Nick Wood: Fruitboost

Nick Wood
Age: 27
Company: Fruitboost

Nick Wood and his brother’s two North West-based smoothie bars have proved so successful in their first year of trading that competitors have been spotted outside trying to steal their secrets. According to Wood it’s a simple recipe of fresh fruit drinks and great customer service modelled on the $1bn US juice bar industry. All drinks are made on-site and staff attend the Fruitboost Juice Academy before being let loose on the shop floor. Started with Prince’s Trust and SFLG loans, the pair are currently considering their financial options to fund roll-out in 2006, as well as looking to establish industry standard regulations for smoothies and fruit drinks.

2017 update:

Fruitboost grew to £600,000 turnover, with stores across Liverpool and Chester. On the back of this success, the company planned to roll out the concept to fifty sites across the UK and appointed a board of angel investors including a retired McDonalds CDO to oversee its growth and a possible AIM flotation. However, Wood decided to halt business growth in light of the recession, selling stores and paying back investors. Since 2004, Wood has been a director at Boost Group Consulting, undertaking projects for a variety of start-ups and growing businesses. He jointly created Storage Boost Self Storage in 2006, which operates three self-storage facilities in Cheshire and Staffordshire. In 2012 he co-founded Socialsignin – a dashboard to help large and medium organisations manage and monitor social media across one or multiple departments or locations.