006: Hayley Parsons OBE
Coming from a council estate in Wales to creating a multi-billion pound industry and two of the most famous brands in the UK, Hayley Parsons OBE is a one-of-a-kind entrepreneur.
In this rare interview, Hayley talks about how she created Confused.com while working at Admiral, and how being overlooked for the CEO role was "the best thing that ever happened" to her, as it spurred her on to create GoCompare.
Hayley went on to build and sell GoCompare for £100m, creating one of the most memorable characters in all of advertising in the process - Gio Compario - remarking "I wanted to create the most annoying ad possible!"
Since selling, Hayley became the first woman to serve on Cardiff Rugby's board when she was appointed a non-executive director.
She wrote a passionate and much-publicised letter to the Welsh Rugby Union, in which she highlighted "a long-standing and deep-rooted culture of toxicity and bullying", and called for change and for the CEO to step down. She said, "I believe the board, in its current state, does not possess the expertise and experience to run the WRU, which is essentially a £100m company."
In this wide-ranging conversation, we talk about a drunken visit to 10 Downing Street, obsession, curiosity and more.
Listen to full episode :
006: Hayley Parsons OBE on The Starting Line Podcast
