James Layfield: The Lounge

James Layfield
Age: 32
Company: The Lounge

Layfield ran Richard Branson's D3 and realised that there was another way of understanding the youth market than, as he says, “wearing swanky jeans and getting a trendy haircut”. Consequently, with Sarah Gill, he created The Lounge, an experiential marketing company for companies wanting to reach the 18-30 age group. With Virgin as his first client, it wasn't long before the likes of Microsoft and Samsung signed up, helping Layfield generate a £1.5m turnover. Just a year into its creation, Layfield is looking to apply the same concept to a PR firm.

2013 update:

Layfield continued to run The Lounge successfully until 2012 when he exited the business, having already started his next venture, Central Working – a London-based hub for start-up companies. Central Working has since grown to three sites across London and is expected to help 22,000 digital businesses grow over the next four years.